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43 Mad Magazine Promotional Pin Sets

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Important Notice: Please note that the format of this auction differs from a traditional eBay Live auction in that only absentee bids are accepted. There is no live "bidding on the close" in which to participate. All lots offered in this auction will close at exactly the same time, as opposed to a traditional one at a time closing of lots, and therefore there is no live "one lot at a time" bidding close in which to participate. Your left bids will compete with all other left bids by auction participants. Bids may be placed on the eBay system at any time prior to 9:00 PM EST, May 1, 2004. No bids will be recognized or accepted when the eBay Live "live bidding applet" is run early in the morning of May 2, 2004 strictly for the purpose of officially registering and recording the final auction results.

Incredible Hoard of 43 Mad Magazine Promotional Pin Sets (24 Pins Per Set) Plus 987 Duplicates

Tremendous hoard of 43 complete 24-pin Mad magazine premium sets plus 987 assorted duplicates. In 1987 Mad magazine offered these pins as a special premium to subscribers. Three Mad pins were sent by mail to individuals who subscribed for three years. These pins were part of a 24-pin set which was produced by Mad specifically for this promotion. Each pin features a classic Mad magazine cover of the past. Complete sets were virtually impossible to put together due to the fact that only three pins could be obtained at a time, and only when ordering a three-year subscription. Most subscribers weren't even aware that there were 24 different pins to the set. Later, some of the remaining stock of pins were marketed for direct sale in stores in packs of two. These pins are an official Mad magazine promotional issue. Each pin reads "Copyright 1987 E.C. Publications, Inc MAD & Boy's Head Are Reg. T.M. of E.C.Publications, Inc" on the curl. Also on the curl is the manufacturer's credit which reads "Bi-Rite Enterprises, Inc Chicago, IL 60632." These pins were manufactured by Bi-Rite Enterprises of Chicago, a premium company which manufactured souvenir pins, posters, and various give-away premiums for hundreds of different companies. When Bi-Rite went out of business, approximately 350 complete sets and the 987 singles in this lot were among the millions of items representing the liquidated stock of the company. The sets and singles in this lot originate directly from the purchasers of Bi-Rite's assets in the early 1990s. If it were not for this find, there would be virtually no complete Mad pin sets in the entire collecting world. When the sets first appeared at auction, they were selling for well over $1,000 per set. (In fact, the first set offered in a major catalog auction sold for over $2,000.) As sets continued to be offered, and with the uncertainty of exactly how big the find was, the price quickly dropped to the low hundreds. 350 sets may sound like a lot, but based on similar finds of desirable issues of the past, this is not a tremendous number of sets. Collecting history suggests that with desirable issues, there is often great merit to the old saying that it is wise to "buy on the find." Mad subscriber pins are a significant and highly collectible official Mad premium issue which will always have a wide appeal to many different types of collectors. The fact that pin collecting has in recent years begun to "come into its own," and the fact that the grading of pins has begun and is now in its infancy make this substantial lot all the more interesting for the investor or dealer. All are in Nr/Mt-Mt to Mint condition. Total 43 complete sets (24 pins per set) plus 987 assorted singles (with much duplication) for a total of 2,019 pins. Reserve $1,000. Estimate $2,500/$5,000.

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