Adventure Comics #40 (DC, 1939) CGC FN/VF 7.0

Adventure Comics #40 (DC, 1939) CGC FN/VF 7.0 Cream to off-white pages. This is the highest-graded unrestored copy of the scarcest DC key issue!

A look at the CGC census shows that the two other famously tough DC keys, More Fun #52 and All-American #16, are represented with 11 and 12 unrestored copies respectively, while this issue has a mere eight (and the likes of Detective #27 and the first issues of Action, Superman, Batman, and Flash all show significantly more blue-label copies). This is of course one of the ten most valuable comic book issues in the hobby, the debut of the Sandman in this series and thus the first superhero issue of one of DC's earliest and longest-running books. Creig Flessel's famous cover art only adds to the appeal. Overstreet once noted the Sandman's significance as "a transition crime fighter who stuck tenaciously to the trusty regalia of the pulp heroes," and when one compares this book's July 1939 cover date to key books like the aforementioned More Fun #52 and All-American #16 (both from 1940), its place in DC history becomes apparent.

Incidentally, the Mile High copy of this issue, to the best of our knowledge the only pedigree copy certified by CGC, has restoration (color touch), and was certified with an Apparent grade, so collectors holding out for the best blue-label specimen would be advised not to pass up this appealing copy. Overstreet 2008 FN 6.0 value = $15,000; VF 8.0 value = $37,500. CGC census 6/08: 1 in 7.0, none higher.

Shipping: Comics - Slabbed (certified) (view shipping information)

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