Better/Nedor/Standard (Indicia: "Better Publications, Inc."). May, 1941. VG (4.0). Spine toned and a bit rolled, with halo of discoloration to back cover near the staples. Staples pulled. Small chips to spine ends and bottom corner of front cover, a few nicks. Inside covers toned. Colors bright. Off-white pages. Page count: 68 pp. including covers. Small penciled distributor's mark above "O" in "COMICS" ("B"). Cover by Kin Platt. Scripts by Richard Hughes and Ray McGill. Art by Kin Platt, Elmer Wexler, George Mandel, Ray McGill.

A charmingly naïve comic mag from the early days of the Golden Age, when the gap in artistic skill between the artists and their young readers seemed tantalizingly breachable. Michael Chabon captures the slapdash appeal of the early Golden Age in his Pulitzer Prize-winning novel about the comics biz, The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay: "Lines grew tentative, poses awkward, compositions static, backgrounds nonexistent. Feet, notoriously difficult to draw in realistic depth, all but disappeared from the panels, and noses were reduced to the simplest variations on the twenty-second letter of the alphabet.... [But] there was considerable vitality here, too, and a collective Depression-born urge toward self-improvement, and even the occasional talented hard-luck competent pencilman...."

A limited edition of 100 softcover and 15 hardcover catalogues are available. Over 200 pages, fully illustrated. Fun reference, great keepsake. Softcovers $40, dust-jacketed hardcover with limitation plate $200. To order, contact ivan@pbagalleries.com or call 415-989-2665

R. Crumb says, "I found [PBA's catalogue] so interesting that I am saving it for the texts that accompany the comics which were put up for auction. This is some of the best commentary I've yet seen on the quality of the content of comic books. I especially enjoyed the reviews of the post-war horror comics. Great. Priceless."

Consignments welcome for PBA's Spring 2021 Comic Book sale. Pre-Code Horror, Golden Age and Silver Age comics, original art and ephemera sought. Send inquiries to ivan@pbagalleries.com or call 415-989-2665