Beschreibung:

CGC certified: Fine/VF (7.0). Cream to off-white pages. STEVE DITKO COLLECTION. Cover: Steve Ditko pencils and inks, Stan Goldberg colors. Story: Stan Lee and Steve Ditko Art: Steve Ditko (back-up feature penciled by Jack Kirby and inked by Ditko). Colors: Stan Goldberg, Sam Rosen. Lettering: Artie Simek. Provenance: From the Steve Ditko Estate, CGC-certified as Steve Ditko's personal copy, and with a certificate of authenticity signed by Mr. Patrick S. Ditko, Steve Ditko's brother. Not cleaned and pressed in order to preserve all traces of Steve Ditko's handling. GPAnalysis: A non-Ditko Collection 7.0 sold for $1459 in 9/22. A Ditko Collection 5.5 sold for $1920 in 9/21. A note on the Ditko Collection: Steve Ditko owned from one to three copies of each of the 41 Spider-Man comics that he drew (comprising Amazing Fantasy #15, Amazing Spider-Man #s 1-38, and Amazing Spider-Man Annual #s 1 & 2). The only complete set of 41 Spidey comics belonging to Ditko is featured in this sale; an incomplete set of 23 Spidey comics was offered last year by another auction house; and a final incomplete set of 19 Spidey comics will be offered by PBA next year. Ditko Collection Census: There are two Ditko Collection copies of ASM #8: 5.5 and 7.0. This is the highest-graded copy. Peter Parker and Flash Thompson duke it out in what may be, in terms of pure wish-fulfillment, one of the most satisfying slugfests in Spidey history. What nerdy reader wouldn't thrill to see Pete finally facing up to his bully? Pete and Flash would eventually become pals, and later chronology ascribed Flash's bullying behavior to a childhood of parental abuse. One wonders if Pete and Flash's reconciliation was part of Lee and Ditko's plan from the start, considering Flash's rather soft characterization as a schoolyard tough: "Flash is often said to be a bully; but he never does anything really nasty. There is no stealing lunch money, hiding underwear or physical cruelty.... Flash merely plays practical jokes on Peter and takes the mickey out of his sprained arm. God knows, verbal bullying can be just as crippling as physical bullying, but the name-calling between Thompson and Parker is a two-way street. "Flash Thompson believes in an obsolescent code of masculine honour. According to this code, and according to his own lights, he generally does the right thing. He believes that, because of his strength and athletic prowess, he should be at the top of the pecking order — literally and figuratively the biggest man on campus. This may also be why he is such a big fan of Spider-Man; he positively wants to defer to any obviously stronger and more heroic male." — Andrew Rilstone, Listen Bud: The First Great Graphic Novel in American Literature. Unpublished manuscript, p. 108. Enjoying the Spidey Sale? Order a fully-illustrated softcover catalogue for 30 bucks. Only about 100 copies were printed and they're going fast. To reserve a copy, contact PBA's Director of Comics: [email protected] Consign to PBA Galleries. Our comic sales average a 98% sell-through rate, our prices realized are top-of-the-market, and our research-intensive catalogues are the best in the business. Seeking Silver Age Marvel, Golden Age superheroes, and pre-Code horror. Contact [email protected]