DALLAS — It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s … likely the most expensive comic book you could potentially own.
A nearly pristine copy of Action Comics No. 1, which features the first appearance of Superman and was first published in the spring of 1938, will be for sale through DFW-based Heritage Auctions April 4.
In addition to the first appearance of the Man of Steel, Action Comics No. 1, written by Jerry Siegel and drawn by Joe Shuster, marks the first appearance of perennial love interest Lois Lane and magician Zatara and is credited with creating the superhero genre.
“Without Superman and Action Comics No. 1, who knows whether there ever would have been a Golden Age of comics — or if the medium would have become what it is today,” said Heritage Auctions Vice President Barry Sandoval. “But we couldn’t be more excited to have the genesis of the superhero genre as a centerpiece of what’s shaping up to be a historic auction.”
Industry experts estimate only about 100 of the 200,000 copies of Action Comics No. 1 printed by DC Comics’ predecessor, National Allied Publications, survive, according to Heritage.
The sought-after copy is part of Heritage’s Comics and Comic Art Signature Action and is among the three best unrestored copies known to exist. It is professionally certified at a condition of 8.5 (out of 10). As of Friday evening, the high bid is more than $4.2 million, and the hammer doesn’t come down until April 1.
The current record for the highest-priced comic book is a copy of Superman No. 1, certified at a condition of 8 (out of 10) that sold for $5.3 million in a private sale in 2022.
Also up for auction in April is a three-page letter written by Siegel to comic artist Russell Keaton in 1934 outlining the concept for Superman.
For more information about Heritage Auction’s Comics and Comic Art Signature Collection, visit their website.
(Note: This video was posted March 23)
