The sale’s highest price, $131,344, was achieved by this Marvel X-Men #1 comic book, September 1963, with Stan Lee (1922-2018) story and Jack Kirby (1917-1994) art, CGC 9.2 NM- ($100/200,000).
YORK, PENN. — Hake’s $2.3 million auction held on November 18-19 fired the final salvo for their 2025 Premier Series in a year that, to date, has earned $12.5 million. A September 1963 issue of Marvel’s X-Men #1 comic book, CGC-graded 9.2 NM-, shot to the top of prices realized at the series’ season closer, attracting 13 bids before ending its uphill run at $131,334.
Within the Marvel pantheon, X-Men #1 is considered especially significant because it contains the origin story and first appearance of the X-Men — Professor X, Cyclops, Iceman, Angel Beast and Marvel Girl — as well as the villainous Magneto. The now-classic debut issue of X-Men was the product of a dynamic collaboration that paired Stan Lee’s storyline with Jack Kirby’s cover and interior art. Hake’s Auctions’ president, Alex Winter, observed that condition played a big role in attracting such a robust price: “The book we auctioned was a beautiful example of a key Silver Age comic, with very strong colors. It would be difficult to improve upon its condition, and that point would have been foremost in the minds of any bidder competing at that level.”
A Cox and Roosevelt 1920 jugate button was so well preserved, it still had its backing paper identifying Whitehead & Hoag Company, Newark, N.J., as its manufacturer. Graded near mint, and possibly a salesman’s sample, it was one of the finest of few known examples of its type. Formerly in the Roger Richert collection, it sold well above its high estimate for $50,740, a world-record price for this button in the ⅞-inch size.
Achieving a world record for the ⅞-inch size, this Cox and Roosevelt 1920 jugate button manufactured by the Whitehead & Hoag Company, Newark, N.J., sold for $50,740 ($20/35,000).
Created by Kenner in 1984 for photography purposes, a Star Wars: The Power of the Force (1985) Luke Skywalker (Imperial Stormtrooper outfit) first shot/photo sample action figure offered collectors the complete package. It was encapsulated, archivally cased, and AFA-graded 75 EX+/NM display. The figure depicted Skywalker with light brown hair with a prototype rubber Stormtrooper helmet. It is the only AFA-graded example, according to the current AFA Population Report, and conveyed to its new owner with a Collectible Investment Brokerage (CIB) LOA and a photo print of the figure signed and numbered by Kenner photographer Kim Simmons. It captured a world-record price of $33,748.
A circa 1847 Mormon plate bordered with a fancy double-garland border and portraits of brothers Hyrum and Joseph Smith above the Temple of Nauvoo (Illinois), considered a significant material-culture artifact of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, sold for $20,768, a record price for any Mormon ceramic. The decorative dark-brown transfer was likely based on an 1847 print published in London by Moses Martin. The coveted historical memento was formerly owned by renowned antique dealer Rex Stark, who once advertised that in his entire 34-year career he had never seen another example like it.
Luis Dominguez’s original pen-and-ink art for the cover of Ghosts #82, published by DC Comics in November 1979. The artwork was a quintessential example of the spooky style Dominguez perfected in the 1970s while working on Bronze Age horror comics. It sold above its high estimate, for $12,136.
Luis Dominguez’s (1923-2020) original pen-and-ink art for the cover of Ghosts #82, published by DC in November 1979, 11¼ by 17 inches, brought $12,136 ($2/10,000).
One of the most desirable of all Hasbro Transformers toys, a 1984 Series 1 Optimus Prime (Autobot Commander), AFA-graded 85 NM+, was offered in its original window box with intact tape seals at left and right, and no color breaks. As of auction day, only two examples of this toy had ever been graded higher, per the AFA Population Report. It was bid to $15,340.
A Transformers (1985) Series 2 Shockwave (Decepticon Operations) was graded AFA 80 NM and housed in its original box. It boldly made its presence known to kids of 40 years ago by illuminating and emitting sounds as it transformed from a laser gun to a robot and back. It reached a final price of $11,450.
Interest in the superstars of Negro League and pre-WWII Cuban baseball is growing rapidly among collectors of early sports memorabilia. Two photos with provenance from the famed Richard Merkin collection knocked it out of the park at Hake’s November sale, securing prices that “shut out” their estimates.
An original silver gelatin photograph of Pollock’s 1932 Cuban Stars baseball club, a famed lineup that was hailed in its day as being the “Cuban House of David,” was a visual bonanza. It depicted and identified 14 uniformed players including two prominent figures from Black baseball history and two other important US Negro League stars of the day. Its handwritten and signed inscription on verso indicated the photo was a gift from Lazaro Salazar to his mother. The glossy photo rounded the bases to slide home at $9,086.
Singed and inscribed by Lazaro Salazar, this original circa 1932 silver gelatin photograph of Pollock’s Cuban Stars baseball club, 8 by 10 inches, sold for $9,086 ($1/2,000).
A circa 1948-49 silver gelatin publicity photo of Hall of Famer Satchel Paige in his Cleveland Indians uniform bore a fountain-pen inscription on verso that read “Best Wishes From Satchel Paige To My Best Friend Orestes Minoso,” referring to fellow Hall of Famer “Minnie” Minoso. Accompanied by a JSA LOA, the historically-important picture unleashed its star power to slam in a winning bid of $7,211.
Prices quoted include the buyer’s premium as reported by the auction house. For information, www.hakes.com or 717-434-1600.
