DALLAS – The Man of Steel soared to $360,000 and a page of original art from one of the best-loved Batman/Joker stories of all time brought a winning bid of $156,000 to lead Heritage Auctions’ Comics & Comic Art Auction July 9-12. Superman #1 (DC, 1939) CGC VG/FN 5.0 in off-white pages is the first title ever devoted to a single superhero. The issue is a timeless prize that can be the centerpiece of any serious collection, and the copy offered in this sale is one of the ten best copies of the title ever certified by CGC. The volume includes four Superman stories contributed to Action Comics by Siegel and Shuster, as well as a new origin story and four previously unpublished pages.

Few comic books have had such long-lasting effects on the entire DC Universe as Killing Joke, which was one of Alan Moore’s best-written stories, one of Brian Bolland’s best-drawn tales, and one of the best ever Batman/Joker properties. Original artwork from Brian Bolland, Batman: The Killing Joke Story Page 2 (DC, 1988) comes from the artist’s 1988 collaboration with Alan Moore, which has influenced almost every Dark Knight tale since. The nine-panel slice of noir – featuring Batman and Commissioner Gordon striding past Arkham Asylum cells filled with villains, Two-Face among them – opened at $62,500. Then bidders tussled over the coveted page, pushing it past its $100,000 estimate to its final sale price of $156,000, the highest Heritage has yet realized for a page from that influential book.

A more extensive recap will follow in a future issue.