Heading: A Gerber 9""
Author:
Title: The BIG BOOK OF FUN COMICS
Place Published:
Publisher:DC [Indicia: National Allied Publications Inc.]
Date Published: [November] 1935
Description: Fair (1.0). Slight amateur restoration. Spine reinforced with glue, 5" glue-sealed tear to front cover near spine, tape reinforcement to part of right edge and bottom edge of inside front cover, rubs and frays to spine, touch of rust to top staple, back cover corners chipped, a few small chips and short tears, handling creases to covers, heavy soiling to back cover, some foxing to covers, small dampsoiling spot to bottom right corner of all pages, foxing to edges of first and last leaves, some internal edge tears. Tan pages. Provenance: The DC UNIVERSE COLLECTION.

Overstreet: "Very rare. Reprints New Fun #1-5." CGC Census: Not listed (CGC does not grade tabloid-sized comics). Gerber's Photo-Journal Guide Scarcity Index: 9 ("Very rare: 6-10 copies"). Sales Data: Heritage has sold five copies since they began selling comic books in 2001: a Qualified "VF/NM" (Lost Valley pedigree) for $9560 in 2010; a "FN+" for $14,400 in 2022; a "VF" for $13,145 in 2006; a "FN/VF" for $7170 in 2007; and a "VG/FN" for $4780 in 2007.

Credits: Cover: Various (cover is a patchwork of interior panels). Scripts: Major Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson, Vin Sullivan, Henry Kiefer, Whitney Ellsworth, Ken Fitch, Joe Archibald, Tom Cooper, Dick Loederer, Adolphe Barreaux, Tom McNamara, John Lindermayer, Leighton Budd, Jack Warren. Art: W.C. Brigham, Vin Sullivan, Henry Kiefer, Whitney Ellsworth, Clem Gretter, Charles Flanders, Joe Archibald, Monroe Eisenberg, Tom Cooper, Dick Loederer, Adolphe Barreaux, Tom McNamara, John Lindermayer, Leo O'Mallea, Ed Stevenson, Raymond Perry, Leighton Budd, Jack Warren.Tapped by Taschen: The DC Universe Collection copy of The Big Book of Fun Comics is illustrated in Taschen's 75 Years of DC Comics: The Art of Modern Mythmaking (page 13), with the following commentary: "DC would introduce superhero reprint collections with its 'Annuals' 24 years later, but originated the concept with this collection, reproducing the first four issues of New Fun in their entirety. Some 60 years later, DC revived the 'Big Book' title for a series of black-and-white trade paperbacks from its Paradox Press imprint."

"The experiment that was New Fun had not yet imploded, so Wheeler-Nicholson sought to expand his readership while minimizing the costs needed to secure writers and artists for original material. The result was The Big Book of Fun Comics, a standalone, forty-eight page reprint of New Fun #1-4 with a cardboard cover. The special comic was advertised in regular issues of New Fun, though the idea of an 'annual' consisting of reprinted material did not survive this first installment." — Alan Cowsill, Alex Irvine & others, DC Comics Year By Year: A Visual Chronicle. DK Publishing: 2012, p. 13.****************************************
The DC UNIVERSE COLLECTION comprises over 40,000 comic books, encompassing every single DC comic published for retail sale from 1934 to 2014. The collection was amassed by British music producer Ian Levine over the course of several decades, and it's been hailed as the single greatest collecting accomplishment in comic book history. This collection served as the basis for former DC Comics president Paul Levitz's monumental book 75 Years of DC Comics: The Art of Modern Mythmaking, published by Taschen in 2017. PBA is proud to present this epic collection in a series of themed sales, including The DC UNIVERSE COLLECTION Part 3: The GOLDEN AGE, coming this summer. To join the DC Universe Collection notifications list, contact pba@pbagalleries.com.

Enjoying PBA's DC Universe Collection: Pre-Hero, Ashcans and Oddities sale? A very small number of softcover and limited edition hardcover auction catalogues are available for purchase. The catalogues are fully illustrated, thoroughly researched, and make excellent reference works for DC diehards. To order a copy, or to inquire about consignment opportunities, contact Ivan Briggs, PBA's Director of Comics: ivan@pbagalleries.com.