A Single First Edition Sells for Billions? ... The 10-Cent Twist Makes You Want to Check Your Bookshelves

Superman First Edition Sells for 21.9 Billion KRW
1938 Issue Auctioned to Anonymous Buyer

The 1938 first edition of the 'Superman' comic, once owned by Hollywood actor Nicolas Cage, was sold at auction for 21.9 billion KRW, setting a new record for the highest price ever paid for a comic book.

First edition of the 'Superman' comic sold for $15 million (21.9 billion KRW) at auction. ComicConnect homepage.

According to BBC and other media outlets on January 10 (local time), the comic book auction house Metropolis Collectibles-ComicConnect in New York announced the previous day that an anonymous collector had purchased the 1938 first edition of the 'Superman' comic for $15 million (approximately 21.9 billion KRW). The company stated that this price is "the highest ever" for a comic book. The transaction was conducted privately, and the identities of both the buyer and the seller remain undisclosed.

When this comic book was first released, its price was just 10 cents. Even when adjusted for today's currency, that would be about $2.25 (3,200 KRW). This first edition marks the debut of Superman, and it is credited with playing a significant role in establishing the superhero genre as a staple of popular culture in the mid-20th century. It is estimated that fewer than 100 copies of the 'Superman' first edition remain worldwide.

Comic book grading company CGC awarded this first edition a score of 9 out of 10, indicating that it is extremely well-preserved with only minor flaws.

First edition of the 'Superman' comic sold for $15 million (21.9 billion KRW) at auction. ComicConnect website.

The comic book that was auctioned off this time became even more famous due to its history of being stolen after having been owned by Nicolas Cage.

Cage purchased this first edition in 1996 for $150,000 (220 million KRW), but it was stolen during a party at his home in 2000. The comic book resurfaced 11 years later in 2011, when it was found in a storage unit in California. After recovering the first edition, Cage put it up for auction six months later and sold it for $2.2 million (3.2 billion KRW).

Stephen Fishler, CEO of Metropolis Collectibles-ComicConnect, commented, "The value of this first edition has soared over the past 11 years," adding, "The thief ended up making Cage a lot of money."

Meanwhile, in November last year, another first edition of the 'Superman' comic was sold at auction for $9.12 million (1.33 billion KRW). The original expected sale price was around $6 million (880 million KRW). That copy set a new record for the highest price ever paid for a comic book at auction, far surpassing expectations, but it has now been overtaken by the latest sale of the same first edition.

Superman was created by comic artists Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster and was first published in 1938, making his debut in the anthology series 'Action Comics.'