Superman debut comic sells for record $15 million

The comic book that introduced Superman to the world, a 1938 first edition of Action Comics once owned by Hollywood actor Nicolas Cage, sold for $15 million, or about 21.9 billion won, at a recent auction. The sale set an all-time record for a comic book.

According to U.S. comic book auction house ComicConnect on Jan. 11, a first edition of Action Comics No. 1, published by DC Comics in June 1938, was sold for $15 million to an anonymous collector in a private transaction on Jan. 9 local time. The comic originally sold for 10 cents, which is equivalent to slightly more than $2 in today’s dollars.

Action Comics No. 1 is the serialized comic magazine in which Superman made his first appearance. The issue is widely regarded as one of the most significant works in comic and film history because of its decisive role in popularizing the superhero genre worldwide. Fewer than 100 copies are believed to remain in existence.

The latest sale far exceeded the previous record for a comic book, which stood at $9.12 million. That record was also set by a first edition of Action Comics No. 1 sold at auction in November last year. Stephen Fishler, chief executive of Metropolis Collectibles and ComicConnect, which brokered the deal, said the price reflected the copy’s top condition as well as its unique history, including its ownership by Cage, its theft and its recovery 11 years later. He described the comic as “the Mona Lisa of comics.”

Cage purchased the first edition in 1996 for $150,000, but it was stolen during a party at his home in 2000. The comic resurfaced in 2011 after being discovered at a storage facility in California. Six months after its recovery, Cage put the book up for auction, where it sold for $2.2 million.


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