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Action Comics No. 1 Sold for $3.2 Million, Features Superman and a 1937 DeSoto

Would you believe that someone has paid a whopping $3.2 million dollars for this very example of Action Comics #1 from 1938? That amount of green dollar bills would get you a pristine condition 250 series Ferrari, but hey, comic book enthusiasts are pretty similar to us petrolheads in more than one way.
Action Comics No. 1 1 photo
Photo: eBay
Auctioned on eBay with 1 percent of proceeds going to Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, this bit of comic book history is regarded as the finest known copy of the most sought after comic book in the world. The seller noted that Superman's comic book debut still has perfectly white pages. Moreover, Action Comics No. 1 is believed to have sparked what enthusiasts call the golden age of comic books. Although it cost 10 cents back in June 1938, it's believed that only 50 to 100 copies exist nowadays.

"The quality and preservation of the Adams Action #1 is astounding," explains Paul Litch, CGC primary grader. "The book looks and feels like it just came off the newsstand. It is supple, the colors are deep and rich, and the quality of the white pages is amazing for a comic that is 76 years old." This author is not that big a fan of comics, but take a look at the cover and you'll get why Action Comics #1 is significant to gearheads too.

That's Superman smashing a green 1930s car into a rock, with some people running and a tire flying in the background. Although Superman is not that mysterious of a subject these days, the green machine is one of the comic book world's biggest enigma's ever. At first I thought that was a 1938 Chrysler Wimbledon similar to the one owned by The Who's drummer Keith Moon. But there seemed to be a styling difference between the green car and the 1938 Wimbledon's front grille.

After a little bit of further documentation, turns out that Superman is holding a 1937 DeSoto touring sedan. Back in the 1930s, Chrysler was making very similar touring sedans under the Chrysler, Dodge, DeSoto and Plymouth brands, but detail for detail, the 1937 DeSoto seems to be the car featured.
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About the author: Mircea Panait
Mircea Panait profile photo

After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
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