Putting together one of the best comic collections in America has always been a family affair for Gary Keller.
It began with visits to his grandparents' home when he was a boy in the 1960s. "They lived near Larry's Comic Book Store, which was on Devon Avenue in Chicago," Keller says. "I spent a lot of time there and that's what kind of got me going as a kid, just spending time in an old, damp, dusty, musty comic book shop and loving every second of it."
It helped that Keller's father liked comics as well, and often joined him on trips to the comic store. "My father was absolutely a comic collector," Keller says.
Nearly five decades later, Keller's collection is one of the best in the hobby. "From doing business with Gary over the years, we know he has an eye for quality," says Ed Jaster, vice president at Dallas-based Heritage Auctions (HA.com), which specializes in comic-book auctions. "But the other secret to his collecting success is support from the folks back home."
Growing up, Keller bought comics wherever he could find them. He picked them up at drugstores, but also sent away for the famous back-issue lists of vintage comic pioneers Robert Bell and Howard Rogofsky. In a stroke of collecting luck, the last book Keller bought off the stands before "discovering girls and other things" was 1974's Incredible Hulk No. 181, a favorite among collectors for its first full appearance of the popular Wolverine.
Keller returned to collecting in the late 1980s and by the late 1990s, success in business allowed him to take his comic interest to the next level. He expanded his focus to Golden Age comics and began snatching up Mile High pedigrees. "Since 1999, I have 'collected hard,' " Keller explains. "I bought books that were previously holy grails and unattainable. You get your hands on one of those Ernst Gerber Photo-Journals and tell yourself it would be cool to have this and this and this."
Now married with four daughters, Keller's support on the home front remains strong.
"My wife in particular is very understanding," he says. "Most wives' toes would curl if they knew their husband was spending these amounts on comic books. All I needed was a little bit of a green light! I got it, and I was off." On top of that, "All my daughters are heavily into comic books. Spider-Man and Captain America are their favorites."
Selections from Keller's collection will be featured in Heritage's vintage comics and comic art auction scheduled for May 20-21, 2010. Some of Keller's comics, such as DC's Adventure Comics #67 from 1941, graded in near-mint/mint condition, could fetch up to $45,000.
Although he's parting with some of his prized comics, including Golden Age Adventure Comics and Flash Comics, Keller says his collecting days are far from over. He's just focusing on his world-class toy and muscle-car collections, with full support from the wife and kids, of course.
ไม่มีความคิดเห็น:
แสดงความคิดเห็น