CGC-graded Tales of Suspense #39 Stands Out in Heritage Auction

Dozens of Marvel Silver Age classics that are graded by Certified Guaranty Company® (CGC®) can be found in the Key Comics Showcase presented by Heritage Auctions, on December 8, 2022.

Standing out in this auction is a Tales of Suspense #39 graded CGC 9.0 (lot 83115). Published by Marvel Comics in 1963, this comic features the first appearance of Iron Man by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber, Don Heck, Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko. In the comic, weapons manufacturer Tony Stark is injured and captured in Vietnam. He secretly creates an iron suit to help him escape and become Iron Man.

Stark/Iron Man continued to appear in Tales of Suspense and was a founding member of the Avengers in 1963, until the Tales of Suspense series shifted its attention to Captain America in 1968. Throughout the decades, Iron Man remained a fixture of the Marvel Universe. In 2008, the character debuted on screen, played by Robert Downey Jr., to launch the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Click images to enlarge.

The comic has become a favorite among collectors, often appearing in auctions but rarely in high grades. There are 2,673 copies of Tales of Suspense #39 in the CGC Census, but only 66 in grade 9.0 or higher. A CGC 9.6 copy set the bar high when it sold for $276,000 in 2017, and a CGC 9.0 was sold for $52,800 in 2019. This CGC 9.0 copy in the auction is expected to set a new grade-level record, with bidding already at $55,000.

Other CGC-graded comics in this auction include:

• an Amazing Fantasy #15 graded CGC 3.5 (lot 83004)
• a Fantastic Four #5 graded CGC 8.0 (lot 83058)
• a Journey into Mystery #83 graded CGC 7.0 (lot 83090)
• an Incredible Hulk #1 graded CGC 7.0 (lot 83078)
• an Incredible Hulk #1 graded CGC 5.5 (lot 83079)
• an Incredible Hulk #181 graded CGC 9.8 (lot 83082)
• an X-Men #1 graded CGC 8.5 (lot 83133)
• an X-Men #1 graded CGC 8.0 (lot 83134)
• an X-Men #1 graded CGC 7.0 (lot 83135)

Articles List