CGC-certified Golden Age "Secret Sound" Comics Featured in Heritage Auction

From Batman and Superman to Captain America to Wonder Woman — more than 200 Golden Age comic books graded by Certified Guaranty Company® (CGC®) are included in Heritage Auctions’ Golden Age Showcase Auction Featuring the Secret Sound Collection, scheduled for February 8, 2024.

The Golden Age of Comic Books, spanning roughly from the late 1930s to the mid-1950s, represents a transformative era in the comic book industry, marked by the creation of iconic superheroes who would shape popular culture for decades to come. This period saw the emergence of characters such as Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman and Captain America, captivating readers with their fantastical adventures and moralistic narratives. The success of these superheroes laid the foundation for the comic book industry, establishing enduring archetypes and establishing the superhero genre as a cultural phenomenon.

During World War II, paper shortages prompted a nationwide effort to recycle materials for the war effort, leading to the destruction of numerous comic books. These wartime paper drives saw countless comics pulped and repurposed for essential materials, contributing to the scarcity of surviving copies today. The unintended consequence of this wartime conservation effort is that the remaining editions of Golden Age comics became rare and valuable among collectors, adding an extra layer of historical significance to these artifacts from a pivotal era in the development of comic book culture.

Many of the books in this auction feature the CGC Secret Sound Collection label. Among them is a Batman #27 graded CGC 8.0, published by DC Comics in 1945 with a message on the cover asking readers to support the Sixth War Loan Drive.

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Other CGC-certified Golden Age comics in this sale include:

• an Action Comics #68 graded CGC 9.0
• an All-Star Comics #2 graded CGC 4.0
• a Batman #37 graded CGC 7.5
• a Blue Beetle #3 graded CGC 3.5
• a Captain America Comics #59 graded CGC 9.0 and pedigreed to the Secret Sound Collection
• a Captain Marvel Jr. #14 graded CGC 5.5
• a Crime Smashers #7 graded CGC 7.5
• a Detective Comics #100 graded CGC 6.5 and pedigreed to the Secret Sound Collection
• a Phantom Lady #23 graded CGC 5.5
• a Sensation Comics #18 graded CGC 8.5
• a Superman #10 graded CGC 3.0 and pedigreed to the Secret Sound Collection

About CGC

Since revolutionizing comic book grading in 2000, CGC has grown to include certification services for many other types of pop culture collectibles. These divisions include CGC Cards, CGC Video Games and CGC Home Video. CGC Cards provides expert card grading for TCGs, sports cards and non-sports cards. CGC Video Games is dedicated to video game grading for the most popular consoles, including Nintendo, Sega, Atari, PlayStation and more. The newest division of CGC, CGC Home Video, provides expert VHS grading in addition to other types of home media.

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