CGC Offers Grading for Playboy and Sports Illustrated Magazines

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Beginning June 18, 2009, CGC, the leading provider of expert, impartial comic book certification, will be accepting submissions of Playboy and Sports Illustrated magazines. For more than five years, CGC has provided certification services for magazine-sized comics, including Mad and Famous Monsters of Filmland. Leveraging this expertise, CGC now extends its service offerings to other collectible titles.

CGC’s certification services include a comprehensive restoration detection and evaluation for condition on the ten-point CGC grading scale, with 10 being the highest grade assigned. All CGC-certified magazines are encapsulated in an archival-safe patented holder. In conjunction with this service offering, a thicker version of the CGC holder is being introduced to accommodate Sports Illustrated swimsuit issues and Playboy Christmas issues which both have a greater page count than magazine-sized comics. CGC does not buy or sell magazines and, therefore, acts as an impartial third-party arbiter of condition and authenticity – important factors in determining the value of a collectible magazine.

This service expansion was prompted by strong collector interest for these two magazine titles in particular. Sports Illustrated, published by Time Inc., is among the most widely-read publications in the United States, with a weekly circulation of 3,000,000. It has considerable crossover collector appear, having featured on its cover four Presidents, ten celebrities and countless sports legends in nearly 3,000 issues since inception in 1954. Playboy has a circulation of 3,000,000 monthly issues in the United States. Although best known as a gentlemen’s magazine, Playboy features the work of notable authors and critics, having provided commentary on popular culture from the Post-War period to present. The list of magazine titles eligible for certification by CGC Magazines will be expanded in the future and other titles are currently under consideration.

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“When CGC introduced certification in the comic book market a decade ago, it brought with it new collectors, new investors and tremendous activity that exceeded anyone’s expectations. We here at CGC are very excited about bringing our expertise and capabilities to the magazine hobby. A number of our customers have been asking for this for many years, and we’re ready to meet the needs of the magazine collecting community,” comments Mark Haspel, CGC president and primary grader.

An online information resource for CGC Magazines has launched at www.CGCmagazines.com.

As an introductory offer, collectors and dealers with a CGC submission account can send Playboy and Sports Illustrated using our comic magazine submission form and the current Magazine tier pricing. (See Services & Fees chart at CGCmagazines.com). To aid submission processing, please list Playboy or Sports Illustrated magazines on their own submission form separated from other magazine-sized comics.

For additional information contact CGC at 1-877-662-6642 or by email at info@cgccomics.com. CGC Magazines Web site can be seen at www.CGCmagazines.com.