ELLWOOD CITY, Pa. — Holy collectibles, Batman!
A near-mint copy of Detective Comics No. 27, a pre-World War II comic featuring Batman’s debut, was recently found in an attic and sold to a local collector.
The comic is considered to be the second-most valuable available and can fetch up to $500,000. The only comic considered more valuable is Action Comics No. 1, in which Superman makes his first appearance.
Collector Todd McDevitt said the Batman issue he bought is worth about $250,000, but he won’t say exactly how much he paid or who sold it to him.
“It was a typical story of someone cleaning up junk in their attic and finding an old comic book and wondering if this was one of those ones that was worth a lot of money,” McDevitt said.
McDevitt, owner of the Pittsburgh region’s five New Dimension Comics stores, said he has been saving money since 1986 so that he could buy a valuable comic when it appeared.
When the seller walked in with the Batman issue, “my eyes almost popped out of my head,” McDevitt said.
“I guess I should have been more reserved, but I’m not a very good poker player,” he said.
Experts estimate there are between 20 and a few hundred copies of the Batman debut.
McDevitt’s comic now sits safely in an airtight bag in a bank vault. On occasion, he takes it out to show friends and customers.
“I’ve been toying with the idea of reading it, but I haven’t yet,” he said. “I’m going to savor it.”
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