Registered: 04/02/03
Posts: 12894
Loc: San Francisco Bay Area
Let's look at the history. Eastman receives $500 from a tax refund I think and they borrow $700 from an Uncle to do the first printing of 3000. They only had enough money for TWO colors... so they went with Black and red.
The second printing is based on the first although it is denoted with the term Second Printing inside. (And the ads are different.)
The third printing has some cover artwork changes... notably the red addition to the Titling. This artwork change happens at least a year later?
SO what are the chances that they paid for TWO cover versions when they did an initial press run of 3000? Especially since the initial press run was sized incorrectly?
We need to just contact Eastman and Laird and ask who retouched the 3rd printing cover and when they did it.
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I had always heard, anecdotally, that each printing has a separate date in the indicia - some month in '84, later in '84 for 2nd print, '85 for 3rd print and yet another for 4th print. If that were true, it would be almost impossible to not be able to nail down the printing - before it gets slabbed.
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Registered: 12/29/03
Posts: 4194
Loc: National Park NJ
Weren't there 500 for a con or something? Or was that not a #1?
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Having been the one to have first "discovered" the Gobbledygook counterfeits back in the 90's, I can tell you for sure that the two books discussed (the $23k 9.8 book and restored 9.0 on eBay) are definitively not 1st printings from the scans that have been provided. I'd be willing bet a real first printing. They are one of the following:
1) Misidentified 3rd printings 2) Doctored 3rd printings (with the printing infomation erased) 3) Counterfeits with new a new cover that was shot off a 3rd printing 4) Cracked open cases - Someone cracked open the case for a 1st printing and replaced it with a 3rd printing
The only way may be to open one of the books in question to find out what it is. But, I can tell you I've known about the extra blood spot in the logo for years and it is an easy way to spot a 3rd printing at a distance.
The interiors of #1's are also slightly different. A lesser known fact is that each if the first three printings is a slightly different size (as are the 1st and 2nd printings of #2). I believe the 3rd printing is actually more narrow than a 1st printing. And, the interior grey tones on the 3rd printing are more washed out than the 1st and 2nd printings. These are some additional things to look for if you were to authenticate a 1st printing and didn't want to rely only on the cover.
I think that owners of these books should work with CGC to help solve this mystery. We're all speculating until someone can examine them in more detail. If someone has tampered with one of the CGC cases, CGC should be able to inspect it first hand and confirm this. If the owners crack open the cases themselves, we may never get to the bottom of things. But, I think it's important that the results be shared publicly so that people can be assured that they have a first printing inside books that are certified.
Originally Posted By: USArmyParatrooper
So what's the final verdict on this? Are those for sure misidentified 3rd prints?
I hope someone from CGC can weigh in on this, because I'm currently shopping for a 1st print and I'm putting a lot of trust in their slab.
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Looking for the following original artwork: - Mike Zeck Art (especially Punisher) - Early Punisher Art (pre-1987) - Early G.I. Joe & Transformers Art - Joe Jusko Marvel Masterpieces I Paintings - Patrick Nagel Original Paintings - Golden Age Timely/Atlas & DC Superhero Art - Early Eastman & Laird TMNT Art
