Comics That Defined Superman and the Joker Up for Auction

(Nov. 10) -- How much could an iconic piece of Superman art fetch on the auction block?

Up, up and away above the price for any other piece in history.

At least that's the presumption and hope of Stephen Fishler, the co-owner of ComicConnect.com and Metropolis Collectibles, the world's largest vintage comic book dealer.

MetropolisComics.com / ComicConnect.com

Comic book pioneer Jerry Robinson, who created The Joker, is selling the original art for two iconic covers: One of Superman and one of The Joker. Experts say each picture could fetch millions.

He's the man behind an online auction for two of the most important pieces of comic art ever.

The first is the original art work for "Superman No. 14," which was illustrated by Fred Ray in 1942 and shows the Man of Steel in a patriotic pose that is widely considered to be the cornerstone artwork that defined Superman as the defender of "Truth, Justice and the American Way."

According to Fishler, this piece of artwork solidified his status as a 20th-century American icon. It is by far the single-most valuable piece of original comic book artwork still in existence.

"This is the most famous Superman image," Fishler told AOL News. "It was printed right after Pearl Harbor, and DC wanted the ultimate patriotic cover. It is a testament to its power that it has been used over and over ever since."

But this piece, considered a masterpiece of the genre, would have been incinerated right after publication had it not been for the foresight of comic book pioneer Jerry Robinson, who is best known as the guy who created Batman's arch-villain the Joker.

"Back then, all the other artists and publishers had this attitude of 'throw it out so we don't have to store it,'" Fishler said. "It had no value at that point."

Robinson, who is 88, said he wasn't thinking in terms of monetary value when he saved Ray's Superman cover.

"I wasn't thinking of money, but I did feel we were doing something important that was worth saving," he told AOL News. "I just couldn't see Fred's beautiful artwork destroyed."

"I was 20 at the time, and I remember having to call the engraver asking him, 'Could you hold off destroying it?' Sometimes, I'd forget to call and [a piece] would be destroyed."

ComicConnect.com

The cover of "Superman 14," as drawn by Fred Ray, is considered the single-most valuable piece of original comic book artwork still in existence.

Starting Nov. 10, Ray's iconic cover will be the subject of an online auction, as will another classic piece of comic art: Robinson's 1942 cover of "Detective Comics No. 69," which features Batman and a huge image of the Joker, who is considered one of the great villains in all of literature.

"Although Bob Kane is credited as Batman's creator, much of the work credited to him was actually drawn by Robinson," Fishler said. "He also is the man who spearheaded the effort to get DC Comics to give Superman creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster their just due back in the 1960s."

Both of these pieces are so rare that Fishler says it will be hard to determine their exact value until the auction ends Dec. 1.

"We sold a copy of Action Comics No. 1 a while back for $1.5 million and that's hard to top, but a great piece of art should top a good comic," he said.

Robinson has kept the pieces in excellent condition for the past 68 years but is selling them now in hopes of ensuring their survival.

"I'm 88," he said. "I have to think of the future. I've had interest from Ohio State, the Smithsonian and the Library of Congress, but their acquisitions budgets are depleted. I hope that whoever purchases either piece donates them to a place where they can be put on public display as examples of what is truly an indigenous American art form."
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