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American Comics A History 592 Pages

Frank Frazetta: Buck Rogers cover from EC Comics Weird Science-Fantasy #29 sells for $380,000 USD.

Line artwork that appeared on EC Comics Weird Science Fantasy #29 in 1955

Artwork size 14.5" x 22.25"

June 2010

Buying Frank Frazetta

Originally drawn for a Buck Rogers themed cover to Famous Funnies (published by Eastern Color Printing/Famous Funnies Inc), it was rejected as too violent. Ended up as the cover to Weird Science-Fantary #29 for E C Comics in 1955 after Frazetta cut a special deal with Bill Gaines (for $30.00). In order to keep the original artwork (Gaines usually required complete ownership of the original art) Frazetta was paid half-price on the standard cover rate. Marie Severin did the original coloring job for the cover of WSF #29.

Frazetta told Gary Groth, in the Comics Journal magazine 1994 interview with the artist, that Frazetta considered this piece of artwork his peak work in his pen technique.


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The black and white art was eventually hand-colored by Frazetta as a print issued by Frazetta-impresario Russ Cochran in 1971. For an interesting story about that print and the signed-hand-colored run, see this story at Golden Age Comic Books.

The original artwork sold to Joseph Halperin for $380,000 in May 2010. Halperin is the co-founder of Heritage Auctions, which handles a great deal of original comic book and phantasy art, among other collectible items. The previous record for a single piece of American comic book art was a Wally Wood cover to EC’s Weird Science #1.

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