A valuable edition of the comic book that introduced Superman to the world and was previously stolen from actor Nicolas Cage’s residence has been sold for a record-breaking $15 million. The private transaction for Action Comics No. 1, co-created by Toronto-native Joe Shuster and American writer Jerry Siegel, was disclosed on Friday, surpassing the previous comic book sale record set in November with Superman No. 1 selling for $9.12 million at an auction.
The sale of Action Comics was facilitated by Metropolis Collectibles/Comic Connect based in Manhattan, with both the seller and buyer opting to remain anonymous. Vincent Zurzolo, the company’s president, highlighted the significance of the comic book, originally priced at 10 cents in 1938, as it marked the inception of the superhero genre and is considered one of the most valuable comic books globally, with an estimated 100 remaining copies.
Shuster and Siegel conceived Superman in 1933, five years before the release of Action Comics No. 1. The comic featured Superman’s alter-ego working as a reporter at The Daily Star, inspired by Shuster’s hometown publication, the Toronto Daily Star, which he delivered during his childhood.
Zurzolo described the comic book as a pinnacle in the comic book realm, stating that without Superman’s influence, iconic characters like Batman would not exist. The significance of this sale underscores its importance within the comic book community, surpassing previous records.
The comic was stolen from Cage’s home in west Los Angeles in 2000 but was recovered in 2011 after being found in an old storage locker in southern California. Cage, who had initially purchased it for $150,000 in 1996, subsequently sold it at auction for $2.2 million six months after its recovery. Stephen Fishler, the CEO of Metropolis Collectibles/Comic Connect, noted that the theft played a pivotal role in elevating the comic’s value over the 11-year period it was missing.
Fishler drew a parallel to the theft of the Mona Lisa, stolen from the Louvre museum in 1911, underscoring how the recovery of stolen treasures can transform them into cultural icons. Action Comics No. 1 is viewed as an emblem of American pop culture, akin to the significance of the Mona Lisa in the art world.
