Action Comics #7 (DC, 1938) CGC VF 8.0 Off-white to white pages. Superman appeared on a comic book cover for just the second time here. That's what puts this issue among the 25 most valuable comics! And we're privileged to offer nothing less than the finest CGC-certified copy. A look at CGC's census as of this writing shows a runner-up at FN/VF 7.0 and no other unrestored copy graded higher than VG+ 4.5. This Very Fine copy has impressive page quality too, as surviving copies of the earliest Actions often have cream, tan, or brittle pages. A word on the early covers: #2-6, which had Superman stories inside, had adventure-themed covers that didn't tie into any interior feature. After #1 and #7, Superman's next cover appearance was #10, and while every issue from #12 onward at least showed the costumed hero in a small vignette, he did not become the full-fledged permanent cover feature until #19. Oft-repeated comic book lore has DC's management puzzled at the unexpectedly strong sales of Action (an anthology series with many different characters sharing its 64 pages) and actually surveying newsdealers only to find out that kids were not asking for Action Comics but simply requesting the comic with Superman. While it's not clear whether DC discovered this before or after #7 came out, the striking cover image leaves little doubt that this one sold out in a hurry. The cover art is by the character's creator Joe Shuster, and it's worth noting that Superman's "S" has changed since issue #1 (the version seen here is closer to the final look of the symbol) and our hero is wearing his familiar boots here, not the ankle-high shoes he sported on #1. Also, #7 is the first comic book cover ever to show the word "Superman!" Other distinctions: it's the second superhero cover of any comic (at best, the Crimson Avenger's cover on Detective Comics #22, also December 1938, ties it for the honor), and this is also the first cover to show Superman as we know him best today: airborne. We would say "flying," but in these early stories his power was simply to take gigantic leaps! And what an influential scene it was: think of how many times the image of a superhero soaring across a cityscape with a helpless crook was used when publishers needed a high-impact scene: you need only look at Detective #27, or for that matter Amazing Fantasy #15. As to what this superb Action #7 might bring at auction: we recall a CGC VG 4.0 copy of this key issue changing hands for $15,201 a couple of years ago (more than double the 2007 Overstreet value for that grade) so it will be interesting indeed to see the final price for this far superior copy, one of the undisputed highlights of our sale. Overstreet 2007 VF 8.0 value = $23,381. CGC census 1/08: 1 in 8.0, none higher.

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