First Appearance of Tarzan to be Auctioned in Baltimore by Heritage and Diamond International Galleries!

DALLAS, TEXAS: 1912 is not typically a year celebrated by pop culture historians. However, it was in that year that a watershed event would occur, an event that would echo throughout the corridors of history.

It was in 1912 that a little-known pulp writer named Edgar Rice Burroughs would introduce his most famous character in the pages of a magazine that would otherwise have been long forgotten. In the October 1912 issue of Munsey's All-Story Magazine, Tarzan, the King of the Jungle, was born.

"In 1911, Burroughs was struggling," said Ed Jaster, Vice-President of Dallas-based Heritage Auction Galleries. "In the previous year, he had sold a story, 'Under the Moons of Mars,' to Thomas Metcalfe, editor of All-Story Magazine, but his subsequent effort, 'The Outlaw of Torn,' set during the Age of Chivalry, was summarily rejected. Disheartened, Burroughs wisely took a piece of advice offered by Metcalfe: write what you want to write, not what you think others want from you."

"Armed with newfound determination," Jaster said, "Burroughs returned to his typewriter and produced a story about a European baby who was raised by apes in the African jungle. The baby, originally named Zantar, then Tublat-Zan, was eventually christened Tarzan, and pop-culture history was made in the October 1912 issue of Metcalfe's publication."

"Tarzan of the Apes" was an instant success, and spawned a sequel, "The Return of Tarzan," in short order. Since then, the Jungle Lord has been the focus of countless movies, TV shows, books, comics, pulps, toys, cartoons, radio adventures, and more, making him one of the most popular fictional characters ever created.

"The copy of All-Story Magazine that we're offering, the very issue that introduced Tarzan to a breathlessly waiting world, comes from the legendary John McLaughlin collection," Jaster said, "and is by far the nicest copy of this seminal pulp I've ever seen. There are probably less than 20 copies of this important magazine in existence, and to find one in high-grade like this, one that looks as if it could have come off the newsstand yesterday rather than nearly a century ago, is an absolute dream come true. As befits its stature, it comes housed in a leather slipcase, which, in turn, nestles inside a custom-made, cloth-covered box. Truly, this is the stuff that dreams are made of."

All-Story Oct 1912 (Munsey, 1912) Condition: Apparent FN.
ESTIMATE: $25,000 & up

Heritage Auction Galleries will offer the October 1912 issue of All-Story Magazine, featuring the first appearance of Tarzan, in its upcoming Comics Signature Auction, held in association with Diamond International Galleries, on September 8-9, 2006 at the Baltimore Convention Center, One West Pratt Street, Third Floor, Baltimore, MD, 21201. For more information, please visit www.HA.com/Comics.

For more information about Heritage's auctions, and a complete record of prices realized, along with full-color, enlargeable photos of each lot, please visit www.HA.com.

Heritage specializes in rare, high-grade comic books, as well as vintage comic and animation art, illustration art, classic toys, movie posters and comics-related collectibles.

Prospective consignors and sellers of top-end comics material, toys, and original art are invited to call Ed Jaster at 1-800-872-6467, ext. 288 or Lon Allen at 1-800-872-6467, ext. 261 to discuss their rare comics and original illustration and comic art. Or visit www.HA.com and click on the "Sell Now" tab. Or simply email Ed Jaster at EdJ@HA.com or Lon Allen at LonA@HA.com.

Music and Hollywood memorabilia collectors should contact Doug Norwine at 1-800-872-6467, ext. 452 or email DougN@HA.com.

Movie poster consignors please call Grey Smith at 1-800-872-6467, ext. 367 or email GreySm@HA.com.

To reserve your copy of a catalog for any upcoming Heritage auction, please contact Nicole Jewell, c/o Heritage Auction Galleries, 3500 Maple Avenue, 17th Floor, Dallas, TX 75219, or call 1-800-872-6467, ext. 272.

About Diamond International Galleries

Since its opening in 1995, Diamond International Galleries has regularly been at the heart of many significant opportunities to preserve, promote and present historical comic character collectibles, and enjoys its position as the preeminent display house of such items. Alongside original classic comic books, movie posters, premiums and other toys, original works by such artists as Carl Barks, Gustav Tengren, Alex Ross, Murphy Anderson, Joe Shuster, Joe Simon and Charles Schulz, among others, are on display. Since its inception, Diamond International Galleries has also booked numerous record sales of individual collectibles.