LYNBROOK, N.Y. – A pair of Goudey baseball cards signed by Yankees’ slugger Lou Gehrig, one from 1933 and the other from 1934, sold for $37,950 and $49,450, respectively, at an auction held March 4th by Weiss Auctions, online and at the firm’s gallery in Lynbrook. Both were record prices for Lou Gehrig Goudey cards for those years, and both had JSA certificates.

The auction featured a great selection of sports and non-sports cards, including graded tobacco cards, autographed diamond stars, more Goudey cards and complete sets of Allen and Ginter N2 cards. Autographed baseballs were also offered. Single signed balls by Hall of Famers Cy Young and Jimmy Foxx went for $21,850 and $24,725, respectively. These, too, had JSA certificates.

Co-headlining the sale were several large estate comic collections. About 50,000 comic books came up for bid, including a Golden Age Action run (several of them graded), Silver Age key books, group lots of Silver Age and Golden Age books, and bulk lots of newer issues. A copy of Action Comics #7 – the second comic book to feature Superman on the cover – brought $19,550.

Overall, the auction grossed around $600,000, with online bidding facilitated by Proxibid.com and LiveAuctioneers.com. Comic and animation art included some more great pieces from the Joe Kubert collection (many were sold at previous auctions, also held by Weiss Auctions), plus an original Hal Foster Prince Valiant page, fresh-to-the-market Peanuts strips by Charles Schulz, original paintings that were used as artwork for magazine covers, vintage animation and more.

Two original cover art illustrations by Kubert, both of which came directly from his estate, drew identical winning bids of $17,250. One was for Hawkman Showcase #101 (June 1978), a classic Hawkman cover measuring 12 inches by 17 inches; and the other for All American Met at War #113 (1966) titled The Balloon Buster, 14 ½ inches by 22 ½ inches and lacking the title paste-up.

The original gouache on board painting by Bob Larkin that served as Cover art for the paperback book Clive Cussler, Pacific Vortex (Bantam Books), by Dirk Pitt, changed hands for $900. It was a large and impressive vertical painting, measuring 9 ½ inches by 39 inches (sight; in the frame, 17 ½ inches by 47 inches). It was artist-signed lower right by Mr. Larkin, who also dated it 1994.

Returning to sports collectibles, a high-grade 1938 Joe DiMaggio Goudey rookie card (#250) was a hit for $4,200; a lower-grade Honus Wagner Cracker Jack card (#68) realized $2,520; a baseball single-signed and inscribed by Negro Leagues pitcher Hilton Smith of the Kansas City Monarchs made $4,435; and a baseball signed by pitcher A.C.”Dazzy” Vance fetched $5,700.

Also sold was a large collection of vintage football programs, yearbooks and related items, as well as a nice collection of 19th century sporting prints. All prices quoted include the buyer’s premium. Weiss Auctions has two major auctions planned for the spring, both in the Lynbrook gallery, at 74 Merrick Road. The sale dates are Wednesday, March 22nd and April 19th and 20th.

The March 22nd auction will feature stamps and coins from several estates, as well as coins from the New York and Bronx Public Administrators Office. Included will be a large number of group and bulk lots, loaded with nice covers, new issues and general collections. Also offered will be postcards and photo lots. Just arrived is a collection of graded ancient coins – true fan favorites.

Additional highlights will include a Great Britain 1 Penny black plate five strip of seven, Scott #4 with certificate, Caroline Islands 10A half used on cover, Germany B33 used on first day issue cover, and higher end single U.S., British and foreign stamps. Coins will feature single items and group lots including gold and silver coins, plus a great collection of Canadian coins.

The two-day auction event slated for April 19-20 will be mainly a toy and doll sale, featuring a huge collection of Barbie dolls (vintage and modern), a Steiff animal collection, a collection of toy soldiers (many in original boxes), a battery-operated Machine Man Robot, and toy trains (to include examples by Marklin (European), Hornby, Bing, Lionel, American Flyer and others.

Offered will be a rare 1950's Lionel 2269W boxed set, a 1937 Lionel O27 counter store display, a group of vintage German steam engines, die-cast vehicles, Sy Merrall’s airplane collection, a pressed steel collection (including Buddy L, Nylint, Tonka, Smith Miller and more), J. Chein tin litho toys, and a large collection of Superman merchandise, to include many rare, vintage pieces.

Weiss Auctions is always accepting quality consignments for future auctions. To consign an item, estate or a collection, you may call them at (516) 594-0731; or, you can send an e-mail to Philip Weiss at Phil@WeissAuctions.com. For more information about Weiss Auctions and the big auctions planned for March 22nd and April 19th and 20th, you may visit www.WeissAuctions.com.

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