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Calvin and Hobbes Set a Big Record, and More Pop Culture News

hile the pace of sales for mid-grade vintage pop culture In 2006, the Walt Disney Company acquired Oswald from
artifacts seems to have cooled off from the heated days of the NBC/Universal famously in a trade for sportscaster Al Michaels when
Wpast two years, there still seems to be a serious appetite for NBC acquired the rights for Sunday Night Football – and since then,
rare, high-grade examples in a wide variety of collecting categories. Oswald has appeared in Disney video games, merchandise, theme
parks, and more.
Heritage Comic & Art Auction Tops $18.4 Million “On the eve of Disney’s 100th anniversary, it was such a joy to cre-
Heritage closed its Comics & Comic Art Signature Auction with a ate the first new Oswald short from our studio since 1928,” McKim
grand total of $18,589,015. A Calvin and Hobbes Sunday comic strip said. “Our hand-drawn animation team – including our hand-drawn
by Bill Watterson gifted to his late editor Lee Salem sold for $480,000, legends Mark Henn, Randy Haycock, and Eric Goldberg, as well our
Spider-Man’s debut in Amazing Fantasy #15 CGC 8.5 realized wonderful team of 2D apprentices – had a ball animating in the style
$552,000, and Detective Comics #168 CGC 9.4 with the Joker’s origin of Oswald’s era.”
story brought $324,000. “Oswald is such a plucky scamp. We wanted to bring Oswald back,
The 5-24-87 Calvin and Hobbes art is and in the short, he literally returns to his original home: the movie
ink over graphite with watercolor applied screen. We wanted to have Oswald do all of
later by Watterson on Bristol board with an the ‘squash-and-stretch,’ ‘rubber hose’ anima-
image area of 13” x 9” and is lightly taped tion style, celebrating that first generation of
into an 18” x 14.5” mat. It represents one Walt Disney’s artists,” Goldberg said.
of the few Waterson Sunday originals to hit
the market. Heritage Trading Card Games Auction
The auction’s notable sales also includ- Clears $2M
ed Superman #1 CGC 1.8 for $288,000, Heritage’s Trading Card Games Signature
Graham Ingels’ Haunt of Fear #20 cover Auction had a strong hand, bringing in a total
for $114,000, Jim Starlin’s Marvel Super- of $2,026,326. The auction, which closed
Heroes #47 cover for $102,000, and Punch December 2-3, 2022, was led by Pokémon and
Comics #12 CGC 5.5 for $90,000. Magic: the Gathering cards and boxes, and saw
a 100% sell-through rate.
Hake’s Premier Auction Realizes $2.4 A Pokémon First Edition Base Set sealed
Million booster box with 102 cards, including the
Hake’s Auctions closed its third pre- Bill Waterson’s 5-24-87 Calvin and Hobbes original Sunday Charizard card, sold for $264,000. The boost-
mier event of 2022 with a total of $2.4 mil- strip art set a world record when it sold for $480,000 at er boxes are rarely available due to their low
lion in sales. The headliners were the Star Heritage Auctions. Image courtesy of Heritage Auctions. print run, and even scarcer in sealed condition.
Wars Ben (Obi-Wan) Kenobi 12-back-A A Charizard 4 Shadowless Base Set Holo
AFA 75 (double-telescoping/SKU on footer) that reached $79,178 and a PSA 10 tripled its pre-auction estimate when it brought in $72,000.
2015 1 kilo Niue gold Steamboat Willie Mickey Mouse NGC PF69 The popular card is from the second print run of the Base Set known
Ultra Cameo proof that hammered for $58,410. as the Shadowless cards.
Top highlights included The Return of the Jedi Princess Leia (pink Another top Pokémon card sale was the Family Event Kangaskhan
poncho sample) on Hoth Snowtrooper card 48-back AFA 60 for Trophy Card Promo 115 Parent/Child Mega Battle PSA 9 which
$42,834, Star Wars Jawa 12-back-A AFA 80 (vinyl cape) for $27,126, realized $66,000. The unique tournament paired parents with their
Empire Strikes Back IG-88 12” Series painted hard copy prototype for children, the card depicts the Kangaskhan, who carries its infant inside
$23,558, and a “Don’t Tread on Me” Civil War era Confederate its pouch, and it features the original Pocket Monsters Trading Card
Gadsden flag for $28,556. Game logo as the set symbol.
A 2013 World Championships #1 Trainer Trophy Card PSA 9
Oswald the Lucky Rabbit Stars in New Animated Short reached $63,000. The rare Pokémon card shows Pinkachu holding the
Oswald the Lucky Rabbit is back in a new animated short – almost gold trophy, one of six awarded to the championship's first-place winners.
95 years after his last Disney cartoon. The short was created for the 100 Magic: The Gathering lots were led by a Black Lotus Limited Edition
Years of Wonder that celebrates Walt Disney’s 100th anniversary. BGS 9 that hammered for $174,000. The card is one of the most
Titled Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, it was hand drawn by Disney’s powerful cards in the game and made in a limited print run of just
animation team, directed by animator Eric Goldberg, and produced by 1,100 copies.
Dorothy McKim. Yu-Gi-Oh! sales included a Dark Magician EN001 KC Grand tour-
Between May 1927 and August 1928, Disney’s animation studio nament second-place prize card for $38,400 and a first edition Legend
produced 26 films featuring Oswald, starting with Trolley Troubles. He of Blue Eyes set sealed booster box for
was Disney’s first featured cartoon character that had been developed $18,000.
specifically for a starring role. While Disney handled the early
animation, Universal owned the character, so after Disney’s slate of Amanda Sheriff is the Editor of Digital for
shorts ended, Oswald cartoons were made solely under Universal. Gemstone Publishing. J.C. Vaughn is
Gemstone's Vice-President of Publishing.

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