While there were no early edition Superman, Batman, Spiderman or Iron Man comics, Comic Book Roadshow Co-Owner Leroy Harper is still eager to find something of high value this weekend.
This week, the traveling Comic Book Roadshow made a stop in Odessa Thursday at the Courtyard Marriott.
Harper and co-owner Peter Przysiezny take their Comic Book Roadshow to Lubbock on Friday and Saturday and Amarillo on Sunday and Monday.
They travel all over the country giving comic book collectors appraisals on their items.
Additionally, they’ll also grade vintage toys and sports memorabilia cards.
“Odessa is a city on our list of 200 that we’ve done in the last 10 years,” Harper said. “We’re here to either offer free appraisals for people or give someone an offer if they have something to sell.”
While they didn’t find anything that stood out (at least money-wise) Thursday morning, Harper said they have seen some interesting comics and cards.
“We’ve been doing more of giving people observations than actually buying,” Harper said. “It’s hard to find something of significant value. We hope to find someone who will have something that we can offer a couple hundred to a thousand dollars for.”
At the show, they’ll buy most comic books published between 1930 and 1979.
They do purchase some newer comics but they recommend people email them before bringing them in.
The comics Harper is most interested in are super hero, sci-fi, horror, war and some western comics as well.
“We’ve had several Spiderman ones,” Harper said. “A typical collection, we can spend anywhere from $50-$500. That’s really easy to do. There’s been times where we’ve spent $5,000 to $10,000 for people’s collections. That’s what we’re hoping to find. We’re hoping to find a collection that someone is ready to get rid of.”
Harper has been buying and selling comics for over 40 years.
He currently lives in Western Kentucky and travels all over the country seeking out rare and in demand comic books.
He says sometimes he’ll find some really cool toys that are still in the package.
“Star Wars toys from the 1970s are very collectible,” Harper said. “A lot of it is the condition. That’s a key factor, especially if you can find a Hot Wheels from the 1970s that’s still in the regular package. Out of the package, it might cost $200. In the package, it might cost thousands of dollars. Any time you have toys in their regular packaging, it ups the value. Comic books, they need to be before 1975 and then the superhero titles are the ones that sell the best. A lot of Archies and Richie Rich’s don’t have value but they are great reading materials.”
Michelle Henegar and her friend Darci Champion were among the people who brought their vast collection of comic books that they have built over the years.
“There’s a lot of Marvel, DC, Batman, The Joker,” Henegar said. “It’s a wide collection. It’s been through the decades that (Darci) has been collecting them.”
Henegar has been collecting comics over the years, going to different sales to purchase different comic books.
“I helped add to the collection because I like to go to estate sales and find a butt-load of comics,” Henegar said. “They’re awesome and some are brand new. I said we might as well combine them to make the collections better.”
Her favorite comic book superhero will always be the web-slinging Peter Parker.
“I’d say may favorite one is Spiderman because he’s my favorite superhero,” Henegar said. “I like all versions of him.”
While Henegar and Champion didn’t make a sale Thursday morning, they were happy to have Harper and Przysiezny to look over their collection.
“We’ve had these comics for so long and we’ve always wanted to get them graded and get an idea of how much they’d be worth,” Henegar said. “There’s not too many places in Odessa to get them appraised so it’s awesome that these experts came down and helped us out.”
For more information about the Comic Book Roadshow, go to their website at tinyurl.com/5dwj5mks.
