Bell had discovered the comics while searching an estate sale for antiques and collectibles suitable for his shop, Affordable 2nd Thoughts. Bell believes that the deceased owner of the items had once owned a bookstore, but he wouldn't give any other information about the man. When he opened the box of comic books, he was so amazed by their pristine condition he thought they might be reproductions. When he realized the comic books were originals - they had been meticulously stored between newspapers and left untouched since 1955 - he felt his heart race.
"I made them an offer and that was only after seeing the first few books on the stack," says Bell. "I was beside myself because you don't normally see this type of quality materialize. ... I made an offer of whatever I had on me, which was just over $3,000. [The sellers] were absolutely ecstatic, and pretty much thinking I was insane, because that is still a lot of money for a box of comic books."
Stumble It!