The First Batman Toy! 1943 Batplane Serial Premium

1966 TV show type Bat-Items found on eBay, Collectibles, etc.

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icollectbatman
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The First Batman Toy! 1943 Batplane Serial Premium

Post by icollectbatman »

A piece of Batman merchandising history is up for sale on eBay. Where it all began.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/165543885774?h ... Swp~tisxfu
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Larry A.
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Re: The First Batman Toy! 1943 Batplane Serial Premium

Post by Larry A. »

It isn't impossible to print out one of the pictures of the pieces, enlarge them to what ever size and then put it together.

That toy is in NO way, iMho, NO HOW worth it to me what this fellow is asking!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I wish him luck however, in finding a "fan" who will pay what He is asking.

Cheers!!!!!!!!!
Larry
icollectbatman
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Re: The First Batman Toy! 1943 Batplane Serial Premium

Post by icollectbatman »

The batplane sold for almost 3 times the starting bid a couple years ago in a Hakes auction. Market value is whatever a buyer is willing to pay given the realities of their discretionary funds. Was the Frank Miller Dark Knight 1 cover art worth 2.4 million? I don’t think so even if I was a multi-millionaire. To each his own.
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AndyFish
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Re: The First Batman Toy! 1943 Batplane Serial Premium

Post by AndyFish »

The trouble with this item is it was re-released and isn't that hard to make a faux copy, and the fact that this looks to be dead mint and that the seller has multiples gives me pause i.e. he shows one unpunched and one punched out. He's got good feedback and he's right that one sold at Hakes for $25k+ recently. One also sold last year at Heritage for $8.400 so the value lies somewhere between the two.

I think it's funny when someone has a high opening bid like this but then still asks $5 for shipping if you win, you'd think the least they could do would be to offer free shipping once you've dropped five figures on it.

The original poster is right, a collectible is worth whatever a buyer is willing to pay for it. The irony here is that a high opening bid will likely keep buyers away, whereas if this started at say $100 with no reserve I'd be willing to bet dollars to donuts that it would exceed the $9k when it comes to the end. Bidders get emotionally involved when they think they might get a deal but in the heat of bidding will often go well over what they intended to spend to "keep the other guy from getting it."

A few years ago my wife and I were at an auction which had mostly furniture and antiques, it almost never got anything "collectible", and as we're looking through the glass display case lo and behold a Batman #11 from 1942 sitting right there. My wife asks me how much I'm going to bid and I tell her this doesn't look like a comic collector buying crowd so I will probably get a deal on it-- but I'll go as high as $400. She runs out to get coffee for us as we don't know when the item is going to come up and sure enough, as soon as she leaves it's up for bid. Now if I was smart I would have jumped in when the auctioneer dropped the opening bid (with no takers) to $300-- it likely would have taken the air out of the room and I would have gotten the book at that price, but instead I let the opening bid drop all the way to $50-- because I got greedy and visions of a real bargain danced in my head.

The bidding is on and I notice a guy in the back of the room who starts bidding against me for the book, well back and forth back and forth my wife walks in and I'm holding the Batman #11 comic book. She asks what I paid for it and I tell her $750-- because once the bidding started there was no way I was going to let the other guy win it. I was just glad he dropped out at that price.

The collectibles market has gone crazy, prices are much higher than you'd expect to find during a recession.
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Lou Szabo
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Re: The First Batman Toy! 1943 Batplane Serial Premium

Post by Lou Szabo »

Lot’s of people are getting big bonuses or pulling money out of the market as it freefalls. Having watched this cycle since the early 80’s, the real recession is preceded by mergers and acquisitions followed but bankruptcies. In the meanwhile, alternative investments grow. I’ve never seen so many homes purchased with cash, anything $150k and up. Tons of muscle cars rolling around, as well as exotics (3-4 C8s, Ferraris, Lambos, Aston Martins, etc. ). Mego’s are through the roof too.

Good for those that have it. Some use it to buy homes for their kids, others take a breather from the grindstone to reward themselves.
Some days you just can't get rid of a ... SHARK!
icollectbatman
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Re: The First Batman Toy! 1943 Batplane Serial Premium

Post by icollectbatman »

Hi Andy

To address some of your concerns:

1. the Batplane was reissued by me for the Batman Vault. The original is easily distinguishable from the modern reprint which was altered with dotted lines and letters and the removal of “Robinson’s”. I added the forensic report to the auction page which further supports authenticity. It would be impossible to make a faux copy. You can’t fake fractured ink lines as you would see in an old painting. The ink on the original is raised from the surface of the cardboard. Kinkos doesn’t do that.
2. The condition is too good….That is because the theater never gave these away. They sat untouched in a warehouse for decades.
3. There are multiples. Yes, these were the few left over from the theater giveaway. I traded one to my friend, Chip Kidd, who will vouch for its authenticity.
4. They are punched. It appears unpunched in one photo because it is on top of the other piece.
5.The postage is set by eBay. Maybe I could have waived it but I didn’t bother to try because its so trivial.
6. I just listed a MIB 1960s Lonestar train tunnel for 99 cents. It sold for 99 cents. I am not doing that with the first Batman toy which Hakes indicated they have never seen before. I paid thousands. I’m not going to lose money on the deal.

There is no doubt the Batplane is absolutely 1943. If you do a Chicago show, I’ll let you see my personal example which is the best way to demonstrate its vintage, seeing the nuances with your own eyes.

Best, Saul
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AndyFish
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Re: The First Batman Toy! 1943 Batplane Serial Premium

Post by AndyFish »

No offense meant, I didn't assume it was your auction, and I was merely pointing out my observations. If you have multiples I'd strongly suggest you put one up at a low opening bid and let it go-- I'm willing to bet the market puts it at more than your initial asking price.
icollectbatman
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Re: The First Batman Toy! 1943 Batplane Serial Premium

Post by icollectbatman »

AndyFish wrote: Sun Jun 26, 2022 11:27 am No offense meant, I didn't assume it was your auction, and I was merely pointing out my observations. If you have multiples I'd strongly suggest you put one up at a low opening bid and let it go-- I'm willing to bet the market puts it at more than your initial asking price.
None taken. I was just responding to your observations. I know you know Batman serial memorabilia more than most. Your challenge to start the bidding low is enticing but I’m just not willing to take the risk. Cheers.
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