Even In A World Of E-Bay Some Dream Still Come True!

OK, Anyone who has been reading this for a while knows I'm a bit of a Fandom Geek.  From Movies, to trek and beyond but it all started with a love affair of Comic Books.  As far back as I can remember (well OK, I can remember WAY back but for the sake of argument "as far back as I can remember having the ability to focus:) I have succumbed to the allure of unbridled fantasy, and after starting out on Richie Rich, Donald Duck, Chip and Dale I graduated to superheroes with a copy of Fantastic Four # 236 Purchased at Gerry's Market in Exeter NH from the mid section of one of those wobbly old wire comic racks that dotted the local markets of America.  Now this was not my first trip into the realm of Superheroes.  Oh nay, nay!  I was well aware of their existence but at the age of 14 my exposer was limited to the DC side of the universe, and surprisingly I gave it little notice.  No even at that age when others were interested in more advanced pursuits I was in the throes of teenage awkwardness and a less then illustrious presence in middle school verging on the terrifying realization of becoming a  freshman in High school.  Comic book inspired flights of fancy were my anchor.  But it was this book, this gaudily colored, character packed 20th anniversary triple wide volume that caught my eye as I dug through the pockets of the rack searching for my lesser popular choices so often eclipsed by the more prominent sellers.  It's odd the things we remember as being a pinnacle moment in our personal history only through the passage of time.  But it was at this moment that a very specific journey, my life's course as it were was sowed.  Intrigued by the many characters I was unfamiliar with blazoned across its cover and the promise of it being a good starting point for a new reader I felt the $1.00 investment (although quite a hefty sum for one book back in those days) was worth the risk.

I was not disappointed.
The engaging story and brilliant artwork aside it was a karmic leap into a world I was scantly aware existed.  And not just that of fantasy, but of a reality I was completely oblivious too at the time.  See, back then if you were a fanboy, you were a pariah.  You would be the constant but of all jokes, taunts and outright bullying.  No comics at that age were one of the closet (quite literally!  I hid mine in my closet so as not to be discovered by the occasional friendly visit to my room) never to be discussed, traded or dare I say READ in public!  I was unaware of anyone else my age that held any interest in them and it wasn't until that fateful afternoon back in '81 that I became aware that "I was not alone"/
As I sat quietly in my room with a fresh stack of my latest acquisitions I optimistically opened the cover of this tome and became instantly enthralled.  Then in reading I turned the page and almost instinctively bypassed the prerequisite advertising but paused as I read the banner.  In simple black text in a yellow rectangle set the name "Mile High Comics Mail Order".
Hunh?
What was this?
In a two page splash page set in simple type was column upon column of a variety of comic titles.  Some familiar and some not.  With a price listing adjacent.  I was perplexed.  Are these new titles or something else?  No  there were dates next to several identifying them as much earlier.  And as I read the term "Back Issues" it dawned on me!  "this is a BUSINESS that sells old comics!"  At the very bottom of the add was an address to send a SASE (that's "Self Addressed Stamped Envelope" to all you kids out there) to get a FREE catalogue!  Didn't have to tell me twice!
My journey began.
Through them I discovered that not only were there folks out there like me, but they were heavy in numbers as I discovered more and more and more companies that did the same thing.  And in order to keep them busy there just had to be a lot of folks spending there cash completing collections!  
This door lead to others, from mail order to braving the waters at school offering to buy up other kids old books, to searching antique shops and yard sales for those hidden treasures.  And this was before the Internet or e-bay when folks TRULY didn't know what they had.  Eventually it lead to a thirteen year career in Comic Book Retail back in the heyday of the 80's and 90's.  I had the pleasure of visiting and hanging with some of the greats of the field from lunch with Stan Lee, to dinner and drinks with Todd MacFarlane and his lovely wife.  Shared an elevator with Chris Claremont and a heated discussion about the virtues of She Hulk with John Byrne.  I've helped members of Aerosmith locate back issues and even had to endure the throngs of fans while members of the Back Street Boys perused some issues.  I even entertained Stephen King as his son searched through my stash looking for a missing issue in the Cat Woman limited series as he spoke of walking his dog in a rainstorm ate donuts and went to bed (yes he is as odd as you would expect). 
All this from a fateful trip to Gerry's! 
In my day I have owned and traded over and over again some of the most iconic of issues, from the first appearance of many milestone characters such as Spider man, the Fantastic Four, Justice League to even Wonder Woman and Archie.  But the one book escaping my grasp at all turns (although I did hold one ONCE) was the holy grail of finds.  The one that every fanboy dreams of finding in some secluded corner of America.  Digging through the bins at a yard sale, or the dusty corners of an attic.  And if you ask any fanboy what they would do if they could travel back in time they would go back to 1938 and  buy a truckload of these.
..

Yes, the Mother of all is the one that started it all!  The first appearance of Superman! 
It was while perusing my yahoo news this morning that I stumbled upon an article that began this whole awash of memories.  Apparently David Gonzalez while renovating a dilapidated home in Minnesota was removing old insulation and as was the practice back in the early to mid century folks would stuff the walls with newspapers and such for insulation.  Well guess what he found in tact within the walls?
yep.  you guessed it!
The Mother load!

By the looks of it a fair to poor copy but still an important enough find to fetch $175,000.00 at auction.  Granted a paltry sum considering a  mint copy fetched $2.16 Million recently.  And apparently David is still going as he located another early issue of Superman (as yet undisclosed) and still has some of the home to search! 
Lucky bastard!
ANYWAY!
Thanks for humoring me on this sojourn of reminiscence.  To quote Alan Moore's immortal "Watchmen"....
"Everyday the future looks a little bit darker.  But the past, even the grimy parts of it, well, it just keeps on getting brighter all the time."