Auction PR Publicity Announcements News and Information
Auction PR Publicity Announcements News and Information

REA Auction Offers Vampirella Cover Art, Mars Attacks Card Paintings !

WATCHUNG, NEW JERSEY. The catalog for Robert Edward Auctions’ 2012 blockbuster sale will ship on April 16, 2012. While most of the auction is baseball-related, also included is the original Warren cover painting for Vampirella #17 (June 1972), the very first Vampirella cover painting by Enrich that launched his career as Vampirella’s most celebrated cover artist.

A selection of original artworks used to produce trading cards is also featured, including 1966 Topps “Batman” (Norm Saunders) and 1951 Bowman “Jets, Rockets, Spacemen” (an incredible fifteen different examples), among others. Any Mars Attacks original artwork is a prize in the nonsport collecting world. The 1962 Topps Mars Attacks original artworks for card #4 Saucers Blast Our Jets, card #37 Creeping Menace, and for card #17 Beast And The Beauty, of special significance as the ultimate Norm Saunders card artwork! The “Mars Attacks” set, with its violent subject matter and graphic scenes of men, women, and even pets being mercilessly slaughtered by the Martians, was somewhat controversial at the time. Topps obviously anticipated a negative reaction from parents and teachers, and this is the very reason Topps listed the name of a fictitious company, “Bubbles Inc., ” as the manufacturer of the series on the back of each card. Apparently, the controversy grew so great that Topps felt it had to “tone down” a few of the more gruesome scenes pictured on the cards. Card #17 Beast And The Beauty was one of fourteen original paintings revised by Saunders at the direction of Topps. For this painting, it was decided that a man being attacked in bed by a Martian would be less offensive than a woman, and the figure of the woman was painted over with the figure of a man. What makes this particular artwork all the more significant is that the image of the man seen here is not a generic figure, but a self portrait of Norm Saunders himself! Remarkably, that information is verified in published interviews with Norm Saunders’ son, David, who vividly remembers his Dad painting over this very artwork, replacing himself as the victim into the painting. Each of the three Mars Attacks artworks is an iconic painting by Norm Saunders and among the most desirable nonsport card artworks in existence (each res. $5,000; est. $10,000+). Also featured in the auction is the only complete set of 1940 R145 Gum, Inc. “Superman” gum cards in uncut sheets known to exist (es. $15,000; est. $30,000+). The final date of bidding in this year’s auction will be Saturday, Saturday May 12. Bidding begins April 15 by FAX, phone, or the Internet via the REA website at www.robertedwardauctions.com. Total sales for the event are expected to exceed $5 million.

Copies of the full-color premium catalog are available for free. To review the catalog online, learn more about Robert Edward Auctions, receive a complimentary copy of the catalog or inquire about consignments, visit http://www.robertedwardauctions.com. Robert Edward Auctions is currently assembling their next sale. For further information, contact Robert Edward Auctions, PO Box 7256, Watchung, NJ 07069, or call (908) 226-9900.