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Dear Fellow Collectors,
Welcome to my website. When I say “Fellow Collectors”, I don’t just use this as a catch phrase. I actually started out as a collector of Comic Books, Coins, Disneyana and Stamps over 51 years ago, then realized the additional joy of collecting Movie Posters and Baseball Cards as well, and have also been active in those hobbies for over 45 years now.
My original goal was to simply complete my comic book runs and coin sets. Then, it occurred to me that I could actually pay for my “keepers” by selling off the duplicates acquired along the way. By the good graces of God, I have been extremely blessed to have been able to “make a living” dealing in collectibles for this long, something that I enjoy immensely. Equally important to me, is the fact that I can say that over the years I have been instrumental in building some of the finest collections of baseball cards, comic books and movie posters in the world. Of course helping a novice collector to find a special addition to his/her collection is oftentimes as rewarding to me as selling a “big ticket” piece to an advanced collector. Collecting should remain fun by virtue of the challenge and not just for the money involved. I believe this wholeheartedly and prove it repeatedly.
Because I have literally traveled worldwide in search of collectables, I have developed a knack for unearthing elusive and noteworthy items, sometimes caches of them. Thus, I have built a strong network of dealers and collectors with whom I interact on a daily basis. This is what I do and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I also frequent hobby trade shows and auctions, so there is a good chance that I may meet some of you in my travels. It’s always nice to put a face with a voice on the other end of a telephone line. I have been a regular face “on the scene” of several of the hottest hobbies for many years now – *Comic Books * Movie Posters * Baseball Cards * Sports Memorabilia * For over 50 years, I have attended the major conventions and hobby auctions and continue to be a high-seniority booth holder at some of the biggest hobby shows each year. Many of you have been buying, selling and trading with me at these shows for so many years now, that I feel like we’ve grown up together. I also have been bidding in the collectibles auctions held by most of the “Majors” since they started their offerings within “my” field of expertise. I continue to have working relationships with those that still offer “my” product line. I’ve also consulted and from time to time and still consult to many of these auction companies and am frequently called upon to authenticate or appraise memorabilia and nostalgic items for them. I’ve been a “guest” cataloger for some of these “houses” and am recognized as a contributor in many of “their” catalogs. I am a “Senior Adviser” to the Official Comic Book Price Guide by Robert Overstreet and still continue to gather and submit data for the new edition each year. I am a “Charter Dealer Member" (#11) of CGC’s (Comics Guaranty, LLC) authorized group of dealers and have been one of their biggest submitters over the years. I'm also a member of the ACNA (Antiques & Collectibles National Association). I’ve been a guest columnist in various hobby publications over the years and have given too many television, radio and newspaper interviews to list (or even remember). I was instrumental in putting the deal together between Greg Manning Auctions & Bonhams & Butterfields auction houses and the ‘Rock’ band “Kiss” for the sale of the vast majority of their career-collected memorabilia. The 2001 Los Angeles auction did approximately $1,600,000. I was also instrumental in the deal that brought the Academy Award winning actor, Nicolas Cage’s comic book collection to the auction block. The October 2002 auction in Dallas brought nearly $1,700,000. I put the deal together for the buyout of World’s Finest Comics by Greg Manning Auctions for $900,000 and the subsequent sale of much of the same inventory and more to ‘The Mint’ for approximately $2,400,000. On behalf of GMAI, I bought the fabled collection of Jack Kirby original comic art from long-time collector Tony Christopher, which consisted of over 900 pages of Kirby art that included some of the earliest and most important known Silver-Age Marvel pages as well as other fabulous original art by Steve Ditko, Neal Adams, Bill Everett and others. Purchase price $1,100,000. I’ve bought, sold and traded collectibles in every conceivable way, including through trade shows, my own auction (live and telephone) and auctions that I’ve conducted for other “houses”. In all, I have been involved in the retailing, wholesaling and auctioning of over $40,000,000 worth of collectibles over a span of 51 years. I sincerely hope that you will find my website at least moderately interesting and also hope that you will pay a return visit as I will be updating it continuously. Even now there are many pages of data that I have yet to list, so please do me a favor and add me to your “favorites” folder. I am usually available by mobile phone to discuss collectibles, so whether buying or selling, please don’t hesitate to try me. Yours in collecting, Bill |
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