Er , uhm, no one bought it. The seller was out of work and desperate for money at the time and is VERY glad no one bought it!
Er , uhm, no one bought it. The seller was out of work and desperate for money at the time and is VERY glad no one bought it!
I'm sure if there is intelligent life somewhere out there in the universe, they are wise enough to stay away from us.
And the people bowed and prayed, to the cell phone god they made...
Yes, if my memory serves me, the price was at $90,000 and it was the second or third time over the years that this particular dealer sold the version. It could have been the company that has the Letter B Firestarter (infamous Ebay scam from last December) but I won't swear to that.Originally Posted by herbertwest
There are only 5 available. If there's one avaiable in Fine condition, it will sell for $20,000-$30,000, IMHO. VG would still command $18,000-$25,000. I'd do cartwheels around the White House in my electric wheelchair if I could buy one (of five) for $10,000!
Yeah, the guy selling that one came here and posted a bit around the time of that situation regarding the Firestarter, I believe...with a you don't know who I am attitude. I believe he ended by banning at least one of us from purchasing from him. *gasp* He seemed like a total ass.
so... everyone, just curious,... if the salem's lot 1st print book jacket demands that high price because there are only 5 copies... (it's the jacket - not the book, since the 1st edition book is the same book regardless of the jacket that it is married too)....Yes, if my memory serves me, the price was at $90,000 and it was the second or third time over the years that this particular dealer sold the version. It could have been the company that has the Letter B Firestarter (infamous Ebay scam from last December) but I won't swear to that.
There are only 5 available. If there's one avaiable in Fine condition, it will sell for $20,000-$30,000, IMHO. VG would still command $18,000-$25,000. I'd do cartwheels around the White House in my electric wheelchair if I could buy one (of five) for $10,000!
what do you guys think one of the 5 (or is it 6?... pretty sure it is 5...) only known copies of king's first story in print - aka The Lisbon High School Newspaper (The Drum) with code Named Mousetrap - should go for now days?
just as rare as the Salem's Jacket... and pretty much King's earliest known printed work....
It's so priceless that it's impossible to judge - if you got two would-be supercollectors, they might both push it past $50K - who knows.
But it could also go for $10K or $1K even...(assuming a theoretical auction starting at $1). Just depends on who wants it, when. (I'd assume more on the $10K side, though).
And, despite the rarity...it's not really a book. It's 'ephemera,' which isn't something everyone's interested in.
I don't think it would be ephemera. It's the first appearance of a short story, just like any of the magazines and/or anthologies would be. To me, "ephemera" would be something like a school yearbook with King in it (of which I have three, yay, lol).
Ephemera are transitory written and printed matter not intended to be retained or preserved
As for the newspaper or other really rare "ephemera", I say use an auction house-it seems like they get more than Ebay-or certainly here on a private sale.
It's tough to "value" such an item as it could go for $1K, or $20K.
I still believe (and it's easy to say when one doesn't own a copy), that the 'Salem's Lot "blem" dustjacket is incredibly overestimated in price and value. I am probably mistaken, but the hype has been that it's the "unobtainum"- it is really just a typo DJ that at the time probably was tossed aside-after some copy editor got their ass ripped-or fired. I don't believe that at this time and place someone would rather spend $40K on a DJ versus $20K on a Lettered Firestarter. Of course if they already own the Firestarter, and have $40K disposable, then things are different.
Yeah, but you see that type of value in all sorts of collecting efforts. Remember that sheet of airmail stamps printed upside down back in the 30s or something? Hugely valuable to stamp collectors. And those 12 or so 1943 copper pennies minted by mistake? (They were supposed to be zinc or nickel or something). Those types of things are their own "Holy Grails" for many collectors.
(I can remember as a kid going through every penny stash or collection I could find to see if I could discover a 1943 copper penny. Remember those ads in the back of the comic books. THIS PENNY COULD BE WORTH $50,000!!!).
Agreed, but the number of Numismatics and Philatelists are far greater than SK collectors. There are far more (IMO) N&P's than book collectors-and without a doubt SK collectors are a very small percentage (despite the fact we SK Collectors all feel we are the center of the universe) of book collectors.
Are you telling me that there are other book collector's out there besides us? No way!
WE ARE THE CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE!
I think the first 'Salem's Lot (dustjacket) might appeal to those other book collectors too though.
That's a good point. If I were a serious stamp or coin collector I would pay just about any price for a misprint or error b/c I knew that somewhere someone would be willing to pay more in an open auction. I don't believe that at all for any SK item.
yeah... right... but if I had to guess... the top bidder on any salem's lot 1st jacket... would NOT - not be a huge king collector (like that double negative?)
seriously... I wonder how many of the "5 copies" of the 1st jacket are owned by the general - non-sk collector- public.
I'm just guessing zero
there' s
bob,
hutch,
who else?
probably 4 out of the 5 are the same people who own the 5 drum copies.... (me being the exception)
appealing to the general public might make a difference when the prices are in the hundreds - but at some point the SK biggest fan factor kicks in - those are the people who actually drive up the price on any rare king item.
Don't say "copies", its "originals". There are hundreds of "copies" floating around the internet.
true rabbit...true... originals...
so... a comparison...
who owns the original drums (code named mousetrap)
1. Bob
2.
3.
4.
5. Terry (me)
who owns the salem's lot 1st jacket?
1. Bob
2. Hutch?
3.
4.
5.... (not me)
BTW... from all the multiple hundreds of items in my collection, including many lettered editions.... personally, the Drum might be the last item I would be willing to part with.
I consider it my most rare printed item. It'd have to be a considerable sum to separate me from it.
(Note: to me... printed items are in a different catagory from the contract copies, and original correspondence in the doubleday publisher's files collection that I own)
.
Makes sense to me - it's the one item you will never be able to own again
I had a set of Plants with 2/3 the same number AND those numbers matched my DT set...but eventually I got a selling price I simply couldn't refuse and let them go.
Now if I got another Plant set, it obviously won't be a matching number. I HAD the matching number.
I have a signed "Modern Classics of Horror" anthology...it's not a very interesting anthology, long out of print - but I've never seen a signed copy before or since...so that's the one I really don't want to let go of. I personally believe it's the ONLY signed edition of the book.
One of these days I might let you all see my original "The Drum Vol. 1 No. 4" dated 29 May 1964. This contains the only printing of "Band Uniforms".
The guy who was selling the one "salem's Lot jacket for $90,000 has one or did
and
ur2ndbiggestfan from here.
So that accounts for 4 copies.
Just for clarification, the one that was selling for $90,000 and the one I have are the same copy, which was what I was trying to hint at in my previous post. (How that price was decided had nothing to do with my knowledge of book collecting or reality, I just went with the flow, so to speak, and I am VERY glad it did not sell!) The breakdown of who has the 4 copies is still correct though. I heard that the 5th jacket is in the hands of a collector somewhere in the British Isles, but this is a totally unsubstantiated speculation. It is also possible that the owner's dog ate the dust jacket. Either rumor is essentially valid, since both are made of imaginative fantasizing.
I'm sure if there is intelligent life somewhere out there in the universe, they are wise enough to stay away from us.
And the people bowed and prayed, to the cell phone god they made...
Rumors (rumours) are essentially that. Rumors. Until proven otherwise. The UK collector is actually Irish, and has dispensed with a lot of his collection.
The ABE listing if I remember correctly, was $50,000 but don't quote me on that. Just like 95% of listings on ABE, they would never sell.
I read it on the Internet-therefore it must be true.
why so important to anyone, that is unless someone were to be selling. I know all the owners of the first state 'Salem's (unless there has been a change in ownership in the last 5 years).... but I'm keeping it to myself
Keep it to yourself. Thanks for your contribution.
I posted one thing about the Salem's Lot DJs some time ago and I still think the same thing:
I understand that the price of it is the one the collectors are willing to pay, but don't you think it's an item that it won't be hard to forge? I mean...easily, one could print some with the right paper and put the necesary stuff in it to look it like it is from the 70s. And even when some may have direct contact with the person that distribute these 5 copies in the first place, is he so extremely sure that there are only five copies?. What happens if tomorrow, or in a month, or in a year, etc, a collector appears and say that he has one. Would everyone think it's a forge? What if he mentions that he got it from the same John Doe (I don't remember his name) that sold/distribute the previous five. Could he be lying or maybe J. Doe was wrong in the first place?
What about it in 10 or 20 years, when some of the five actual owners may sell his collection, and many of us may already have stopped collecting and a new generation of collectors is in the field?
It's a very easily item to forge in my opinion, and even when there are people that would spend a lot on it, I wouldn't even if I had the money. Too risky for my taste.
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