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Thread: Worst S/L or Collectible Item Ever?

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    Default Worst S/L or Collectible Item Ever?

    I nominate THE GREEN WOMAN by The Overlook Connection. I just received this little gem today.

    Back in August The Overlook Connection announced the S/L of this graphic novel. Limited to 150 copies and you could pick your number. Numbers 1 & 2 were taken so I took #3. Paid $49.95 plus $6.95 shipping for a total of $56.90 up front via PayPal.

    Here are some photos of this beauty. It is a regular trade edition with a spiffy little sticker on the spine identifying this treasure as an "Autographed Edition." Then to complete this deluxe package the authors have signed the back of the dust jacket and someone has written the book number freehand. No expense was spared and the attention to detail is breathtaking.

    Oh, and to top it off I got #42 instead of the #3 I reserved.

    Has anyone got a worse S/L than this?




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    Ouch - that is bad!

    Great topic though - I'll have to think about this one. Most of my S/L books are King editions and not one comes to mind I'd care to nominate...

    sk

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    Thats bad even by Overlook's sub-standards.

    The way I look at the OCP books is that its nice to get a signed copy of some classic books.

    But they are far from up to snuff in terms of production values.

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    Well, we are clearly not talking just about King here but if I were to nominate a King S/L it would have to be Under the Dome. That entire extra blank page with a lonely signature sure sets it apart from the collector's edition (which itself was quite weak for the price)!

    I've not personally had any bad experiences with other S/L's, but I know this guy who did. His story of the worst S/L he ever bought is found here and looks suspiciously like above story, although at a much higher price... Link goes to awfulbooks.com, and infrequently updated site critiquing limited editions.

    http://www.awfulbooks.com/awfulbooks...%20Earths.html

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    Overlook Connection is famous for under-delivering. I am still waiting for my Coffin Case for Less Than Human by Gary Raiser. I have a note from Dave dated 1994 promising the coffins would be done soon (the book was announced-sold in 1992). Finally in 1996 after over 4 years of "stories" he sent the book without the coffin. The copyright page has the temerity to state: "A Limited Oak Coffin edition of 300.........". The book itself is very nice, although the type is in red. A nice novelty, but have you every tried to read 200+ pages printed in red ink?
    The thread is great. It does raise the question as to what is the worst Stephen King signed Limited? I think I nominate TGWLTG S/L as the worst value.

    Edit:
    Maybe Dolso can make the coffin.

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    Great thread! I'll have to think about it and get back here- I've got a few!

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    That worries me about OC. I have The Passage S/L on order from them. It was $50 cheaper than issue price which was weird but I couldn't pass it up.

    I don't own a US S/L of UTD because it really does look cheap.

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    TGWLTG has to be the worst...just like this one, all he did was sign the cover and then somebody numbered it...but other than the slipcase (right?) it was the same as the trade edition.

    For $56, I'm not going to call this Overlook book the "worst," but certainly overpriced...if you bought an unsigned book it would run $30, so they've charged $25 for the sigs...fair price? Meh, not really.

    I agree the UtD s/l was pretty weak too...anytime they can't even print a signature page shows no effort at all (as in this OC case, but for half the price).

    I'm not a huge 'Black House' fan and was almost going to mention it, but I just read the review on 'awful books,' and it made some good points about why it's a good one...so while it's not my personal preference, that's just because of the design, and I have to agree the production values and appearance itself are really good.

    What was the final TGWLTG price? $1000? For a condensed, rewritten version of the story? Yeah, that ones the worst.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Randall Flagg View Post
    Overlook Connection is famous for under-delivering.
    Another thing about The Overlook Connection is recycled (i.e. previously used) boxes. I suppose the environmentally conscious would disagree but I like a new sturdy box when I order new books. The book in the first post in this thread arrived today in a previously used box originating from the Harlow Valley Packing Co. in Dublin, GA. According to the side of the box it once contained "one or more of the following: sliced smoked bacon, sliced smoked ham water added or sliced smoked shoulder picnic's water added." It also says "keep refrigerated." Thank goodness it is somewhat cold out today.

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    Per the Collectibles Catalog:
    Comments: 15 Lettered A-O (for private distribution) and 125 numbered produced. Children’s pop up book based upon King’s novel of the same title. Perhaps the only King limited to be made in China. The limited has one extra pop up, on the front end page which is where King’s signature and the limitation are. Collectors were shocked when a 14 page book, with no text written by King was increased from $500 to $1,000.

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    Quote Originally Posted by carlosdetweiller View Post

    Another thing about The Overlook Connection is recycled (i.e. previously used) boxes. I suppose the environmentally conscious would disagree but I like a new sturdy box when I order new books. The book in the first post in this thread arrived today in a previously used box originating from the Harlow Valley Packing Co. in Dublin, GA. According to the side of the box it once contained "one or more of the following: sliced smoked bacon, sliced smoked ham water added or sliced smoked shoulder picnic's water added." It also says "keep refrigerated." Thank goodness it is somewhat cold out today.
    I hope you aren't Muslim.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Randall Flagg View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by carlosdetweiller View Post

    Another thing about The Overlook Connection is recycled (i.e. previously used) boxes. I suppose the environmentally conscious would disagree but I like a new sturdy box when I order new books. The book in the first post in this thread arrived today in a previously used box originating from the Harlow Valley Packing Co. in Dublin, GA. According to the side of the box it once contained "one or more of the following: sliced smoked bacon, sliced smoked ham water added or sliced smoked shoulder picnic's water added." It also says "keep refrigerated." Thank goodness it is somewhat cold out today.
    I hope you aren't Muslim.
    Or Jewish? Or vegetarian? Thankfully none of those. Just a meat eating Methodist omnivore.

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    Even some of the OCP books that actually have signature pages are just poorly printed (looks like from a home computer) sheets with the signature added.

    As long as you know what to expect you won't be disappointed. Its just a matter of the price points making you think you'll get something more.

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    Other than the Under the Dome, another poor one is the s/l of Cujo. It has the identical text block as the trade edition and only an acetate dust jacket. I remember being disappointed in it.

    John

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    Of the limiteds I have UTD would be the worst.....

    Brian..

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    Oh! I almost forgot this one. I feel bad for any Bradbury fans. The text of the heavily illustrated Fall of the House of Usher by Poe and Usher II by Bradburdy, (an S/L collection) is done entirely in the F*CKING font COMIC SANS. Which I'm pretty sure automatically qualifies it as the worst S/L in history.


    Thank you Gauntlet Press, for making my eyes bleed.



    ETA: It also has the most home-made-y photoshop-y graphic art disaster that has ever been perpetrated on a cover.

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    I thought the Transgressions S/L was pretty poor presentation...boring, no frills.

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    Default Bleh

    Yeah, TGWLTG was definitely bland, although it did come housed in a slipcase and with different binding than the trade. By the way, if memory serves the suggested retail price was $1,000.00 but the actual cost charged to resellers was only like $670.00 (which is why some were selling them for $900.00).

    As far as recent King signed/limiteds that were merely "Meh..." I'd have to vote for He is Legend (both the numbered and Lettered) and the numbered edition of The Green Mile. I absolutely could not stand the numbered edition of Green Mile and ended up trading mine up towards a Lettered edition, which actually ranks near the top of the list of my favorite King limited editions, despite its mind-bogglingly high price tag of $2,500.00 and the fact that most of the original sketches I have seen have been rather dull (luckily mine is of Coffey's hand in the electric chair as he's being put do death, which I could not be happier with).

    Still, I definitely have to give Subterranean Press kudos for the way that they handled an issue I had when the book arrived. The traycase for the Lettered edition has a ribbon sewn in, which unfortunately pressed against the leather on the spines of the books during shipping, causing an indentation and discoloration across all six spines (those of you with a Lettered edition of The Regulators may notices that the spacers inside the wooden traycase have a similar effect on the leather on the back of that book). It wasn't a huge deal, but for $2,500.00 I was slightly disappointed. I contacted Subterrantean Press and although they did not have any extras available, they put me into contact with the woman who designed and supplied the leather for the spines and paid to have her reproduce them for me. She ended up sending me six large pieces of leather, each of which had the book title blind-stamped six times with lots of blank space above, below, and between each title. So, rather than just getting the six titles I was hoping for, I ended up with 36 of them ;-) Subterranean Press definitely went above and beyond the call of duty there.
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    That "Usher II" is truly ghastly.

    I've never owned a Green Mile s/l, so I've never seen it in person...but I guess I'm semi-impressed because it was six little volumes, so they kept the point of the book. So 'Cujo' and 'TGWLTG' still rank above, to me.

    Transgressions is def. meh, but it copied 'Legends' for the most part.

    I think it's very easy to find examples of unimpressive s/ls, but not necessarily truly awful....but that 'Usher II.' Wow.

    Dolan posted about Firestarter....the book itself is pretty rudimentary...but I think any great dustjacket like that disqualifies it from being the 'worst,' that and the dated signatures.

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    Transgressions and (sadly) Firestarter, in my opinion.

    Sure the artwork on the dj for Firestarter is beautiful... I am pretty bored with the book as a collectible.

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    I guess the worst s/l I own is the Bag of Bones UK edition. A first edition trade with the s/l bookplate attached. Still happy to have it, but it is extremely boring.

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    Yes, Bag of Bones UK sig lim... extremely boring.

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    Based on the thread title, I thought: TGWLTG S/L (because of the price) and TRANSGRESSIONS.

    Then I saw this. Oh dear Lord.

    Quote Originally Posted by thegreattim View Post
    Oh! I almost forgot this one. I feel bad for any Bradbury fans. The text of the heavily illustrated Fall of the House of Usher by Poe and Usher II by Bradburdy, (an S/L collection) is done entirely in the F*CKING font COMIC SANS. Which I'm pretty sure automatically qualifies it as the worst S/L in history.

    Thank you Gauntlet Press, for making my eyes bleed.

    ETA: It also has the most home-made-y photoshop-y graphic art disaster that has ever been perpetrated on a cover.
    But Bob's original post up there with the signatures and limitation in the white space on the back of the dustjacket... All I could think was, "You are fucking kidding me."

    By the way, the S/L of CUJO is on my "Want" list, but due to comments in this thread, it has fallen much lower.

    I still want the S/L of FIRESTARTER though.
    "...that Siren which called and sang and promised so much and gave, after all, so little." ~ Ray Bradbury

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    Quote Originally Posted by Patrick View Post
    Based on the thread title, I thought: TGWLTG S/L (because of the price) and TRANSGRESSIONS.

    Then I saw this. Oh dear Lord.

    Quote Originally Posted by thegreattim View Post
    Oh! I almost forgot this one. I feel bad for any Bradbury fans. The text of the heavily illustrated Fall of the House of Usher by Poe and Usher II by Bradburdy, (an S/L collection) is done entirely in the F*CKING font COMIC SANS. Which I'm pretty sure automatically qualifies it as the worst S/L in history.

    Thank you Gauntlet Press, for making my eyes bleed.
    I should post more pics of this... it truly is a disaster. The typeset, beyond the atrocious comic sans, leaves sooo much to be desired. For example, in one case they have nearly full page illustration with one and a half lines of text crammed into the top of the page. The worst part of the whole mess is the rather nice and unique art they used to illustrate the book. It was reproduced in the final product as a horrible blurry mess. The examples posted on the product page were crisp and colorful. The actual art in the book has been darkened somehow and is almost out of focus. It's like they took a picture of each piece with a camera phone from 2002 and txted them directly to the printer. "Ah, just throw these in wherever they fit, guys."

  25. #25
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    That was a book that I considered buying, but I thought the cover was just too ugly (as you eloquently stated). Now hearing about the interior, I am very glad I didn't bite.

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