Last year I wrote a piece on items Acme Comics doesn't buy or want, like Beanie Babies, Nascar items, beat up records, etc. For the start of the new year I'm presenting a list maybe more inspiring; items Acme does want to buy. Of course the list isn't complete but it gives you an idea what we are buying. Clean out your garage, attic or basement and maybe make yourself a few bucks in the process.
Nintendo Cartridge Video Games
Probably the most requested non-comic collectible requested. Especially any Zelda, Final Fantasy, Mario Brothers or role playing games. All Nintendo formats—basic, Super Nintendo, Nintendo 64 includes games and working systems. We take almost all games, as long they are in good condition, with box and instructions an added cash bonus. Game Cube, Sega, Playstation, Xbox, Game Boy and DS are also desirable but not as quite of a high demand. We'll even take golden oldies Atari and Intellivision!
Pre-1980 Superhero Marvel And DC Comics
Superhero comics basically started in 1938 with the first Superman comic.
Comics from that era, the Golden Age, up until the late 40's are pretty scarce due to paper drives during World War II. In the fifties superheroes faded out only to be revived in 1956 with the reinventing of the Flash, starting the Silver Age.
Silver Age peaked in the 60's with Marvel creating Fantastic Four, Spiderman, Hulk etc. Silver age comics are climbed in price tremendously since the success of Marvel movies, especially "first appearance" issues.
Most vintage collectors in the store mostly seek these comics 1963-1972. Not all are super expensive but still desirable. If you have Marvel superhero comics from that era you can earn a few bucks.We also buy westerns, horror, Archie, Disney, Classics Illustrated, movie tie-in and other comics from 50's thru 70's just not as high a price.
1980's And 90's Action Figures And Toys
All those little kids in the 80's are now 30-somethings with kids of their own and both generations collect the same toys!
The most popular are Star Wars, Transformers, GI Joe, He-Man (or Masters of the Universe), Thundercats, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (or TMNT if you're cool), Lego play sets and various super hero and movie/TV related toys.
The figures are the most common, vehicles, diorama, ships are popular because most kids only got 1-2 big toys and bunch of figures. Of course, figures still on original card and big items still in box command premium dollars. It's odd the periphery items from this era like coloring books, magazines, and general non-toy items aren't very popular. Just straight up figures and vehicles.
We get these toys in frequently but they go pretty quick especially when you have adult and kid collectors chasing the same thing. And if you think that kids from the 80's are now parents is depressing, try dealing with being the guy who sold comics and toys to the 80's kids and now their kids are buying from you!
Good Rock Albums
Today's young record collectors now call LP's "vinyls" and the bulk of their buying habits are not much different than 40 years ago. Nice clean copies of Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Black Sabbath, later day Beatles, you know, the basic classic rock artists are hot stuff.
In fact I'd rather a box of these artists on LP come in than a box of CD's, which are getting really tough to sell, for now at least. If your albums have nice covers and the occasional bonus lyric sheet and poster that always helps the value too. Most rock recordings pre Sgt. Pepper are a bit less asked for, even Elvis, still buy them though. Also blues and jazz from 50's and 60's are scarce in good condition.
70's punk rock, glam and alternative albums are pretty scarce and desirable too.
Picture sleeve 45's, the little record with the big hole, are pretty cool too.
Classic Movie DVD's
Right now there is a glut of common new release DVD's. The advent of Redbox and Netflix has made DVD demand drop considerably. But there are some movies that have fallen through the cracks which have limited time on Netflix or not shown at all. Most of these films seldom make it to re-sell shops because generally the people that buy foreign or classic movies tend to keep them.
So we're always looking for Alfred Hitchcock, Humphrey Bogart, Marilyn Monroe type movies. The basic stuff the Academy Awards broadcasts when they annually show a "brief history of Hollywood in two minutes" montage. Classic Disney cartoons, BBC TV, 50's and 60's foreign movies, and 70's and 80's cult movies are also frequently requested.
Vintage Sports Cards And Memorabilia
Most sports cards from the 50's thru the mid- 70's are pretty good. In the Peoria area the obvious requests are Cardinals, Cubs, Bears and Packers items in cards and collectibles. Plus Hall of Fame players like Mickey Mantle, Johnny Unitas, Willie Mays are always in demand.
Nodders, 50's Hartland statues, scorecards, sport magazine are also good items. The scarcest being Chicago Cub World Series winner programs. Doubtful we'll ever see one of those!
50's and 60's Non-Sport Cards
During that era cards were often produced of TV shows, kid pop culture icons and generally humor cards. The most well-known is Mars Attacks, alien invasion cards that were deemed too violent for kids in 1962. They were soon withdrawn and instantly became a hot commodity.
Batman, Beatles, Monkees, Zorro, Green Hornet, Addams Family, Munsters, Three Stooges, James Bond and The Man from UNCLE are some of the more popular entertainment cards.
70's Wacky Packs, which were spoofs of commercial products, and 80's Garbage Pail Kids have maintained popularity.
Cool Magazines
We really don't get much of these in but we’re always looking for 70's era Rolling Stone, Creem, Hit Parader music magazines.
As well as related Heavy Metal, National Lampoon and underground comics.
The most requested magazine is 50's and 60's Famous Monsters of Filmland, which focused on horror movies of the past and then-present.
There were many other related monster magazine from that era that are collectible too.
Also by Warren Publishing, the same as Famous Monsters, Vampirella, Creepy and Eerie horror comic magazines are hot items.
Believe or not classic TV Guide magazines have a demand. I Love Lucy, Andy Griffith, Bewitched, Star Trek, etc are some of the biggies.
Playboys and various pin up magazines from the fifties and early sixties can sometimes worth a bit. The retro lounge music scene from a few years ago got that kickstarted.
Books
Mostly science fiction and horror. Adventure paperbacks like Doc Savage or Tarzan. Vintage paperbacks, especially 50's crime, with angry teens, drug reference, and general mystery.
Also good photography and history books.
Sixties Toys
Probably still the most demand of vintage toys. Of course big 12 inch GI Joe's lead the pack. Major Matt Mason, Marx Knights and Vikings, Best of the West, Captain Action closely follow.
Almost anything related to 60's TV shows—lunch boxes, coloring books, Soaky bubble bath containers, kids books, board games. Also Nutty Mad figures and monster model kits.
It's amazing the number of people I encounter that still throw away really good collectibles. Worse yet, some still burn paper. There's still a lot more things we look for but just don't show up much; vintage movie posters, old movie magazines, pulps, radio and cereal premiums, advertising collectibles and figures, the list is endless. I always tell customers before you burn, donate or throw away things call first! It's free to ask. If something is not worth our while we'll tell you to donate or throw away. We try to be as fair on offers as possible, reminding customers you can't stay in business by nearly "stealing" items. If something is truly valuable and expensive we'll help you sell it for a commission.
Acme Comics
2218 W. Glen Avenue
Peoria, Illinois
309-691-9816
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Related posts: Shop Hop: Acme Comics, Last Comic Standing: Free Comic Book Day At Acme Comics and Stuff I Don't Want to Buy at Acme By Bob Gordon.