You know, it’s almost a religious experience nowadays to walk into a comic book store and, up on the shelves, see Amazing Spider- Man #1, Amazing Fantasy #15, and Incredible Hulk #1. But that’s exactly what happened to me this morning when I walked into Heroes and Villains Comics in Hampton, VA. See, Heroes and Villains is my local comic shop, so, since I had the day off, thought I’d hit them up first thing this morning (I’m beginning to think I’m going to take a day off whenever a new issue of Blackest Night comes out). I walked in and was greeted with a WALL of Silver Age comics, including the aforementioned goodies, along with Bronze Age goodies like Ghost Rider #1, Incredible Hulk #181, Tomb of Dracula #10, Werewolf by Night #32…I mean, I was just blown away by everything up on the wall!
A little more information on what has become known as The Riverdale Collection:
The Riverdale Collection is an original owner collection and was purchased in the city of Hampton, Virginia. The collection contains approximately 95% of every comic DC and Marvel Comics published since 1961. Just about every key book from this period is present. While not as extensive as DC and Marvel, many other publishers from the 60’s and 70’s are also well represented – there’s a good selection of Dell, Gold Key, and Charlton. The owner amassed over 30,000 books. Roughly half of these books are from the Silver and Bronze Age (1960-1979). In addition to the comics, the collection also contains many Marvel black & white magazine titles. There’s also a substantial amount of Marvel and DC Treasury Editions, including the rarely seen hardback DC Famous First Editions.
Speaking with store owner Richard Trinkle, it sounds like only 2,500 of the 30,000 have been catalogued so far, and there’s already an amazing amount of good stuff. Keep reading after the jump for more information on Heroes and Villains comics and The Riverdale Collection!
In the already catalogued portion of The Riverdale Collection, here are some of the heavy hitters:
Silver Age
- Amazing Fantasy #15 (the Spider-Man story only – the collector actually removed the other pages)
- Amazing Spider-Man #1
- Avengers #1
- Brave and the Bold #28
- Daredevil #1
- Fantastic Four #1, #48, & #52
- Incredible Hulk #1
- Journey Into Mystery #83 (Thor story only)
- Justice League of America #1
- Showcase #4 (Flash story only)
- Silver Surfer #1
- Tales of Suspense #39
- X-Men #1
Bronze Age Keys
- All-Star Western #10
- Captain America #100
- Fear #19
- Ghost Rider #1
- Giant Size X-Men #1 (2 copies)
- Green Lantern #76 (2 copies)
- Hero for Hire #1
- House of Secrets #92
- Incredible Hulk #102 & #181
- Iron Fist #14
- Iron Man #1
- Marvel Premiere #15
- Marvel Spotlight #2 & #5
- Nova #1 (2 copies)
- Tomb of Dracula #1 & #10
- Werewolf By Night #32
- X-Men #94
I actually picked up a couple of goodies, including this little number – Dracula #2 by Dell (#1, published in 1962, was an adaptation of the 1931 film)!
Heroes and Villains Comics is located at:
1152 Big Bethel Rd
Hampton, VA 23666
Call (757) 838-4431
Visit them today (well, not today, they’re already closed – tomorrow?) and make sure to print plenty of moola!