Storage units have been known to hold many treasures, from Marilyn Monroe’s shoes to an Abraham Lincoln letter. The latest impressive find to come out of storage is a copy of a rare comic book stolen from actor Nicolas Cage more than a decade ago.
Inside a San Fernando Valley storage unit, an unidentified man found a 1938 comic book, “Action Comics #1” which was stolen from Cage’s West Los Angeles home in 2000 and has an estimated value of $1 million. The man bought the storage unit in an auction through Riverside-based American Auctioneers. The DC comic book marks the print debut of Superman and is regarded as one of the most important comic books ever published.
High-quality copies of the comic, published in 1938, are so rare that one sold in February 2010 for $1 million – the highest price ever paid for a comic book. ComicConnect.com mediated that deal and the co-owner, Stephen Fishler, told the Associated Press, “It is still a little stunning to see a ‘comic book’ and ‘$1 million’ in the same sentence.” Fishler had sold the copy to Cage and was able to identify it as the original.
Cage might have been interested in the comic for cinematic reasons. In the 1990s, Cage was slated to play Superman in a Tim Burton film, but the production fell through. It is not known if the comic will be returned to Cage.
In related news, auctioneer Bill Fair was going through a storage unit in Lecompton, Mass. last week, when he found a classic 66 Shelby Mustang. One of only 1,100 made, and sold from Carol Shelby’s personal car lot, the cars have sold for upwards of $2 million. The car had been sitting in the storage unit for 26 years and was in near perfect condition.
With the advent of climate-controlled storage units, more people have been placing their valuables in storage facilities. Many people who have stored their items in standard storage facilities have been shocked to find their belongings completely ruined because of humid weather or extreme cold. Regulating the temperature of a room is the only way to guarantee the safety of items and it can help protect against rusting, mold, mildew, and other deterioration. Climate-control storage is especially useful when storing antiques and other delicate valuables that are not able to handle constant changes in temperature and climate, especially dampness in the air.
Sources Used:
“Nicholas Cage’s Stolen Superman Debut Comic Found in Storage Locker.” Los Angeles Times. April 11, 2011.
“Rare Shelby Mustang Found While Cleaning Storage Unit.” MSNBC.com. April 7, 2011.