Hake’s Auction #244 has closed with $2.5 million in sales from 1,562 lots of pop culture and historical memorabilia. The auction boasted another world record for Star Wars memorabilia when it closed on July 29-30, 2025. It realized impressive prices for toys, original art, and baseball cards, and featured some impressive sales that flew beyond their estimates.

The rare Star Wars Special Early Bird Certificate Package store display AFA 70 sold for $112,100, setting a world record for an action figure line display piece. The thin cardboard header/bin store display was made to hold the Early Bird Certificates that Star Wars fans could purchase to guarantee that they’d receive the first round of toys once they were available. The display header features actual size photos of the action figures, including the Luke Skywalker figure with the double-telescoping lightsaber. An example of one of the certificates is included with the display and is situated as it would have appeared in stores. It is one of the most sought-after Star Wars display pieces and it is the first time this display has ever been offered at auction.

The Early Bird Mail-Away Kit AFA 90, featuring the double-telescoping Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, Chewbacca, and R2-D2 cleared $45,430, surpassing the $35,000 estimate. It comes with the original white mailer box without the mailing address label, vacuform plastic tray with sealed baggie set of the figures, a baggie with additional plastic pegs for posing figures, mini-catalog advertising the action figure line, and mail-away offer for the Early Bird Premium Collector Stand. There are only two examples graded AFA 90, per the current population report with none higher. This is the highest graded example that Hake’s has offered.

The 1933 World Wide Gum Sea Raiders copyright file copy complete US card set CGC graded plus wrapper realized $68,964, more than triple the $20,000 estimate. While this is a highly coveted non-sport card set on its own, what takes this to another level is that it is a full copyright file set submitted to the US Patent Office before the cards were sold in stores. Two complete sets were submitted at the time, one held by the Federal Government and the other returned to World Wide Gum, which is the set that Hake’s sold.

The Judge Dredd – 2000 AD Prog 197 cover by Brian Bolland from 1981 totaled $51,920. It features the tough law enforcer being blown from his Lawmaster motorcycle as an atomic bomb explodes in the background, destroying multiple Mega-City One buildings. The art has been signed by Bolland in red felt tip pen. This cover was made for the issue that featured the first part of the “Pirates of the Black Atlantic” story.

A 1929 Babe Ruth signed card R316 Kashin Publication card PSA 2 with PSA/DNA 7 autograph hammered for $47,258. The 3-1/2” x 4-1/2” card presents a beautiful image of Ruth in his Yankees uniform in a full figure batting pose that is boldly signed near the bottom. The card is also signed on the back by Major League Baseball players Paul Gregory and Elias Funk. Finding prewar signed baseball cards is very difficult. There was a time when it was considered taboo to have a baseball card signed, resulting in a very small number of cards signed by baseball greats like Babe Ruth. In fact, there are only two other graded signed examples of this card, according to the PSA/DNA population report. The example at Hake’s is the highest graded of the three.

The 1970 Topps Baseball Series 4 wax box (24 packs) Baseball Card Exchange-certified sold for $40,238. The 1970 set consists of seven different series that became progressively harder to locate as the season wore on. Series 4 was distributed around mid-season, but some retailers still had a decent supply of Series 1-3. Because of this, they didn’t offer Series 4 until the earlier ones were sold, accounting for the scarcity of Series 4 and later releases.

The Star Wars Weekly #8 cover by Gil Kane was featured on Marvel UK’s adaptation of the American Star Wars comics brought $32,450. The UK books were typically split into smaller segments and published over a number of issues with the movie adaptation stretching into 12 issues and featuring eight covers exclusive to the UK market. This cover captures the lightsaber battle between Obi-Wan Kenobi and Darth Vader as Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Chewbacca, C-3PO, and R2-D2 witness the fight.

The very rare Star Wars “Get a Free Boba Fett” long display header AFA 80+ went for $31,411. The double-sided 12” x 36” long cardboard header display has the Star Wars logo at the top center with classic images of Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia. The left side shows photos of the original 12 Star Wars figures and the right shows the eight new figures with a large image advertising the Boba Fett figure offer. Only four examples have been graded by AFA and this is the first time one has been offered at auction.

Leading the charge for comics was Wonder Woman #1 CGC 3.0, the first issue of Wonder Woman’s solo title, which reached $29,205. One of the most important keys featuring Diana of Themyscira, the book retells her origin story and provides the first appearance of Ares.

A Smith & Robinson Brown Derby Hat litho jugate, considered the premier 1928 jugate, realized $9,865. The 4” button is one of the finest examples known of this rare piece and comes from the Ex-Chick Harris Collection.

A 1948-1949 Trinidad Y Hno Marianao Tigers Booklet (page) Buck Leonard rookie card CGC Authentic crushed the $2,000 estimate to sell for $9,502. The thin glossy paper sheet/page is an extremely rare and uncatalogued Cuban baseball issue produced in conjunction with Trinidad Y Hno cigarettes during the Winter League season. This page featuring the Hall of Famer comes from the Richard Merkin Collection.

All of the top prices realized in Hake’s Auction #244 can be viewed at hakes.com.