This year marks the 50th anniversary of The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide. As part of the year-long celebration of this golden anniversary, Gemstone Publishing will release The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide #1 Facsimile Edition, a faithful reproduction of the one that started it all.

This edition reproduces the very first volume and includes the original prices, the original articles, and the original ads. The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide #1 Facsimile Edition is featured in the February 2020 PREVIEWS from Diamond Comic Distributors and is due in comic shops on Wednesday, April 1.

How much have things changed in the five decades of Overstreet? In 1970, the top price the Guide listed for Action Comics #1 was $300. Today, it’s listed for $4.2 million! Likewise, the top price for Detective Comics #27 was $275. Today, it’s listed for $2.8 million!

“When Bob Overstreet undertook his first edition of the Guide, many collectors and dealers alike thought prices had stabilized. He wasn’t even sure he’d need to do a second edition. Fifty years later, the market continues to change and the Guide continues to showcase this amazing art form,” said J.C. Vaughn, Vice-President of Publishing for Gemstone Publishing.

The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide #1 was released in October/November 1970. There were just 1,000 copies in the first printing (white cover) and 800 in the second printing (blue cover). The Guide has itself become a collectible over the years. A copy of a first printing of The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide #1 CGC 9.2 has sold for $9,000.

For five decades, the Guide has been The Bible of comic book collectors, dealers, and historians. A high-grade original copy of the 1970 original could cost you thousands of dollars, but now you can have your own faithful replica of that landmark edition!

Unlike the original printings, in addition to the standard version ($16.95), this commemorative edition will also be offered in a hardcover version ($25), which is limited to 400 copies, and a signed, numbered hardcover ($50), which is limited to 100 copies. The signed, numbered edition will be signed by author Robert M. Overstreet.

All three versions will be available on Wednesday, April 1 in better comic shops. To find the comic shop closest to you, visit www.comicshoplocator.com and enter your ZIP code.

The standard edition, hardcover edition, and a signed, numbered hardcover edition will also be available on our site for those who don’t live near a comic shop.