Comic Boom and Bust | 107
History of the 90s
Kathy Kenzora
4.7 • 610 Ratings
🗓️ 24 January 2024
⏱️ 37 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
The 1990s are considered one of the most successful and volatile eras in the history of the comic book industry. A speculator fueled boom, epic storylines and publisher marketing gimmicks led to a massive bubble that eventually burst and nearly destroyed the entire industry. On this episode we look back at the causes and the implications of the 90s comic book boom and bust.
Guest:
Jason Sacks, comic book historian and author of many books including American Comic Book Chronicles: The 1990s
Show contact info:
Instagram: @that90spodcast
Email: 90s@curiouscast.ca
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hey there, it's Kathy. I just wanted to let you know that you can listen to History of the 90s |
| 0:04.7 | early and ad-free on Amazon Music, included with Prime. |
| 0:12.8 | In December 1991, a few hundred comic book collectors jammed into Sotheby's New York auction |
| 0:18.9 | house for a highly anticipated sale. |
| 0:21.6 | As the event got underway, among those raising a bidding paddle was a man dressed in a spandex Spider-Man suit. |
| 0:28.6 | He insisted he was Peter Parker, but it turns out he was an actor, sent by Marvel on a mission, |
| 0:35.6 | to purchase a prototype cover of Marvel Comics No. 2, dating back to |
| 0:40.2 | 1938. With great power came great responsibility, and fake Spidey successfully secured it for $14,000. |
| 0:49.0 | It was just one of 500 comics and original comic art that sold that day for over $1.2 million. |
| 0:56.2 | The auction was a landmark moment for the industry and was the ripple that would set off the |
| 1:01.0 | tidal wave of a speculation boom. I'm Kathy Kanzora, and this is History of the 90s, a podcast |
| 1:07.3 | about a decade that changed the world. On this episode, we're tracking the comic book boom and bust of the 1990s. |
| 1:20.1 | For a couple of years leading up to that historic auction at Sotheby's, the comic book industry was riding high. |
| 1:26.8 | Thanks in part to Tim Burton's dark and stylish adaptation of a classic superhero story. |
| 1:32.6 | Don't kill me! Don't kill me, man! |
| 1:34.8 | I'm not going to kill you. I want you to do me a favor. |
| 1:38.0 | I want you to tell all your friends about me. |
| 1:39.9 | What are you? |
| 1:42.3 | I'm Batman. |
| 1:44.2 | The 1989 Batman movie starring Michael Keaton as the millionaire Gotham City Vigilante, |
| 1:53.4 | alongside Jack Nicholson as the Joker, |
| 1:55.9 | was influenced by Frank Miller's groundbreaking comic book miniseries |
... |
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