posted on April 3, 2003 07:26:16 AM new
I am doing the happy dance this morning!!! I bought a huge lot of old Family Circle magazines on eBay from the 30's-50's last week. (paid about $350.00 total for the lot of about 450) They arrived in the mail and I just had a chance to look through them. Most of them were about what I expected... however, I did find one INCREDIBLE gem in the lot! Included in the piles of magazines was one April 26th, 1946 issue. On the cover was a picture of a somewhat familiar-looking woman with a lamb. I did some research, and was thrilled with what I found! The woman was none other than Norma Jeane... better known as Marilyn Monroe!!! Apparently this was her FIRST ever cover on ANY magazine!! It looks like it is an EXTREMELY rare copy. I did searches all over the internet, and only found one guy with a copy for sale... and he had it listed at $1000.00!!! This is a link to his magazine, so that you can get an idea of what mine looks like:
http://members.aol.com/TBboy3/fmlycrcl.html
Anyhow, for any magazine experts out there... is there any price guide out there that could verify the value of this magazine for me? I do plan on selling it, but want to make sure I have a reasonable starting price on it. The magazine seems to be in great condition, but I'm wondering exactly how to list its grade. The magazine is complete with no missing pages, tears, or torn pieces. There appear to be no creases. There is very slight staining on the right-hand side of the cover (does not affect the Norma Jean image at all). And, there is moderate staining on the back cover (I'm hoping that won't be too much of an issue, considering the front-cover is what most of the collectors will probably be after!)
Also, I already plan to splurge the extra $.10 for a 10-day auction, but should I consider any of the other features, like bold, highlighted, gallery, etc...? I also don't need the money right away, so.. would it be better to wait and list after the economy recovers? (if it ever does?) Or is this one of those rare items that will sell well regardless of the economic situation?
Thanks for any/all of your responses. And join me in my happy dance!!!!!
posted on April 3, 2003 10:46:33 AM new
I have a U.S. Camera magazine from Nov. 1945 w/ a very young Norma Jean in a swimsuit. It predates the Family Circle issue and was made in less than half the numbers of Circle. I put it up on eBay last year with an opening bid at $9.99, no takers.
posted on April 3, 2003 11:18:33 AM new
meadowlark,
Thanks for the dancing Elvis!
godfatherstoys,
Thanks for the info on the US camera magazine. From what I have understood in doing my research, what makes my magazine more collectible is that Norma Jeane is actually the cover photo. It gained her much more public notice since it was the first thing people saw... and was in a magazine with a larger audience than US Camera. I did find one other website where a guy said he had been thrilled when he was able to purchase a copy at $250.00 (he didn't say when it was purchased or what condition).... so I would bet I still have a good chance at making some serious money. I'll keep my fingers crossed! In the mean time, if any has any more information or advice to share... I'm all ears! Thanks!
posted on April 4, 2003 05:16:42 AM new
I do recall leafing through a book at Barnes & Noble that listed the value of some collectible magazines. I do not remember the name of the book, it might have been a Kovel's.
There are avid collectors of MM material out there and your magazine should have decent value. I would suggest typing her name into Google and doing some lengthy research before listing it.You might do bettter selling it directly to a collector. It would be sad to list it for $9.99 and only get one bidder!
