Hey, did your parents let you
Watch horror movies at a young age?
I remember when I went to see Jaws for the first time.
- How old were you? - Eight.
I had to be removed from the theater.
- [laughs] - It was that traumatic?
I remember it was too intense for me,
And my mom leaned over, and was like, "are you okay?
Do you want to stay and watch it?"
And I was like, "no."
"Do you want to go dress shopping?"
[laughter]
It's just weird, like, nowadays,
Like, you probably wouldn't even think to take, you know,
An eight- or nine-year-old to a horror movie.
When Grizzly came out, I told my mom,
"I want to see that," and she was like,
"Are you sure?
You remember what happened in Jaws?"
I was like, "No, I'm older now. I can see Grizzly."
There was a moment, the first time the bear attacked somebody,
And, like, off-camera, you just see an arm fly by--
A bloody arm fly by--
And my mom looked at me, and I was like, "Let's go."
Then he got his period.
[laughter]
[epic music]
Sync by Loxforl
Hello, and welcome to another episode of Comic Book Men,
The only show with a hairier member than a wookie, man.
I'm your host, Kevin Smith.
- Bryan Johnson. - Walt Flanagan.
- Mike Zapcic. - Ming Chen.
Okay, what come through da doors this week?
Enlighten us.
I had a really cool item come in the other day.
- How's it goin', fellas? - How you doin'?
Got something here I thought you guys
Might be interested in.
All right, what do ya got?
Right here, I got the first issue of
The Walking Dead.
Whoa.
The creme de la creme of the comics world right now.
That's a first printing?
That is a first printing.
I bought it directly off the shelf...
- Oh, yeah? - In October of 2003.
I believe it was $3.99.
Why are you selling it, man?
This is like-- right now, I mean, it's just...
That's like a lottery ticket right there.
It's better than gold.
Well, I'm an amateur photographer,
And I'm looking to start my own business,
Make it a little larger, buy some equipment,
Studio equipment, lenses, all that fun stuff.
What are you looking for for this?
Well, I wanted $2,000.
[laughter]
Where did you get that number from?
The 9.8 had sold on the internet for $7,000,
And I know a shop in my area just sold one for $800.
Wait a second.
You said you wanted to sell it for $2,000,
But the shop in your area sold it for $800.
Yes.
So do you think he needs
To take a loss on his taxes, or something?
[laughter]
I'm gonna go out on a limb here
And say, in the last 20 years, I don't think a book
Has risen in price--not even published by the big two,
Marvel or DC-- than Walking Dead #1.
That's a pricy book? Why?
It's a pricy book because the print run was so small.
How small was it?
Less than 8,000 copies were printed,
And I think that as long as that tv show
Is where it's at right now,
I mean, people are gonna be coming in for that book,
And I wouldn't be surprised to see that book
Crack four figures.
Really?
It's got some speckling on it right here.
Can you see it, on rick's leg right there?
There's some white speckling. Oh, yeah.
- Smegma. - Oh, yeah.
Yeah, and there's a bit of smegma on there.
In this condition, it's probably gonna go
Probably $700, or less,
So knowing that, I fail to see how you think
I can pay any more than...
$350 for it.
So $350 your offer?
$350 cash for a book in this condition,
Ungraded, with the smegma.
[laughter]
You know what I'm saying?
'cause I gotta make a profit on it.
Yeah, um--
All right, how about $700?
How about $450?
That's really--
And that's more than I even wanted to pay for it.
It'sobviously, you want it, so $500.
$450. Obviously, you're reading me wrong.
$450 is definitely as high as I can go.
Okay. Well, I thank you for your time.
I appreciate it very much. $460.
$500.
No.
Nope.
Can't do it. - All right.
You guys have a good one. Thank you.
Have a good one.
I'm bummed, man. I wanted it.
Yeah?
Yeah, that's the jewel
Of the current comic book crown right there.
We're all set.
Separate bags, gang?
- Yeah! - All right!
You guys enjoy those.
Thanks.
Holy crap.
You guys are never gonna believe
Who's gonna be coming into the store tomorrow.
It's unbelievable.
I mean, it's insane. - Come on!
- Tomorrow... - Okay.
Stan Lee is coming to the Stash.
- Stan Lee? - Stanley who?
I remember getting the call.
Um, some photographer studio
Wanted to do some sort of charity photograph session
With Stan, and they chose the Stash as the backdrop.
I thought I was being, you know--a trick.
I thought he was--
- That you were being punked, or something like that?
[laughter]
Of all the stores in america they could have chose,
They chose the Stash.
- No way. - Wow.
This is gonna be unbelievable, man.
Hey, he's here! He's here!
Guys, mr. Stan Lee.
- Ready? - Ready.
And go!
Nice. Both: Oh!
[laughter]
- How much time is left? - Five seconds!
Both: Oh! - Three seconds!
One second! [mimics buzzer]
[cheers and laughs]
Oh!
[mimics crowd cheering]
[laughter]
- Hey - How are you?
I'm the good things that come in a small package.
- All--all right. - My name's Jeff
How you doin', Jeff? Walt.
What do you got?
Brought something that you might
Be interested in today.
Ooh. Is that #6?
- That is Hulk #6. - Hulk #6.
Do you mind if I take it out?
Go right ahead.
He's not talking about the comic, you know.
[laughter]
You know what's interesting about this, Ming?
I know he's popular right now.
Back in the '60s, though, when he was first introduced,
He was such a lame duck character
That they cancelled his title.
And then he appeared in Tales to Astonish...
That's right.
Until they turned that mag
Into The Incredible Hulk.
The hulk we think of as cg in the movies now--
In The Avengers, he looks amazing.
The only way to do him justice
Is to do him as a big cg character,
But back in the day, man, Lou Ferrigno pulled it off
With just green makeup, and his damn self, you know?
Just his body with the paint.
Which I think is more admirable to go in as--
You built yourself to perfection.
You look like a human hulk if you're painted green.
Oh, go on. [laughter]
Where'd you get this at?
I purchased this as part of a collection
Better than 10 years ago.
Tried to sell it on eBay without any luck.
Don't think that I can get
A fair price for it these days.
Plus it's taking up a lot of room where he sleeps.
[laughter]
I do represent the lollipop guild.
[groaning]
- Card carrying member? - Absolutely.
Well, what are you looking to get
For Incredible Hulk #6?
I would like to get $500 for it.
Okay, because, I mean, you can see there's a rip right here.
I don't know what that is right there.
[laughter]
There's stain right there.
[mimicking hulk] Hulk make b.M.
[laughter]
Green and brown just don't go together.
I could give you $200.
- Two and a half? - $210.
$210, and that is my final-- my final offer.
- Can you do $215? - $215?
All right, I can do $215.
You got yourself a deal. All right.
For those of you that don't read the book,
And we all think of the ever-loving hulk as green,
He started as gray originally.
How many issues before he became green?
One.
In the comics, did they explain
Why he went from green to gray, or gray to green,
Or was it just, like, "it's cheaper to go green?"
No, I remember reading
Some sort of, like, interview with stan.
It was just-- they just were like,
"hey, he looks better green. Let's go with green.
We don't need to explain it."
Could you imagine if you tried
To get away with that today?
Like, "Batman's pink this month."
- [laughs] - "Let's just see if it rolls."
[laughter]
Do you think it would be cool if I asked a couple questions?
You may not get a chance to ask any of your questions.
I've got so many of my own. Really?
Yeah, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
I mean, we got this place closed down.
We've basically got him to ourselves.
But no, you can't ask any questions
In this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
I mean, it's like, literally,
Like being in a prison cell with Stan Lee.
He can't go anywhere. Oh, yeah?
[laughs]
[mock spits]
[laughter]
I don't give a crap about Spider-Man.
Let's do the list of Stan Lee's creations.
Spider-Man, Hulk... - Yes.
- Iron man... - Yes.
All the avengers.
Except captain america.
That's right. All right, cap's not his.
The x-men. - Yes.
Fantastic four.
- I mean, come on. - The list goes on and on.
What are we gonna do?
Are we going to stay in here all day
And just list Stan's characters?
[laughter]
Hey, he's here! He's here!
How are you? All right, glad to see you.
Thank--thank you for coming down.
- What's your name? - My name is ming.
- Hey, good to meet you, ming. - Good to meet you.
Where do I go?
Uh, right back here.
I'll follow you.
Hey, what a great place.
Okay, so what have you got in store for me here?
Uh, a photo shoot set up. Guys, this is Stan Lee.
Look at all--all those hostile-looking guys.
Mr. Lee, it's an honor.
Nice to meet you. Thank you.
- Mr. Lee. - It's a pleasure.
Pleasure's all mine.
Stan Lee doesn't care about me.
- Oh, hey! - He doesn't care about me.
- Hello there. - Hey, mr. Lee.
How are you doing?
Didn't have time to shave today.
[laughter] - or yesterday.
Or the day before.
I just wanted you to take a look
At something I brought I
- Okay. - Wow.
Very nice.
I've heard of this book selling
For as much as $35,000.
People celebrate George Lucas,
And Roddenberry, the guy that created Star Trek.
Stan Lee has 'em beat by a thousand miles.
You know, like, Stan Lee created the characters
That fueled the imagination
Of the next five generations of filmmakers.
If you take, like, a poster of the Marvel universe,
And just throw a dart,
You're gonna hit a character that Stan Lee created.
And a character that's gone on now
To, um, generate billions of dollars now
With the movies, the merchandise.
I mean, he is the cool walt disney.
- Yeah. - Yeah.
I'd go with that, absolutely.
Somewhere, Walt Disney is just like--
[laughter]
Walt Disney also created some very iconic characters,
But, you know, males, you know,
Want to, uh, you know-- they want to be alpha males.
They don't want to wear Pluto, or Goofy, or Donald Duck.
They want to wear Spider-Man, and the Hulk, Wolverine.
You know, cool stuff.
Oh, and you look cool.
[laughter]
So what do you guys think
Is the weirdest super villain ever created?
Uh, I think when I was a kid,
It was Stilt-Man.
Just Stilt-Man always bothered me.
I could never understand
Why Daredevil just wouldn't knock him over.
He had some sort of Gyro, like, mechanical thing
On his back that made it so he was never off-balance.
Yeah, but still, he could knock him over.
I mean, you could trip him.
You could tie his shoelaces together so he could fall.
You're getting like Bugs Bunny now.
- How are you doing? - Need some help?
Uh, I just wanted you to take a look
At something I brought in.
Okay.
I don't know if you guys
Have a lot of golden age comics.
We get 'em occasionally.
It's a Planet Comics#1.
- Wow. - Very nice.
♪ 1 Planet Comics. Great book.
Probably the cornerstone
Of the '40s, '50s science fiction fandom.
I mean, this is a trendsetter.
So this book is almost 70-odd years old, right?
And for being that old, it has a remarkable amount
Of condition still within it.
The colors are bright. - Yeah.
Not to mention it's an awesome cover.
How'd you come by this book?
Actually, it was a find.
I was at a big comic con, and just, you know, head down,
Looking through the boxes for three days,
And I think I got a pretty good deal on it,
And being that it's a #1,
It could be worth up to--
I've heard--actually heard of this book selling
For as much as $35,000, but--
$35,000 for this comic?
Yes, #35,000,
But this book
Is not Planet Comics #1.
This is the canadian edition
Of Planet Comics #1,
But I didn't even notice that, at first,
When I found the book.
You know, I got excited, thought it was a #1.
- I would get excited too... - Sure.
But it actually was printed in 1947.
It is actually mostly a reprint of issue #62.
I mean, I think this book, at a show,
Maybe, like, a new york convention on a back wall,
$250 would be a good asking price.
Well, what are you looking for for a cash offer?
[exhales]
Honestly, I think a buck 50.
I, um-- I can't do $150 on it.
$100.
$125?
I mean, the cover alone, you know,
Really is just a wall hanger.
It really is.
$115, and that's about--
That's as good as I can go on it.
All right, let's do it. $115.
All right. You got a deal.
That's $115.
Thanks a lot, guys.
Both: Thank you. Thank you very much.
Thank you. Take care.
So what do you think? Good pick up?
I think it's beautiful, man.
$115's a good price, right?
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Now look, and now, he's like, "yeah, yeah, yeah."
But you said 125.
I got it for ten bucks less than what you said.
Well, $125! I think it's a great pickup.
I really do. I like that book.
It's beautiful. The color on it's incredible.
Are you interested in it?
Yeah, I have to talk to mrs. Bruce about that.
Mrs. Bruce is wearing the golden age pants, huh?
Yep. Yep.
[mimics whip]
Come on, guys.
[laughter]
You're not too far behind me.
[laughter]
All right, this is my heroic look.
A little dr. Doom feeling there, I hope.
There, you got it.
Eat your heart out, brad pitt.
[chuckles]
Imagine if Stan worked at the store,
That he was a staff member.
[laughter]
II can, and boy, oh, boy,
I'd feel so bad for him.
People come in the store, and they're like,
"didn't you create Spider-Man?" [laughter]
"I'm just helping out."
He runs into the back room, embarrassed.
That would be a horrible thing.
Well, guys.
Tell me all about it.
What's going on? Do you need anything?
A drink, anything?
No, no. Everything's fine.
You've been great hosts.
I'm having a good time.
I love the store.
Well, Stan, it's not every day
That we have a legend in the store like yourself.
Yes, I imagine that's true.
Would you mind if we had you here for a couple seconds?
You know, while you're waiting for the photographer
To set up the next shot, if we, you know,
Asked you a couple questions?
Hey, you've been so flattering that how can I mind?
I know, it is an amazing talent
To be able to kiss your butt this much
While you're sitting down. [laughter]
- First off-- - Okay.
Don't make it difficult... It's not difficult.
'cause it's been a tough day.
Keep the questions easy.
Make sure they're ones I know the answer to.
Um, who really wins:
Thor versus hulk?
Oh, wow.
What about Spider-Man?
To me, that was one
Of the most dramatic panels in comics.
Thor versus Hulk.
Oh, wow.
Who really wins?
You know, whenever two superheroes fight--
Well, usually, when you have two
Of your own big characters,
You try to make it end in a draw
So that the readers can spend the rest of their lives arguing.
"well, I think he won." "no, I think he won,"
And that keeps the interest going,
And that gets me off the hook.
There's something really nice
About being as old as we are,
And still being able to get a little like a little kid.
Stan Lee still has the power
To invoke in you that same childlike reaction
That you had-- a sense of wonder,
For Spider-Man's dad.
"this is Spider-Man's dad. This is the Hulk's dad.
This is Iron Man's dad."
I don't know if you guys could tell when I told you.
I was pretty excited when I broke the news.
I could tell. You were wearing sweat pants.
[laughter]
What about Spider-Man?
Wait a second, I don't get to ask any questions?
No, no, no.
You have to be annoyed by being asked
Nonstop comic nonsense,
So here's a real question.
I'm unlucky in love.
What would you do if you were me?
You look like one of the most well-adjusted guys here.
You're happy. You're calm.
You're content.
You do what you want to do.
Stan needs to get his prescription checked.
[laughter]
I'm sitting up here with Stan.
All of a sudden, I'm sharing the counter with somebody...
All they do is put me down all the time for my choices.
With a guy bigger than me.
They put me down for my choices all the time,
And you're here to tell me, like, "I'm on the right track."
But going back to Spider-Man,
One of the most heartbreaking, gut-wrenching,
But yet fantastic story lines
Was Captain Stacy's death.
What were your thoughts on those monumental events
In Spider-Man's life?
The death of Captain Stacy
Was something I thought the readers wouldn't expect,
But it was the type of thing
That could happen in real life.
But what I liked best about it
Was the very end, when Captain Stacy was dying,
And Spider-Man was there with him
Trying to save him, but he couldn't save him,
And Captain Stacy looked up at Spider-Man,
And with his dying breath...
Oh!
He said something like,
"Take good care of her, Peter."
And Peter knew that Stacy
Had always known who he was.
To me, that was one of the most dramatic panels in comics--
I love that-- or in anywhere, really.
I thought that was good.
Living legends is a term
That's thrown around an awful lot,
And thrown around probably in the wrong direction.
I reserve the term for people
That really deserve it,
And Stan Lee is, to me,
The modern day Mark Twain,
The Samuel Olemens of comics, if you will,
The Will Rogers of four color.
This man has been the ambassador
For the comic book community
Almost since its inception,
And still remains today a tireless crusader
For everything comics-related.
- And react. - [groans]
- Awesome. - Hey!
- All right, guys. - Thank you, guys.
It was great meeting you, really a pleasure.
Oh, you can't stay a little longer?
- No! - I ordered a pizza.
I got soda pop coming.
Enjoy the pizza. Enjoy the soda pop.
I have a thousand more questions.
I gotta go.
Let me take care of this, mr. Lee.
I have to get back in the real world!
It was a pleasure, really. Leave him alone.
- See you guys. - Bye, Stan.
Love you all. Thank you, it was a great time.
Love you, too. Thank you.
I'm okay. Hey, thank you.
Bye, Stan! Bye.
- Bye! - Hey!
Stan Lee!
Turned out he didn't want to go to Atlantic City.
[laughter] - what a shock.
There aren't many days where I say this,
But I wish I'd been there.
I wish I had been working the counter.
I wish I'd have been in the store.
It sounds like you guys had a Stan-tastic time,
As they say.
- A Marvel-ous time. - Nice!
[laughter]
That's gonna wrap it up
For another episode of Comic Book Men this week, man.
I'm, uh, Crushing Kev Smith.
Uh, Bombastic Bryan Johnson.
Winsome Walt Flanagan.
[laughs] Majestic Mike Zapcic.
And Marauding Ming Chen.
With great power comes great responsibility.
Excelsior, kids.