Lot # 1657: 1932 Street & Smith The Shadow #18 Pulp Magazine Classic Cover Early Issue - CGC 3.0 - Only Graded Example

Something sinister is cooking in this 1932 Street & Smith The Shadow #18 (volume 3, #6) pulp magazine, titled "Dead Men Live". Issues from the Shadow's first year of print in 1931, are quite scarce, and issues from 1932-1934 are cited as uncommon. Dated November 15, 1932, this issue falls in the uncommon date range. Prized for its classic cover, this early issue depicts the mysterious Shadow pouring the story's characters from a laboratory vial, in a cloud of vapor. Perhaps the mysterious vigilante has brought the dead back to life, as the title implies.

Though CGC's label cites "Top & Right Edge of Front Cover & Bottom Edge of Back Cover Trimmed", it should be noted the practice of trimming pulps was common among 1930s readers, as these colorful magazines were published with overhanging edges during this period, that quickly became ragged, and for many unappealing. CGC has encapsulated this semi-key issue in a Universal Grade holder with a rating of 3.0, Off-White Pages. The fact that this pulp was not placed in a Restored or Qualified holder suggests the edge trimming is organic in nature, and was likely performed long ago, rather than being malicious tampering performed recently.

The result is satisfying, and the classic cover is both attractive and captivating. To date, this is the only example of this issue CGC has graded in a Universal holder, testifying to its considerable scarcity, and by obvious extension, it is therefore the highest graded example. Label notes credit the creators as "Cover by George Rozen, Tom Lovell art, Walter B. Gibson story".