THE EIGHT revealed
Artists: Arthur Adams, Mike Mignola (All) , Jim Lee, Barry Windsor Smith (All) , Todd McFarlane, P Craig Russell (All) , Bill Sienkiewicz, Kent Williams (All)
43 Comments - 8,041 Views - 17 Likes
Artwork Details
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DescriptionOver the years, whenever anybody read my description for one of these pieces (with it’s cryptic reference to THE EIGHT), I would inevitably get an email asking what the story was. Usually I would just send a short reply asking them to see if they could find the other seven. Sometimes, I might even have given them the short version of the story. Well, here is the long version.Simply put, this was the deal of a lifetime. At least for ME. While it’s not quite over yet, I just can’t imagine that for the remainder of my life and collecting career, I would ever have the opportunity to acquire artwork of this caliber in a deal of this magnitude. Especially all together in one package. Just look at the names involved here. Arthur Adams, Barry Windsor-Smith, Bill Sienkiewicz, Jim Lee, Todd McFarlane, P Craig Russell, Mike Mignola, and Kent Williams. In today’s market, it would be hard enough to find one prime vintage example by any of these great artists. But to be offered eight all at once, I just can’t imagine it happening. When I made this deal back in 1990, it was the most amount of money I had ever spent in my life. These eight pieces cost more than the car I was driving back then. Now, what always makes me laugh is that what I paid for all of it back then wouldn’t even buy the cheapest of the eight today. I just can’t get over that. But what’s even FUNNIER is that initially, I didn’t even WANT all eight. The main reason was that I couldn’t really afford it. But really, all I was interested in back then were the Art Adams covers. Back then, I couldn’t care less about Lee or McFarlane. And although I was a Mignola and Russell fan, I was also willing to let those go just to get the Adams covers. So if I had it my way, I would’ve just bought the 3 Adams pieces and let the rest of it go. Lucky for me, the seller had no interest in breaking up the set. He insisted that it was all or nothing. I could never be sure, but I suspected that somehow he knew I really wanted the Adams pieces and he was using them as leverage to sell the entire lot. He gave me a little bit of time to come up with the money, but not much. For me, it was basically time to beg, borrow, or steal. Well, maybe not steal. But sell, sell, sell. I sold everything I could. My bike, my stereo, my comics, baseball cards, basically anything I owned that I knew someone wanted. I also borrowed from friends who had better paying jobs than I did (which was almost everyone I knew back then) and even did cash advances on my credit card. It took just about everything I had to make it happen, but I did it. I came up with the cash. The seller became one of my oldest friends in the hobby and over the years, we’ve discussed this deal at length. He always tells me, the smartest thing I ever did wasn’t BUYING these pieces, it was KEEPING them. Which I’ve done for the most part. 25 years later, I still have 6 of the original 8. The set stayed intact until around 1998 when I traded the Kent Williams for my only Bolland cover (not a bad trade - thanks Mitch). I didn’t mind giving up the Williams unpublished Wolverine piece, as I already had his published back cover to Wolverine #10. And of course the MAJOR move was when I sold the McFarlane to my friend Ken in 2007 for what was then a record price (but a bargain today). I have absolutely no regrets about selling my only McFarlane, but if I had to do it over again (especially knowing what I know and what eventually happened to the piece) I would have just kept it. Anyway, my thanks to Lance Suarez for not only giving me the opportunity to buy these pieces, but especially for insisting that I buy them all. I’ll admit that I wasn’t too happy with him at the time, but I now realize that he did me a HUGE favor! Thanks Lance! Thanks for your friendship, and for “forcing” me to make the deal of a lifetime. Huge thanks also to my buddy Jonathan for putting together the fabulous collage shot! Social/Sharing |
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User Comments
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Jason Versaggi
Member Since 2005
Posted on 4/13/2015
A great story and possibly one of the shrewdest moves on CAF in past 25 years. An amzing assortment and unheard of today for someone to want to move such giants in a package deal. Brilliant, gutsy move. My personal favorite has always bee the McFarlane but that Longshot cover is breath-taking. Well done.
George H 
Member Since 2009
Posted on 4/13/2015
Wow, thanks for sharing that story my friend! When I first saw the image I thought this was a GRAIL dream-board of sorts.
comicinkking. com
Member Since 2004
Posted on 4/13/2015
Another great story and some amazing pieces of art!! I'm lucky in that I've seen most of them in person!! ;)
Eric DLS
Member Since 2005
Posted on 4/13/2015
Jason Versaggi wrote:
A great story and possibly one of the shrewdest moves on CAF in past 25 years. An amzing assortment and unheard of today for someone to want to move such giants in a package deal. Brilliant, gutsy move. My personal favorite has always bee the McFarlane but that Longshot cover is breath-taking. Well done.Thanks JV! But I think "shrewd move" is giving me too much credit. As I said, buying the entire lot was pretty much a forced decision. If Lance hadn't forced my hand, I'd look like a frigging idiot right now. LOL! The only smart thing I did was hang on to most of it for as long as I have.
Nelson Animated Ink
Member Since 2005
Posted on 4/13/2015
Thanks for filling in the pieces to the puzzle. Now if Lance has another 8 pieces of art of this caliber for sale, he should not hesitate to contact me. I'll even settle for 1. Lol. Cheers! N.
Mike W
Member Since 2007
Posted on 4/13/2015
Thank you so much for sharing this amazing story, my friend. Nuff' said.
J L
Member Since 2005
Posted on 4/14/2015
I've heard this story before--but it still makes me smile that you were able to somehow make it happen. An amazing deal by any measure!!!!
Olivier D
Member Since 2006
Posted on 4/14/2015
What a deal, super story and most of all you got a ninth cherry on the cake, a friend! Love this.....
Joshua McCoy
Member Since 2013
Posted on 4/14/2015
That is just an amazing story (though to be honest, most of yours are). Thanks for sharing the details, Eric!
Scott Williams
Member Since 2004
Posted on 4/14/2015
Don't think I ever heard that story before. Very interesting and very entertaining! And it's very true that long time art collectors seem so smart and ahead of the curve NOW, but at the time, no one really saw the trajectory and velocity of this hobby. We weren't smart, we just loved the art.
Eric DLS
Member Since 2005
Posted on 4/14/2015
Scott Williams wrote:
Don't think I ever heard that story before. Very interesting and very entertaining! And it's very true that long time art collectors seem so smart and ahead of the curve NOW, but at the time, no one really saw the trajectory and velocity of this hobby. We weren't smart, we just loved the art.Really? Wow, can't believe I never told you. I know when I lived in SD, you came by the house once and saw most of these in person. I can't imagine not telling someone this story, especially when they're sitting in my living room. But you're absolutely right. This deal might make me LOOK like a genius, but my foresight was nowhere near that good. ha! Like you said, I just loved the art.
Jeff Singh
Member Since 2004
Posted on 4/14/2015
I really enjoyed reading your story. That is great how everything worked out from being able to get the art to still owning it years later. You also seem to make a lot of friends as you go in this hobby and that too is a great thing. Hindsight is 20/20 and I have to agree with your friend, the smartest thing you have done in this deal is having kept these pieces and enjoyed them. I am sure I have had dreams like this:)
max Rugers
Member Since 2004
Posted on 4/15/2015
a awesome plate of stunning art ..thanks for sharing!!
Damon Wright
Member Since 2008
Posted on 4/20/2015
Love the story and background, so cool! I like to think I would have done the same, but doubt i'd have had the foresight or courage. :) My favorite, I think, is the X-Men Storm/Dazzler cover. But that is not an easy choice! Awesome all!!
Eric DLS
Member Since 2005
Posted on 4/20/2015
Damon Wright wrote:
Love the story and background, so cool! I like to think I would have done the same, but doubt i'd have had the foresight or courage. :) My favorite, I think, is the X-Men Storm/Dazzler cover. But that is not an easy choice! Awesome all!!Never thought about playing the favorites game with these. Not sure if I could do it myself. I love each piece for different reasons. The Mignola and the PCR are probably as good stylistic examples as you could hope for. The Longshot is just such an iconic type of image both for the artist and the character. The X-men and NM covers are just so cool because of the inker combo. I don't know, I just can't pick one. For you, the choice wasn't easy. For me, it's downright impossible. Thanks for the comment buddy!
Kenneth Parkhurst
Member Since 2005
Posted on 5/5/2015
Your stories are always gems, just like your collection. Each of the EIGHT by themselves would be a gem, but together they are almost like a gauntlet (Yes I have seen Age of ULTRON too many times already and could not resist)
Eric DLS
Member Since 2005
Posted on 5/5/2015
Kenneth Parkhurst wrote:
Your stories are always gems, just like your collection. Each of the EIGHT by themselves would be a gem, but together they are almost like a gauntlet (Yes I have seen Age of ULTRON too many times already and could not resist)Ha! Love the analogy! Why didn't I think of that? But wait, does that make me Thanos then? LOL
- Artemaria
Member Since 2007
Posted on 6/3/2015
And thus, a legend was born…. Thanks for sharing your "secret origin story" with the world, and while I knew some of it, the "reveal" was quite spectacular indeed. Congratulations on your life changing event, and for keeping your wits (and art) about you in this frenetic little hobby of ours.
Mark Warunek
Member Since 2004
Posted on 6/6/2015
Stories like these are what make this hobby so great. The thrill of the hunt, the home run deals, the steals, the regrets. It all makes for a fun ride. Congrats on a historic score!
Kyle K
Member Since 2012
Posted on 8/24/2016
Incredible story, and even more incredible that you pretty much kept them all. Cheers.
Eric DLS
Member Since 2005
Posted on 8/24/2016
Kyle K wrote:
Incredible story, and even more incredible that you pretty much kept them all. Cheers.Yeah, the McFarlane was the one big regret. But it was sold to a friend, so not as bad a sting. Still, I kept them all together for about 15 years. That's something. Thanks for the comment.
Thomas V
Member Since 2008
Posted on 9/20/2017
Love this story. What a score although back then it was probably a fortune to put together. It's an incredible set. I'm almost afraid to ask what happened to the McFarlane...
Eric DLS
Member Since 2005
Posted on 9/20/2017
Thomas V wrote:
Love this story. What a score although back then it was probably a fortune to put together. It's an incredible set. I'm almost afraid to ask what happened to the McFarlane...That McFarlane is actually still on CAF. I sold it to my buddy Ken, who kept it for a couple of years and then sold it when he needed some funds. You can do a CAF search and it will pop up. Would be nice to have it back, but I could never afford it today.
Bill J
Member Since 2009
1 - Posted on 8/22/2018
Eric--You have such a splendid collection. Thanks so much for sharing your stories and your art. I really enjoy surfing through your stuff. Excelsior!!
Eric DLS
Member Since 2005
1 - Posted on 8/22/2018
Bill J wrote:
Eric--You have such a splendid collection. Thanks so much for sharing your stories and your art. I really enjoy surfing through your stuff. Excelsior!!
Thanks Bill. I could actually just cut and paste this comment and post it right back in your gallery because I feel exactly the same way when going through your stuff.
James Dornoff
Member Since 2019
Posted on 4/4/2021
Truly epic, great to read abd hear about this. I did question to myself what your EIGHT were, this is crazy good. Glad it's all in a home with someone like yourself. Huge congrats on ideally keeping these pieces and a lot of your Adams art together. Will enjoy reading more about it all.
Mark Levy
Member Since 2004
Posted on 7/8/2021
Love how you arranged the pieces in the one shot - I could certainly go for that BWS in the middle!!
Eric DLS
Member Since 2005
Posted on 7/9/2021
Mark Levy wrote:
Love how you arranged the pieces in the one shot - I could certainly go for that BWS in the middle!!
Thanks for the comment Mark. All the credit for that goes to my buddy Jonathan. I sent him all the separate images, and I'm pretty sure he also chose the order (I could be wrong, but I honestly don't remember having any input on the arrangement). So it was all Jon. He really did an amazing job and I was so blown away when I saw the finished collage. That's why he is my photoshop wizard and handles all my oversized scans. Actually, before I got my own scanner, he was responsible for ALL my scanning.
Mark Levy
Member Since 2004
Posted on 7/9/2021
Eric DLS wrote:
Thanks for the comment Mark. All the credit for that goes to my buddy Jonathan. I sent him all the separate images, and I'm pretty sure he also chose the order (I could be wrong, but I honestly don't remember having any input on the arrangement). So it was all Jon. He really did an amazing job and I was so blown away when I saw the finished collage. That's why he is my photoshop wizard and handles all my oversized scans. Actually, before I got my own scanner, he was responsible for ALL my scanning.
I have an oversized scanning expert as well for my 2X tasks...I owe him more than a few pancakes!
Eric DLS
Member Since 2005
Posted on 7/9/2021
Mark Levy wrote:
I have an oversized scanning expert as well for my 2X tasks...I owe him more than a few pancakes!
Wait, you can pay people in pancakes? Do you think they'd mind if they were the frozen microwaveable kind? LOL
Jason Hussa
Member Since 2017
Posted on 10/31/2021
Spectacular story, Eric - thanks for sharing and congrats on providing this incredible bedrock of comic greatness as the base of your epic collection. It's little wonder why the rest of your collection is so amazing, having this as the foundation. :)
Eric DLS
Member Since 2005
1 - Posted on 10/31/2021
Jason Hussa wrote:
Spectacular story, Eric - thanks for sharing and congrats on providing this incredible bedrock of comic greatness as the base of your epic collection. It's little wonder why the rest of your collection is so amazing, having this as the foundation. :)
Wow, what a comment/compliment! Thanks so much for those very kind words Jason. I suppose it would be a more effective story if I had not let go of those two pieces. Obviously, the McFarlane is the big regret. While I certainly don't regret selling it to a friend, I do feel bad that neither one of us has it now. But even though the ASM cover is the most valuable of the eight, the three Art Adams covers mean so much more to me. In the end, it's still a once in a lifetime deal, and will always be special in that sense. Again, thanks for the flattering compliment. It's people like you who make sharing fun, and who make this hobby great.
Peter Sullivan
Member Since 2006
Posted on 1/23/2022
And to think all I want is one of the eight. I am not greedy. You can let me know when you are ready to post it as a pressie.
Eric DLS
Member Since 2005
Posted on 1/23/2022
Peter Sullivan wrote:
And to think all I want is one of the eight. I am not greedy. You can let me know when you are ready to post it as a pressie.
Haha! Wish I could buddy. The truly impressive thing about this group of pieces is that you really can't go wrong with any single one. The fact that I was offered EIGHT pieces of this caliber in one deal is insane. Almost impossible to imagine happening in today's market. But if it did, just imagine what the asking price would be? LOL
Peter Sullivan
Member Since 2006
Posted on 1/23/2022
Eric DLS wrote:
Haha! Wish I could buddy. The truly impressive thing about this group of pieces is that you really can't go wrong with any single one. The fact that I was offered EIGHT pieces of this caliber in one deal is insane. Almost impossible to imagine happening in today's market. But if it did, just imagine what the asking price would be? LOL
Whatever happened to the giving spirit? I have seen all the faux reality movies Hollywood makes. You know the ones where people become really generous for one day a year. Wait...Guess Christmas is over but only 11 months till the next one. I can wait. You have plenty of time to wrap it up now. Hope you have a good 2022. Santas going to bring me a lovely present if I am good. Lol.
James Halperin
Member Since 2007
Posted on 8/13/2022
An amazing group of fantastic gems... and the backstory makes it even more wondrous!
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