Posted in: Comics, Heritage Sponsored, Vintage Paper | Tagged: l.b. cole, Romance Comics

L.B. Cole & Jay Disbrow's Lurid Confessions of Love, up for Auction

The science fiction and horror covers of L.B. Cole are fairly well known, but his approach to romance covers is also fascinating.

The covers of Confessions of Love are a good example of the reason behind the memorable six-year run of company Star Publications during what might have been the most competitive period in the history of the American comic book market.  Despite being fueled mostly by reprint material that was in many cases just 2-3 years old at the time, L.B. Cole knew to a certainty that he could sell that material better than it had been sold the first time on the strength of his own cover designs and execution.  The L.B. Cole formula was simple during this period: tease one of the stories from the interior contents in a symbolic way, use bold, high-contrast imagery with a dose of sex appeal where appropriate, all colored in blazingly lurid poster art style.  L.B. Cole gave a lot of thought to cover design that would stand out on the crowded newsstands, and these Confessions of Love covers certainly do that.   Many of these also have stand-out stories by artist Jay Disbrow.  Cole's romance covers are just starting to come to the greater attention that his horror and science fiction work has enjoyed, and there are several Confessions of Love issues with L.B. Cole covers up for auction in the 2023 October 26 – 27 Romance Comics Featuring L. B. Cole Showcase Auction #40224 at Heritage Auctions.

With the heat turning up on the comic book industry in 1948, Curtis Publishing, who published comics via their Novelty Press imprint, had found themselves getting caught up in the controversy over the industry during that period.  Best known as the publisher of the Saturday Evening Post and Ladies Home Journal, Curtis decided to throw in the towel on comic books by 1949, selling their titles and inventory to Star Publications, a company formed by Cole and lawyer Gerhard Kramer.  The company leveraged this inventory, along with other reprint material from Fox Feature Syndicate titles, to create a noteworthy line of comics, adding Cole's legendarily eye-catching covers and new material from the likes of Disbrow.

Jay Disbrow contributed to around 45 comic books for Star Publications 1950-1954, across the range of titles the company published, focused on horror and romance. As it is with Cole, his romance work is underappreciated compared to much of the rest.  A group of spectacular, in-your-face romance covers with the contents to match, there are several Confessions of Love issues with L.B. Cole covers up for auction in the 2023 October 26 – 27 Romance Comics Featuring L. B. Cole Showcase Auction #40224 at Heritage Auctions.

Confessions of Love #4 (Star Publications, 1953) Condition: GD+. L. B. Cole cover. Jay Disbrow art. Brittle. Has two 1" tears on the cover, foxing, and small pieces are missing from the cover. Overstreet 2023 GD 2.0 value = $39.

Confessions of Love #5 (Star Publications, 1953) CGC FN- 5.5 Off-white pages. L. B. Cole cover art. Overstreet 2023 FN 6.0 value = $108. CGC census 10/23: 2 in 5.5, 1 higher.

Confessions of Love #6 (Star Publications, 1953) CGC FN 6.0 Cream to off-white pages. L. B. Cole cover. One of CGC's two best copies of the issue. Overstreet 2023 FN 6.0 value = $108. CGC census 10/23: 1 in 6.0, 1 higher.

Confessions of Love #12 (Star Publications, 1952) CGC VF- 7.5 Cream to off-white pages. L. B. Cole cover art. Jay Disbrow art. Overstreet 2023 VF 8.0 value = $271. CGC census 9/23: 3 in 7.5, 3 higher.

Confessions of Love #13 (Star Publications, 1952) CGC VF- 7.5 Off-white to white pages. L. B. Cole cover. Jay Disbrow art. Just two higher-graded copies of issue #13 appear on CGC's current census for the issue. Overstreet 2023 VF 8.0 value = $271. CGC census 9/23: 1 in 7.5, 2 higher.

Confessions of Love #14 (Star Publications, 1953) Condition: VG+. L. B. Cole cover art. Has water stains on the back cover. Overstreet 2023 VG 4.0 value = $72.

Confessions of Romance #7 (Star Publications, 1953) Condition: VG+. First issue of the title, formerly Confessions of Love. L. B. Cole cover. Staple rust with migration, staining, and a 1" spine split at the top. Overstreet 2023 VG 4.0 value = $56.

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