Posted in: Comics, Heritage Sponsored, Vintage Paper | Tagged: fiction house, golden age, sheena

Sheena's Own Series in Sheena, Queen of the Jungle #1, at Auction

The 1942 debut of the Sheena series from Fiction House features a cover by underappreciated Golden Age artist Dan Zolnerowich.

Published Tue, 17 Oct 2023 07:47:06 -0500

by Mark Seifert

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Sheena is one of the most famous female comic book characters ever created, and one of the earliest in the context of Golden Age American comics. But I feel sorry for any Golden Age Sheena completists out there — because some of this material is as tough as it gets for a vintage collector. I've never even seen a copy of her first appearance in UK weekly Wags #46, for example, and I'm not sure I know anyone who has seen one. And as for her U.S. comic book debut in Jumbo Comics #1… that is another nearly impossible comic book to get. But the debut of her own series in 1942 is an incredibly underappreciated Golden Age key. You can get a high grade Sheena, Queen of the Jungle #1 (Fiction House, 1942) CGC VF- 7.5 Off-white to white pages with a beautiful cover by Dan Zolnerowich, and several other issues of the Sheena, Queen of the Jungle series up for auction in the 2023 October 19 The Fiction House Comics & Comic Art Showcase Auction #40235 at Heritage Auctions.

Dan Zolnerowich (1915-1995) is one of the most overlooked comic book artists of the Golden Age. The creator contributed to over 400 comic books, including over 200 covers during a comic book career that lasted 1940-1953 during its primary era. Zolnerowich worked for the Eisner & Iger Studio and then for both Iger Studio and Will Eisner's studio when Eisner and Jerry Iger split in 1940. Via those studios, Zolnerowich produced work for comic book publishers including Prize, Quality Comics, and Hillman Periodicals among others, and worked with Eisner on The Spirit and P.S. Magazine. But he might be best remembered for his work at Fiction House, where his contributions included 101 credited covers for that publisher on titles including Fight Comics, Jumbo Comics, Jungle Comics, Planet Comics, Rangers Comics, Sheena Queen of the Jungle and Wings Comics.

This series debut feels incredibly undervalued in 2023, but there's a high grade Sheena, Queen of the Jungle #1 (Fiction House, 1942) CGC VF- 7.5 Off-white to white pages with a beautiful cover by Dan Zolnerowich, and several other issues of the Sheena, Queen of the Jungle series up for auction in the 2023 October 19 The Fiction House Comics & Comic Art Showcase Auction #40235 at Heritage Auctions. Bleeding Cool is doing an ongoing deep dive into the history behind Fiction House in the run-up to this auction. If you've never bid at Heritage Auctions before, you can get further information, you can check out their FAQ on the bidding process and related matters.

Sheena, Queen of the Jungle #1 (Fiction House, 1942) CGC VF- 7.5 Off-white to white pages. Dan Zolnerowich cover. Robert Webb art. Overstreet 2023 VF 8.0 value = $2,040. CGC census 10/23: 6 in 7.5, 7 higher.