Some cool items to look at:
- Sales numbers in millions of comics
- "In 1979 the Direct Market accounted for 6% of Marvel's gross sales. In 1982 it was 20%. In 1985 it was 50%. In 1987 it was 70% of Marvel's gross sales. DC followed suit."
- "Rising sales are partly due to Jim Shooter's time at Marvel, which produced some classic stories. And partly because people started to make serious money from back issues, so the number of comic shops soared as everyone thought they could make a good living from their hobby."
- The Cost of Being a Marvel Zombie:
"Once upon a time a large proportion of fans would be "Marvel Zombies", buying the complete line of comics. This is what it cost each month:
Until 1968: 96c (Marvel's most successful period: around 8 titles at 12c each). Adjusted for inflation: $5.95
1969: $1.80 (after the Marvel Explosion)
1986: $24 (just before Shooter left)
1993: $150 (when the bubble burst)
2010: $250 (today: an estimate based on 72 titles, a mix of 2.99 and 3.99 each)."
Check out the article for other great information!
It's really good stuff. Chris Tolworthy's article on "What Made Marvel Great" (over at http://zak-site.com/Great-American-Novel/marvel_realism.html) is also very, very good. That one in particular influenced my own thinking and approaches to storytelling.
ReplyDeleteHi Von Allan, thanks for sharing the link!
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