I also am an avid sports collector and my real work is all about Sports on wsRadio, home of eBay Radio! I had an important guest this past week that I wanted to share with you... Conrad Dobler was a guest on my March 15th program and, as always, time constraints kept many things from being said that I wanted to get out. [to hear the interview go to CooperSportsRadio.com or wsRadio.com]

And Now for the Rest of the Story...

First of all, I hope all of you listening now realize Conrad is full of life and is a real fighter with plenty of rounds left in him. A recent HBO Real Sports story gave the impression he had been knocked to the canvas and was ready to be called out. Shame on you HBO - that couldn’t be further from the truth! Conrad told me that the HBO reporter was asking him about the recent suicide of former player, Andre Waters, and they took a few liberties to make it appear as if Conrad were talking about himself.

Conrad Dobler was one tough SOB as a player and it carries on through today. Yes, he’s paid the price physically, but mentally he’s as strong as ever. Conrad Dobler has had three knee replacement surgeries and is waiting on a fourth. What many of you don’t know is that his wife Joy suffered a freak accident and severed her spinal cord, putting her in a wheel chair for the rest of her life.

Conrad isn’t saying woe is me - he’s actually out trying to raise money for spinal cord research in addition to serving on the board of an organization taking up the cause of the hundreds of NFL veterans suffering as much as he is. Conrad told me “How can I feel sorry for myself and my wife when I turn on the news every night and see what’s happening to all those young kids in Iraq” – He’s Tough!!!!

Another story Conrad relayed to me was about the plight of Johnny Unitas. He was recently voted the #1 quarterback of all time and literally carried the league on his arm as the NFL rose to greatness. However, when Johnny applied for disability after he could no longer shake hands or raise his arm after 20 playing years he was denied on a technicality over cashing a pension check. Johnny died a broken man ignored by the league he had made billions of dollars for …and he’s not alone.

Football is the number one sport in America by far and away - so why are their players paid less than Baseball and Basketball? Why are their veteran players all but forgotten? The answer is poor leadership representation.

Gene Upshaw on paper looks like the perfect candidate to represent the Players union. His 16-year career began in the 1960’s and ended in the 1980’s. He truly saw the evolution of football from a day when players made 10 thousand dollars a year to million dollar contracts. He also played through rule changes that made the game a little more civilized.

I would like to believe that when he took over the Players union 20 years ago he was well intentioned, but the problem is he’s been in the same job for 20 years and, as we see in Congress, power corrupts. It also probably doesn’t help that Upshaw played for the Oakland Raiders where their locker room proudly boasted two rules:

The first rule “Cheating is Encouraged” rule #2 was see Rule #1

Upshaw is now a multimillionaire and many former players say it was thanks to those rules.

The NFL is the richest and most powerful franchise because they have ultimate control over their athletes. Team doctors don’t represent the players - they represent the league - and Gene Upshaw does the same thing. NFL players are the only professional athletes who still don’t have guaranteed contracts despite an average career of less than 4 years - and they also still operate under a salary cap.

In fact, it was a slick move by NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabu to raise the salary cap in exchange for the players association taking over the veteran retirement benefits that put Upshaw front and center in this controversy.

The average retirement benefits for NFL players are comfortably below the poverty line and less than half of what Major League Baseball pays its veteran players. When the players went on strike in 1987 Upshaw showed what control he had when every team had players cross the picket line that year except the Redskins whose coach told them not to (Yeah the Redskins won the Superbowl that year)…

Bryant Gumbel recently reminded the new NFL commissioner Roger Goodell - "Roger, before Paul Tagliabue cleans out his office, have him show you where he keeps Gene Upshaw's leash.”

The most damning statement game from Upshaw himself - when asked by the New York Times about the plight of injured NFL players Upshaw replied coldly "They don't hire me and they can't fire me. They can complain about me all day long. They can have their opinion. But the active players have the vote. That's who pays my salary."

So Conrad, while you earned your nickname for your tough style of play, your “Dirtiest Player” mantle is getting passed to another former NFL guard, Gene Upshaw, for a completely different reason – Gene has failed the very people he represents. Mr. Upshaw you are guilty of neglecting the best interests of the players in order to line your own pockets. You truly are the Dirtiest player in Pro Football - please resign for the sake of the players and go into professional politics so you can be with your own kind!

ALIEN
“In Space No One Can Here You Scream”- those immortal words launched one of the greatest Science Fiction movie series of all time and the greatest action figure of its era!! The Alien is more lethal than any other Aliens or creatures ever seen before. Its designer, the late Swiss genius H.R. Geiger, came up with the perfect cross between man and machine. The first Alien toy was produced by Kenner in 1979, and stood a fearsome 18 inches tall!

This original Alien is stark deathly grey with chrome shark like teeth and sickeningly elongated head covered by an eerie translucent dome - this is a toy not to be menaced with, the kind of plaything that would make Buzz Lightyear resign from defending the toy universe. The detailed molded skin is a brilliant faithful recreation of acclaimed Swiss surrealist H. R. Giger’s 'bio-mechanical' flesh, making it an example of Kenner’s craft at its finest.

Here's a recap of the story behind this figure - the reason it's so rare.... Following the overwhelming success of its Star Wars toy line Kenner immediately grabbed up the rights to Alien, the new hot Science Fiction movie.  Kenner was completely overwhelmed by the demand for Star Wars toys and despite the movie’s debut in May of 1977 it still wasn’t ready for the Christmas rush.

Well, having learned their lesson, Kenner began production on this giant Alien figure before the movie was released. Being true to the movie monster they created an adult toy from an adult movie and tried to sell it to kids. It was a disaster. The figure was so scary to children that it was pulled off the shelves – production was stopped - many were destroyed when shipped back to Kenner and a few of them ended up on the clearance aisle for a few lucky customers who knew what this really was.  I talked to one person who said he had to stop before he got to the Alien figures in the aisle, and then run around another aisle to see the other toys in the first aisle because he didn't want to walk by them! Such a statement for a toy is rewarding to us collectors. But, on the other hand, Kenner had to dump its 4 1/2" inch Alien toys, which were to follow the 18" tall one. To be produced was Alien #1 w/ Sliding inner jaw, Ripley in Lieutenant outfit, Ripley in Mobeius Outfit, Dallas & Ash.

Nearly 28 years later this Kenner large Alien figure is one of the most coveted action figure collectibles of all time. Why so? Just a quick look at the thing and you know it stands out in the crowd. Nothing as gruesomely frightening as this had ever been made into a toy before. It is a real challenge to find a loose Kenner Alien in any condition, let alone complete. Your most likely discovery would be one without the transparent dome, without the inner jaw, and missing the largest upper back spine, which could break from a fall. Finding one boxed, in its stark blue and grey window-faced packaging bearing the foreboding message 'WARNING! ALIEN IS HERE!' is something special.

Aliens were finally brought back to the stores in ‘92 with a whole new toy line. Produced by Kenner again, the line added a twist that the Alien would partially resemble its host. This idea may have been spawned from an early version of the script of Alien 3, the "Dog Alien." As for the MarinesHumans & Androids, they were loosely based off the characters from the Aliens movie. The line continued for 3 years until it's demise. A total of 24 Marines and Aliens, and 4 vehicles were produced for the Aliens series.
In 1997 the Aliens saga continued with the exceptionally detailed Alien Resurrection figures and the action figure line continues today with the success of the Alien Vs Predator movies.

Harvey Thriller’s Spyman marks the first professional publishing work by legendary comic book artist Jim Steranko. Up through his early 20s, Jim Steranko made a living as an illusionist, escape artist, magician, and musician, including a stint with Bill Haley and his Comets where he claims to have put the first go-go girls onstage.

Steranko entered the comics industry through Editor Joe Simon at Harvey Comics, who hired the artist to help him create a new line of superheroes. Steranko’s first published work was Spyman. Shortly afterward, he showed his "Secret Agent X" proposal to Paramount Television's animation unit in New York City and, though nothing came of it, ended up meeting Marvel Comics Editor, Stan Lee. Lee, who was impressed with Steranko's Spyman work assigned him the "Nick Fury" feature in Strange Tales.

For the movie industry, Steranko was the conceptual artist on Steven Spielberg's “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” designing both the look of the film and the character of Indiana Jones. He also served as project conceptualist on Francis Ford Coppola's “Bram Stoker's Dracula” and directed the episode "The Ties That Bind" of the DC Comics animated TV series “Justice League Unlimited.” Brad Bird credits Steranko's work as his main comic book influence on Pixar's “The Incredibles.” .Jim Steranko would go on to fame as one of Marvel’s most unique silver age artists, best known for his work on Nick Fury agent of Shield and writing the two volume “History of Comics,” but his career started with Spyman!

Spyman #1 was published by Harvey Comics in September of 1966. Spyman #1 is a very historic piece of the Silver Age as it marks the first published comic work of Jim Steranko co-creating with legendary comic genius Joe Simon. Jim wrote the first issue and penciled its first page making this his first published work - see the scan in my auctions for #1. The page was inked by George Tuska who also did all the rest of the Spyman art in this issue.

Spyman is Johnny Chance, an agent for the secret organization known as Liberty. Their top-secret headquarters is located five stories beneath the Statue of Liberty. With his electro robot hand Johnny could record and transmit sounds and photographs, inspect things with X-Rays and fire electro blasts that could rendered enemies unconscious or shatter solid blocks or metal. He could also emit opaque rays that would obscure the presence of light. #1 is Jim Steranko’s origin story of how Johnny loses his hand and battles the enemy super agent “The Whisperer.”  Sadly this comic only made it three issues as Harvey ended its foray into Super Heroes after just a few short months.

The original 11-issue set of The New Gods is one of the most important stories in comic’s history. There is very little question that the Star Wars concepts were born in these pages and that this is some of Jack’s finest work.

Here is where such classic characters as Darkseid, Orion, Desaad, Kalibak, Steppenwulf, Mister Miracle, Lightray, Highfather and dozens of others got their start.  Kirby created New Genesis and Apokalips as a complete universe unto itself and, for continuity purposes, tied it to the DC world.  Similar to JRR Tolkien's work, it has different races of inhabitants, each with their own physical and cultural characteristics and histories.  Such a complete concept is not unusual for Kirby who had already created the Marvel universe with Stan Lee. However, Kirby’s Fourth World was his own dream, envisioned on his own and in a very short period of time. Yet another reason why Jack is  “The King” of comics!

The Pact in issue #7 is a brilliant story that Jack and his wife Roz both considered his single best work and in a body that stretched over 60 years that makes this issue the gold standard in comics.  In addition to telling the origins of Mister Miracle and Orion (they have been re-told many times since but never this well), it also provides a rare glimpse into the nature of Darkseid. (Dark–Side in case you weren’t sure)  George Lucas was a devoted comic book fan and its certain that these stories had a huge impact on his final vision of Star Wars, which followed these classic tales 6 years later.

Another unforgettable story that was recently readapted to the new animated Superman adventures is in issue #8 - The Death Wish of Terrible Turpin.  In the animated Superman feature Turpin looks just like Jack and the two-part adventure is dedicated to Kirby.  In 1984 DC reprinted Jack’s New Gods and in the final issue #6, Jack wrote the long awaited conclusion of New Gods as a segue into his graphic novel “The Hunger Dogs.” 

August 25th is one of the most important dates in history because it’s my Dad’s birthday but the second most important August birthday is three days later. It was August 28th 89 years ago that Jacob Kurtzberg a.k.a. “Jack Kirby” was brought into this world - forever changing an entire genre. I was one of those who thought I knew just about everything Jack had done; reading as many biographies as I could especially “The Art of Jack Kirby” released back in 1991. So it was really a surprise to me to find out the new DC Super Hero stamps issued this Summer by the United States Post Office featured a Green Arrow portrait by Jack Kirby… What? That one had gotten by me – When did Jack ever draw “The Green Arrow” and why hadn’t I seen one before. I decided to do some research and here’s what I found out. Jack’s work on the Green Arrow series dates back to 1958 and was relegated to secondary status in the back of World’s Finest and Adventure comics in six page vignettes. Surprisingly the most famous cover artist in comic’s history was never allowed to do a single Green Arrow cover! What’s even worse is with the government’s war against comics Jack was barely trying to make ends meet and was basically told by DC he could do the Green Arrow or leave. Now, to compound the situation, the original Green Arrow creator was a guy named Mort Weisinger who never liked Kirby’s work and believed artists should only draw what they’re told to draw. Needless to say Jack’s style wasn’t going to work here.

The Green Arrow, Oliver Queen, had become a poor man’s Batman, answering the Arrow Signal in his Arrow-Car with his ward, Roy Harper (Speedy). The main challenges were figuring out which combination of trick arrows would do the job including the Two-Stage Rocket Arrow, the Balloon Arrow, the Firecracker Arrow and the Dry-Ice Arrow, and don't forget about that ever-handy Fake-Uranium Arrow! Also because Jack was trying to make ends meet working on several different jobs at once, his wife Roz actually helped write some of these Green Arrow stories and brought in an interesting Science Fiction element. (For those interested I have one of those Jack and Roz adventures up for auction this week - World’s Finest #96).

Of course DC tired of Jack the rebel and fired him - with editors telling him he would never work for their company again! Those are some infamous last words!

All Jack did was to go over to what would become Marvel comics and team up with Stan Lee to make sure DC comics would be playing second fiddle to Marvel Super Heroes forever! Not only that - Jack even returned to DC in 1970 for another unsuccessful run - for whatever reason the powers to be at DC still kept trying to harness his creative imagination. They wouldn’t even let Jack draw Superman’s face!!! If there had been no Marvel comics and Stan Lee to find Jack at the low ebb of his career we might have never known anything but DC comics and let’s face it the industry would have died a long time ago!!!!

Now for the really interesting thing about Jack’s Green Arrow stamp – It’s not even the Green Arrow – Long time Kirby collaborator Mike Royer actually transformed a drawing of Jack’s from another 1950’s creation called Bulls-Eye into this Green Arrow stamp. Of course, now I’ve got to go learn about this Bulls-Eye character… “Long Live King Kirby.”

This week I decided to dig through some of my Sgt. Fury and the Howling Commando’s collection and put them up for auction.  Here's  some interesting tidbits about how the magazine that bills itself “The War Comic for People Who Hate War Comics” came into being.

The story goes like this: One day in late 1962 Stan Lee was trying to convince his skeptical uncle (publisher Martin Goodman) that Marvel's new-found success was due to the fact that he and Jack Kirby had developed a new comic-style which Lee claimed would work in any genre. To prove his point, Stan bet that they could make a hit even with an outdated war-theme and a "horrible title." The result was Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos, a Kirbyesque trek through the battlefields of World War II.

 Among their ranks were: Timothy "Dum-Dum" Dugan, a huge, derby-domed Irish-American; Isadore "Izzy" Cohen, a master mechanic from Brooklyn and the first-ever Jewish comics hero; Dino Manelli, a handsome Italian-American who was also a Hollywood star back in the states (clearly based on Dean Martin); "Rebel" Ralston, an ex-jockey from Kentucky with a pronounced southern accent; "Junior" Juniper, the Ivy Leaguer and eager beaver of the group; and Gabriel Jones, a trumpet-playing jazzman who was Jack and Stan's first (pre-Panther) Black hero.

At a time when civil rights was a hotly-contested issue, Kirby and Lee (without concern for sales in the South) showed exactly where they stood on segregation by including a Black soldier in Fury's squad. They were, of course, taking artistic license with this concept. Having both served during World War II they knew that the US Army had been segregated at the time - Gabe's inclusion in the Howlers was a bold move, and when Jones appeared colored pink in the first issue, Lee was obliged to send the color separation company a detailed memo to make it clear that Gabe Jones was a Black man.

This motley crew of misfits whose ferocious battle cry of "WAH-HOO!!" earned them the title "Howling Commandos" was led by Nicholas Joseph Fury, a cigar-chomping, tough-talking Sergeant whose trademarks were a five-o'clock shadow and a perpetually ripped shirt. A product of the Great Depression, Fury was raised on the Lower East Side of Manhattan known as Hell's Kitchen by his widowed mother, his father (World War I pilot Jack Fury) having died in combat. Fury was a classic Dead-End Kid. He frequented pool halls, got into scrapes, and worked as infrequently as possible. His life turned around when he joined the parish of Chaplain Lewis Hargrove. Fury became best friends with Hargrove's younger brother who was subsequently killed at Pearl Harbor. To avenge his friend's death at the hands of the Axis powers, Fury enlisted in 1941, endured basic training at Fort Dix, and served as a Sergeant in the European Theater of Operations leading the Howlers.

Nick Fury was Stan Lee and Jack Kirby

The amount of time that Kirby reportedly spent telling (and re-telling) war stories indicates what an indelible impression World War II must have had on him. Did he feel so close to his subject matter in this series that he (consciously or not) created the main character in his own image? Was Nick Fury Jack Kirby?

Both men's names and facial features are strikingly similar, and they both loved cigars. In SF #1, Lee describes Fury as being six-foot two-inches tall, but if one looks at the drawings, Fury appears to be (like Jack) a stocky man of only average height. On the other hand, it's important to note that ex-Army Sergeant Stan Lee had also served during World War II. He had the same rank as Fury, and he too loved cigars. Stan was definitely closer to 6'2" than Jack, and some of Lee's catch phrases like "Face Front!" and "Hang Loose!" (The types of which Fury bellowed at his men) were admittedly inspired by his own Army service. In the final analysis, both writer and artist undoubtedly tried to infuse some of themselves into Sgt. Fury and, as a result, he came out as a heroic amalgamation of both men.

Wow it's hard to imagine that between 1961 to 1968, in a short seven year span, Stan Lee and Jack Kirby could produce an entire universe of Super Heroes leading to multi billion dollar Movies, Theme Parks, and merchandise.  What’s even more amazing is that at the age of 84 Stan has lived to see some of the big bucks involved, unlike Jack who died in 1994 still trying to scrape enough money together to take care of his family [and frustrated that he had lost control of so many of his ideas].

Jack Kirby and Stan Lee were the John Lennon and Paul McCartney of the comics business.  If you’ve never read a Kirby and Lee book you are missing the essence of an entire genre.

Okay - have I gone too far...  Let me know
Rabid Kirby Fan
Mike

Who should leave Feedback first?

I just finished a message debate with a customer over the merits of who should leave feedback first.  I thought it would be interesting to get the feedback from my fellow eBayers as well – I would like to know how you  handle the protocol of Feedback!

First here’s how this whole thing started with my first message from Edward -

“Got your item thanks. Was about to leave you feedback but noticed that you, as the seller, had yet to leave me feedback - especially per my specific PP payment requesting feedback during shipment. Please take care of that at your earliest convenience - I'll then be sure to reciprocate as the item is in great condition. Thanks again in advance.”

My response was as follows – Edward had 12 feedbacks at the time and I made an assumption he was new to eBay :

Hi Edward - When I joined ebay 5 years ago, I took the eBay tutorial on feedback and it recommended to let the buyer leave feedback first so that as the seller you know the buyer is pleased with the product and there are no problems completing the contract for buyer and seller - But I'll gladly make an exception for you and leave feedback first. I just wanted to let you know why I wait and if you sell on ebay you might want to take their free tutorial as well. It's helped me a lot.

So I left him great feedback and then he responded and I began to think - maybe you (that’d be me) should just shut up and remember the first rule of retail… the customer is always right  because here’s  the response from Edward

Incorrect...as someone who started my initial ebay acct back in 1997 - the guidelines (not tutorial) made specific mention as since the buyer is one making the purchase from the seller, it stands to reason that if item is paid for promptly, the seller should make mention of this in his feedback. Then, once the buyer receives the item afterward...and if its as described and arrives in timely manner - THEN, the buyer should reciprocate.

Under what pretext would the buyer FIRST leave feedback??? If he pays promptly for the item (as I did here), he is DESERVING of the mentioned fact promptly. The buyer should NEVER be held to leaving feedback 1st simply because seller asks him to. For the most part, most of the old-time ebayers adhere to the initial guidelines (again - Not tutorial) that were initially created by ebay. However, now alot of newer ebayers are void of this fact.

Whenever I sell an item, I always leave fdbk 1st as a courtesy to buyer who promptly pays me.

So I decided to revisit the ebay feedback tutorial and here’s my final response back to Edward

According to eBay neither of us is incorrect... please read the following directly from eBay's Feedback tutorial – your argument isn’t with me – take it up with Meg Whitman at e-Bay

You paid for an item, but it hasn't yet arrived. Since you paid you expect the seller to leave feedback first. Should the seller leave feedback upon receipt of payment?

a. Yes. Since you paid, the seller should leave feedback first

b. No. The seller should wait until you leave feedback, signaling your satisfaction with the item and the transaction.

c. No. The seller has automated part of the transaction process using auction management software so the seller should let the system leave the feedback based on the criteria they chose when they programmed the software.

d. Each member may choose the best approach to leaving feedback for them.

d is the correct answer! There are different philosophies on whether the buyer or seller should leave feedback first. Research shows that sellers who leave feedback upon receipt of payment receive a higher percentage of feedback, but either approach is acceptable.

One reason that sellers leave feedback upon receipt of payment is that they believe that the buyer has upheld his or her end of the transaction. One reason sellers wait until a buyer has left feedback is they take the feedback as the signal that the buyer is satisfied with the purchase and no further customer support is needed.

Hope this helps clear things up and sorry for my assumption you were new to eBay I was only reacting to your rating of 12 - my mistake
Best
Mike

Now after all that I thought why not write about it and get feedback from my own customers and readers – maybe Edward is right and I’m wrong or there is no right or wrong.  Simply stated, I’ve always believed the buyer should leave feedback first since they are the end user.  If the buyer leaves feedback you know that the transaction is a success – then I leave feedback that I hope will let other people know that the buyer is not only a fast payer but also leaves nice feedback and communication which is all I think a seller can do. 

 +

Recently, as a buyer, I got a negative from a seller I paid promptly and then she never sent the product nor answered any emails and forced me to open a dispute with ebay and paypal  which I won.  She left me a negative for my troubles – anyway if you want to know more about that one read “My eBay Nightmare.”  I got to thinking about it with the latest customer comment above – what if I had left him positive feedback then for some reason he wasn’t happy with his product and left me a negative instead of contacting me for a refund – I’d be stuck with a negative after giving him a positive!  Feedback should represent an overall successful transaction in my book and there should be an incentive for both parties to be reasonable.  The bottom line is I do take feedback seriously as it is a reflection on my integrity – So let me know how you feel about it – should the seller leave feedback first – I’m interested in hearing from you the customer and fellow buyers and sellers!

Thanks

Mike

NIGHTMARE on EBAY

Wow – I just got a negative feedback from seller Ann Greenhoe today  after I paid for her auction moments after it ended and then she never sent my books! – Now that really made my day! 

I purchased 4 old 10 cent Kid Colt comics for a steal at an auction price of $10.01 plus shipping back in June – I was really looking forward to receiving them and paid by paypal within minutes after the auction ended.  15 days later I inquired about when she sent the books out – no response – I sent a second message through ebay three days later – no response – then I sent a third – all were polite asking a simple question –“When did you send my books” – After the 4^th email I finally received a very rude reply accusing me of not paying – which I responded to  with the documentation of payment.  In the end, I had to appeal to eBay and Paypal and was awarded a refund.

To my utter surprise Ann Greehoe ebay ID  aboban ( 1973 – left me negative feedback and accused me of sending her abusive emails which couldn’t be farther from the truth.  I guess she was just angry for being forced to be responsible. – Now I repeat, after trying to resolve this over a 40 day period I finally appealed to ebay and paypal with a complaint.  They investigated and awarded me my money back.  I looked at her feedback and noticed she had a pretty good track record so I had no plan on leaving her negative feedback over 10 bucks because [as I say in my auctions] anyone can make a mistake but I did feel it necessary to send her an email thanking her for putting me through the hoops to get my money back when really I just wanted the books.  I didn’t think a little sarcasm was unwarranted given the fact that she had been rude and unapologetic but apparently I was wrong since she finally responded - not with an explanation or apology but by leaving me a negative feedback!!. 

To me this is a perfect example of someone making a mistake – not owning up to it and, when finally confronted by authority (in this case Ebay), and forced to refund my money - leaves me a negative – and this was all over $10.00!  It’s this kind of petty, small-minded attitude of people not wanting to take responsibility for their own mistakes and lashing out at the wronged party when they get caught that contributes to the world not being a better place!  My message is simple, let’s all learn to take responsibility for our own actions. Ebay should be fun for all of us - I sell you buy - you sell I buy - it seems pretty simple until you get humans involved!

P.S.   I can tell by the feedback and emails I receive from other eBayers that they’re run into plenty of people like this so feel free to vent – it actually does make you feel a little better!