Original 1987 portfolio
Heritage Auctions will offer 11 pieces of original art, including pieces by Frank Miller, Robert Crumb, Sergio Aragones and others, that were contributed by the artists to support the First Amendment case that led to the formation of the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund in the mid-1980s.  The artwork will be offered during Heritage Auctions’ autumn Comic Auction November 17-19 live in Beverly Hills and on HA.com.

The art portfolio was published to fund the appeal of the conviction of Michael Correa, a clerk at Friendly Frank’s Comics, who was arrested, charged, and convicted of obscenity after selling comics to an undercover police officer.  The portfolio helped fund the appeal, which was successful:  Correa’s conviction was overturned by the Illinois Appellate Court.

CBLDF Executive Director described the circumstances surrounding the portfolio.  "This was not the first prosecution of comics, but it was the first time the industry came together to do something about it," he said.  "Thanks to the artists who contributed to this portfolio, Michael was set free, and the CBLDF was formed to permanently defend the rights of our industry."

The CBLDF participation in the auction was developed in partnership with IDW Publishing, consulting supporter of CBLDF’s auction campaigns.  The pieces being offered include

  • Unpublished original cover art for Ronin #4 by Frank Miller (pre-auction estimate $20,000)
  • Unpublished original cover art to Weirdo #18 by Robert Crumb (est. $10,000)
  • Original art of Groo and the Thought Patrol (est. $2000)
  • Original art of Omaha the Cat Dancer (est. $2000)
  • Original drawing of Flaming Carrot by Bob Burden (est. $2000)
  • Original art for Censortivity by Steve Bissette (est. $2000)
  • In addition to the pieces from the original portfolio, the CBLDF pieces will also include an artwork created by Howard Cruse in support of the Michael Diana case in 1992-1994 (est. $2000)

Click here for the auction page.

Click the Gallery below for images of the key pieces from this auction.