A rare Action Comics #1 that was stolen from Nicolas Cage‘s home in 1999 has sold privately for $15 million, setting the first eight-figure price in comic-book history.
**At a Glance
- The 1938 comic, which introduced Superman, was taken during a New Year’s Eve party at Cage’s house.
- Vincent Zurzolo of Metropolis Comics and Comic Connect brokered the record sale in January 2026.
- Cage had bought it in 1996 for $150,000, then sold it for $2.2 million after its 2011 recovery.
- Why it matters: The transaction cements Action Comics #1 as the most valuable comic ever sold.
The copy first drew headlines in 1992 when it fetched $82,000 at Sotheby’s, then a world record. Four years later, Metropolis partner Stephen Fischler sold it to Cage for the new high of $150,000, Zurzolo told Comics Beat.
The theft on December 31, 1999, was discovered days later. The lockable frames holding Cage’s collectibles showed no forced entry, indicating the thief knew how to disable alarms. Fischler helped investigators, warning that the book would eventually surface.
In 2011 a man contacted Metropolis with a photo of the missing comic, asking $1 million and claiming it had been found in a storage unit. Fischler and a detective arranged a meeting in an industrial park in Simi Valley, California. The seller’s representative was Mark Balelo, a cast member of Storage Wars. When the detective revealed the book’s stolen status, the owner was “very distraught,” Zurzolo recalled.
After Cage regained possession, he consigned the comic to a Comic Connect auction, where it sold for $2.2 million to an anonymous buyer.
Zurzolo and Fischler quietly negotiated the latest private sale, closing at $15 million-the first time a comic book has crossed the eight-figure threshold.
Although Cage no longer owns the issue, his Superman ties remain: he named his son Kal-El, was once attached to Tim Burton’s aborted Superman Lives, and made a cameo as the hero in 2023’s The Flash.
Key Takeaways
- Action Comics #1 has now appreciated more than 18,000 percent since its 1992 sale.
- The 27-year journey-from Cage’s purchase to theft to recovery to record resale-highlights the soaring market for high-grade Golden Age keys.
- Metropolis Comics and Comic Connect handled both the 1996 and 2026 transactions, underscoring the firm’s role in marquee comic sales.
