Marvel’s Merry Christmas Present to You!

Marvel Comics trumpeted its Marvel Value Stamps in the debut of the latest in-house promotional machine, the Bullpen in comic books covered dated March 1974.

Touted as an early holiday present the now (in)famous Marvel Value Stamps, an off-beat promotion mirroring the main stream’s Green Stamps or other bartering badges, readers were regaled with the wonders to come.

The article went on, in true Marvel idiom, “…one of these glitzy mini-posters—each featuring a different Marvel star or starlet—will appear in virtually every one of our mixed-up original-material mags—and in many of our collectors’-item reprints, to boot!”

Marvel Value Stamps ran in two series. The first offered renderings of readers favorite heroes and villains. The second, series B, were smaller pieces of a larger image to make up 10 different posters. Each were spread through various Marvel Comic Book titles.

Both series consisted of 100 pieces. The first could be pasted in an official 16-page Marvel stamp album offered in-house for 50 cents, to cover postage and handling. Included was a free, full-color poster.

What made the promotion so sinister was the fact anyone wishing to participate would need to cut up their comic books. Maybe the most infamous instance is Incredible Hulk 181. Philatelists traded the grade of their Hulk 181 to clip a Shanna stamp. Basically, the choice cost collectors an estimated 80-percent of what the unscathed book would be worth normally.

When all 100 stamps were collected, the album could be returned to Marvel Comics for a discount for entry to various comic book shows around the country. In addition, completists could take 10-percent off official Marvel merchandise sold by the company. This could be done in perpetuity.

And, in theory.

The two promotions ran from 1974 to 1976.

Visit Marvel Value Stamps The Unofficial Index for more information.