The "This Story Is Hard To Believe - Part II" Story

It was an ordinary day.  After getting over the shock of a single Topps 1952 Mickey Mantle baseball card selling for $12.6 million, I continued through the next few pages of my magazine to see what other items might have sold for unbelievable amounts of money.  I found a 1939 Superman No. 1 comic book that sold for another large amount of money.  Story read like this:  In the 85 years since the golden age of comic books truly took flight, no world saving figure has ever touched the cred of Superman, the hero who really started it all in 1938's Action Comics No. 1.  Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster's visitor from another planet inspired some of the most enduring entertainment franchises, including George Reeves' TV portrait in the 1950s, and Christopher Reeve's films in the 1970s and '80s.  While Action Comics No. 1 has always been in demand, the Superman No. 1 comic book, released one year later, has even more fully captured the imagination of current collectors.  Beyond its great beauty - the cover, with the Man of Steel touching down upon a tall building, with glorious yellow background - it's the rarity of the book that truly sells it.  And it's even more rare to find one in great condition.  That's why one issue, graded a mighty high 8.0, sold privately in 2022 for an amazing $5.3 million.  Given that the comic cost 10 cents in 1939, that investment would buy you a ton of kryptonite.  Well, I found just one more item that I would have loved to add to my collection of items I have.  It was a Hot Wheels "Redlines" with a story that read:  Hot Wheels have been raced in many households for over 50 years without losing popularity. One reason why the toy cars are always getting swept off shelves is because their price has always hovered around affordability.  Mattel debuted the "Redline" toy car line in 1968.  It was known as this because on every wheel was a literal red line.  EBay has original Redlines listed for usually around $2,000-$8,000.  So, have you any Hot Wheels in your toy chest that you would be willing to get rid of for...say a couple of thousand dollars.  Hard to believe that people will pay the price that they do for some collectibles, but they do.  I guess some people really do have more money than they know what to do with.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.