Someone shared this story about Gary Dahlberg, lifelong comic book collector, and I couldn’t resist passing it along.
Gary Dahlberg, who recently passed away in a house fire at 62 years of age, spent his whole life collecting comics; Star Trek plates, mugs and figurines; Peter Pan and Donald Duck collectibles; and tins of Christmas ornaments. Like so many of us who treasure something material, he didn’t mind living a simple life to pursue what he loved. Originally drawn to comic books by the artwork, Dahlberg turned to collecting comics after his dream of becoming a cartoonist faded away in his earlier years. He lived out his days driving city buses and retired just seven months before the house fire, but was said to have lived a very happy and full life.
Everything in the small bedroom that escaped the house fire which took Dahlberg’s life was in perfect condition – protected from heat and light like organic materials in a museum. The comics, which had been “carefully cataloged and perfectly preserved,” were valued by Heritage Auctions at nearly 2 million dollars. This total includes a 1963 copy of the first “Amazing Spiderman” issue, valued at $47,800.
Gary's sister with some of the comics from his collection. Photo Credit: Star Tribune.
“He wasn’t a hoarder,” said Bev Johnson, his off-and-on girlfriend of 30 years. “He was visually stimulated and liked to have things to look at. … He put toys in his fridge because he liked to open it up and have something fun to look at.”
But comic books were his passion. Many a trip and date included time spent in a comic book store or comic book show, Johnson said. She doesn’t hesitate to confirm Kuiper’s assessment that Dahlberg was more committed to his comic books than to the idea of marriage. “We had a lot of fun together,” she said.
This story really got me thinking. What will I leave behind someday? A quick glance around my apartment reminds me of the years I’ve spent collecting geeky memorabilia and material culture from my travels to Japan and East Asia. And yes, I’ve held onto my very first comic books, video game cartridges and systems, and other treasures over the years. I could never see myself parting with a lot of this stuff…and I’m totally okay with that. I’ve worked a lot of 50 hour weeks to buy items in my collection, and that’s part of what makes it special to me.
Since this article really had me thinking about what kinds of things I might leave behind someday, I took a photo of some of my favorite collectibles to share with you.
Top row, from left to right: Star Trek Burger King Glasses (Spock broke, unfortunately, due to my cat), Return of the Jedi Burger King Glass, Neon Genesis Evangelion figurine (from Japan), Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya figurine (from Japan), Totoro ceramic (from Japan), Atari controller, Daruma (wish-making doll from Japan). Middle/Bottom: Star Wars Marvel Special Edition #1, Record of Lodoss Wars manga (printed in comic book form), Nintendo Cartridges (Super Mario Bros/Duck Hunt, Final Fantasy I, and Legend of Zelda), a Woodblock Print from a shrine commemorating “The Year of the Tiger” and finally, my first Japanese cell phone.
So, what collection could you leave behind someday? If you stop to think about it, you’ll probably realize that at least some of the things you keep will say a lot about who you were to someone in the future. Anthropologists use material culture to analyze the people of the past…so what does your material culture say about you?
Check out the full story in memory of Gary Dahlberg over at the Star Tribune.