Here is another item from the Craig Warren vintage Batman collection. Featured in a recent Scoop spotlight article, the entire collection is going up for auction (only), here and also in conjunction with Hake’s Americana over the upcoming weeks/months. There will be an incredible array of items available, all hand selected to be the finest quality extant. There are pieces not found in ANY other collection, right down to the mundane, all in magnificent condition, all guaranteed original and all from the period of 1966 to 1969. The collection is the result of more than two decades of diligent searching and is arguably among the finest such collections in the country.

Thanks to all that made this collection possible and also to all the friends found along the way, but it is now time to end the quest and liquidate. Our descriptions will be briefer than usual, in order to concentrate on bring more items to you faster. However, our high definition pictures will speak much more eloquently than we ever could.

With a seemingly unending consumer appetite for anything and everything Batman related, companies created just about every possible memento, tie-in and toy possible, all the result of the global fad of Batmania in 1966 caused by the ABC TV show that starred Adam West, Burt Ward and, arguably, the fantastic George Barris styled Batmobile. The title "Holy Grail" is bandied about for all sorts of toys, both within the Genre of Batman toys and outside. But, Citizens, here is truly one among the rarest of all the Batman mementos ever created, a cornerstone piece that in all likelihood is the BEST example on the planet.

As an answer to Hasbro's G.I. Joe action figure, and influenced by the superhero mania resultant from the Batman show, in 1966 Ideal created the fictional Captain Action, an articulated doll that could be dressed in beautifully created costumes of many of the best known superheroes of the day. Naturally, Batman was part of that accessory costume series, as was Superman, Flash Gordon, Lone Ranger, followed the next year by Spiderman and The Green Hornet. Also in 1967, Ideal attempted to widen the appeal of the Captain Action line by expanding the concept into a line of girl's superhero dolls, coined as "Posin' Superqueens". Based off their existing Misty fashion doll, the Superqueen line was a memorable sales failure, as girl's didn't "get" the concept and boy's wouldn't be caught dead playing with a Girl's Doll.

So, today, these SuperQueen dolls are paramount collectibles, rarely ever found. But as rare as these dolls are, there is a variant that is even rarer. Advertised and available only through the 1967 Sears Christmas "Wish List" catalog was a special Batgirl Super Queen that came dressed as her civilian guise, Barbara Gordon. See the photos below for a picture of that small, solitary advertisement, stuck near the gutter of the catalog. The doll came packaged with the full Batgirl costume and all of the accessories found in the standard retail edition. But here, the doll came housed in a simple striped "shoe box" type of lidded box. Although the retail edition doll had raven hair, this catalog edition doll was blonde haired. Differing further from a standard Misty doll, the Superqueen had a different hair style without bangs and subtly differing face painting, eliminating the possibility of exact interchangeability of the two. Included with this catalog set was a Misty Hair coloring marker from the "Glamour Misty - Miss Clairol Doll." With this marker, one could change the blonde Barbara Gordon into the chestnut haired Batgirl, further confusing the citizenry as to her true identity.

What we offer here is a totally unused and as Mint as ever seen example of this Sears Barbara Gordon/Batgirl set. It was special ordered by an ADULT Batman collector in 1967 and was placed, totally unused, into his Batman collection. What a visionary! A Batman toy collector from 1966, this collector amassed an astounding collection of shelf stock, unused toys and we were honored to obtain some of the choicest pieces to display as our own. This doll still has the factory head protective plastic in place. Inside are the two small bobby pins still clipped to the hair. This doll was never played with and still even has the original tissue balled up around the head, just as issued. Her dress is a blue, flowered shift and is perfect, as are the red pump shoes. Mint doesn't even describe this doll for it is literally a time capsule.

Accompanying the doll is the original shipping box that shows only minimal corner tip and edge wear incurred at the warehouse. There are a scant few scuff marks on the end panels. The bottom face of the lidded box has the stenciled-on stocking information, with no other markings anywhere else. We grade this rare box a C8.5 or better. This collector was so thorough that he even saved the ORIGINAL Sears warehouse stockroom pull ticket, dated "11/29"! He wrote on it "Bat Girl Doll" and kept it with the set, in perfect condition. 

But what really sets the set off is the amazing, unused Batgirl outfit. None of these suit pieces have ever even been put on the doll. Fans of the Bartgirl Superqueen know that the soft vinyl pieces are subject to ageing dryness and splitting, especially at the rear cowl slit. Once opened up to allow the cowl to be placed around the doll's head and hair, this factory slit just about always would tear open upwards. But this cowl is dead perfect, as are the boots made of this same flexible material. Her black stretch suit has two Ideal tags sewn inside and all the snap eyelets are firmly affixed. Ideal used a thicker foil applique decal on the chest of this suit. This emblem is near perfect with a single tiny dent toward the bottom of the lower point of the bat design. Batgirl's belt is absolutely flat and only a minute scratch just to the left of the bat-head and some waviness of the glued on emblem piece keep this component from being called Stone Mint. She has fabric stretch gloves that have only a compression wrinkle from our display method (more on that later). The same plastic Batarang seen in the Captain Action Batman set was part of this set, too, and it is near perfect. Finally, her cape, made of a thin vinyl sheet, is totally flat and, again, unused. Naturally, the metal cape buckles are perfect. There are two light vertical age marks on it and it has become stiff from age, just as all these Captain Action capes are prone. Now the cape is kept inside a sturdy mylar sleeve to minimize exposure to the atmosphere. Finally, the contents of the Misty hair color marker have, of course, dried out, but the tube itself is perfect and unmarked.

To preserve the piece and to display it properly, we built a 14 1/2" square, clear lucite display case for her. Vertical strips locate the doll box. Clear risers display the boots and a suit tree holds up the outfit and cowl. A vertical clear panel displays the Batarang, belt and gloves. These are held in place with clear mylar strips threaded through slots and then taped to the rear. At the rear, the pull card is mounted within a rigid card holder and the cape is held up in its mylar sleeve with clear corner points. This case has the front panel held to the sides with small screws. We will also include the wall clamps we used, but the display will also stand perfectly well all on its own. The buyer will also get this lucite display case as part of this auction, at no cost except for the added cost of the additional shipping weight.

Every single piece and component of this set is guaranteed absolutely authentic and unrestored. There are NO reproduction or replacement parts at all.

All in all, we grade the toy a realistic C9 or better. It is better than just Investment Quality; it is truly a Museum Quality example, remaining as pristine as the day it was received in 1967. This is a unique item for display, surely to become a cornerstone piece in even the most advanced of collections. Because of the rarity of this piece, we have set a realistic Reserve on it. Please do not ask us to close the auction early, sell the item outright or reveal our Reserve, as these are requests we cannot accommodate, out of fairness to all bidders. A word of warning: if any bidder retracts his bid for any reason, he will be immediately banned from this and all our auctions.

We have placed far too many (37 of them, actually - sorry for the slow load time, but they're worth it!) high definition photos below that accurately depict the appearance of this piece. We all strive to find like new additions to our collections and if they remain still in the original packaging, better yet. Here is a completely uncompromised rarity, possibly a one-of-a-kind in this NOS condition, that should not be missed. It probably will never be found again and certainly not in New Old Stock condition. Be sure to see our other auctions for more incredible vintage Batman items from this world class collection and watch for even better items yet to come, both here and at Hakes!

Please note that we will be away and unable to answer emails, ship any parcels or send any Invoices from Wednesday, April 23, 2008 until Thursday May 1, 2008. Sorry for any inconveniences, but a trip out of state calls us. We will be back to normal beginning on May 2nd once again. 

Before making payment, PLEASE WAIT FOR OUR INVOICE, NOT eBay's Win Notice. We normally email Invoices directly to you the day following the close of the auction! We do NOT use eBay's Invoicing system. If after three days you do not see an Invoice from us, it was probably blocked by your ISP's anti-spam techniques (especially if you use AOL or one of the free e-mail services). Email us and we will send a duplicate through a different account. We have experienced a great difficulty with Invoice delivery recently and have no way of verifying whether Invoices have been received or not. It is YOUR responsibility to contact us if no Invoice is received!

For estimation purposes only, when well over-packaged this item will weigh approximately 9#, although actual shipping costs will be Invoiced upon the auction's close. But, to get a shipping cost estimate, even for a foreign destination, click here and enter the pertinent information. Shipping point is Zip 06460. Estimated weight is stated above. Preferred service class is Priority Mail within the US and usually International Priority Mail if abroad, for small parcels. We will also probaly insist on Registered Service for this very special item.

IMPORTANT NOTES AND TERMS– PLEASE READ ALL OF THIS!

All images, copy and content are © 2008 On-Line Consignment Resources Center, LLC., the OCR Center. All items sold as-is, without warrantee given or implied as to fitness for any purpose. Don’t hesitate to ask questions, as we want truly satisfied customers. We give the highest levels of service for buyers as well as our consignors. Know what you are bidding on. Be sure to check our other auctions! Any item is available for preview or pickup at our store location right off I95. The OCR Center is your center for consignments and collectibles. Visit us for the best in quality collectibles, but its best to call first at 203.882.8494. Like what you see here? Contact us to consign your best items and see how easy we can make it for you, too. We also always buy quality collectibles and memorabilia.

Legal Dept: A bid is a binding legal contract for the intent to purchase an item. Please do not bid if you will not or cannot complete the purchase of any item you might win. Negative feedback and eBay notification will result from non-payment of a winning bid. Bidders with less than a five (5) positive feedback rating should contact us prior to logging in a bid. We reserve the right to cancel or refuse any bids we feel are not made with good intent. Shipments made to NJ are subject to that state's 7% Sales Tax and CT sales or deliveries are subject to 6% CT Sales Tax, payable by the Buyer.

Condition: Condition is rated on a scale of C1 to C10, with C10 being a flawless, perfect condition. Our grading is inherently very conservative. We are collectors ourselves and grade accordingly.

Payment: Payment is expected within 10 (ten) days of notification by OUR initial email. We do not use the eBay checkout system - ignore all checkout procedures other than our email. Please wait for our Invoice before contacting us or remitting any payments. We Invoice the day after the auctions close, but some customers, especially AOL users have been experiencing difficulty in receiving our emailed Invoices. Postal or Bank Money Orders or Certified Checks (not a Teller’s or Bank check) preferred. Personal, business or non-Certified checks are accepted but can take up to three weeks to clear before shipment of item. We accept credit card payments only through PayPal for US bidders only. Non-US buyers must pay only by US$ Cash sent registered, Money Order Payable in US$ or PayPal (only when NOT funded by a Credit Card).

Shipping: Actual freight and mandatory insurance costs are the responsibility of the purchaser. No item over $15 in value is sent without full insurance, for our mutual protection. Most all parcels are sent by US Priority Mail service, which allows us to utilize USPS provided materials at no cost and pass these savings along to our customers. We do not bill any other shipping or handling charges except the actual shipping expenses if sent by Priority Mail. Parcels too large or bulky for Priority will be sent by either UPS, Airborne or FedEx and may incur additional packaging costs which will ALWAYS be stated in the ad description. Foreign orders will incur significantly higher postage and are sent WITHOUT insurance (your risk!). All foreign parcels will be declared as "Merchandise" on the Customs tag, declared for the purchase amount.

Returns: Please be mindful that many of our items are consignment pieces from various sources. We take great pains to describe all of our items in explicit detail. For these reasons, all sales are final and returns are granted only in cases of our gross misrepresentation! Any claims for return must be made within seven (7) days of receipt. No refunds given for incoming or outgoing freight costs.