Heritage Auctions will celebrate its 50th Signature Auction with the best grouping of Frank Miller Dark Night artworks ever offered at auction.
 Many of Miller's newly-added elements are incorporated into the most recent Batman films, spurring the popularity of the 1986 series |
The May 16-18 comics sale in Dallas features a stellar line-up of the most coveted comics and comic art, with Amazing Fantasy #15 and original Marvel Bronze Age art also due to make an appearance.
However, the standout lot will be Miller's The Dark Knight Returns #2 Batman and Robin splash original art, which is estimated at $75,000+.
Frank Miller's limited series Batman: The Dark Knight was originally published in 1986, with the writer and artist revamping DC Comics' long-standing Batman character, who returns to crime fighting - now aged 55 - after a long period of retirement.
The series, which has since been compiled into a single graphic novel entitled The Dark Knight Returns, is much loved by comic book enthusiasts, who relish the darker side of the character presented in Miller's storyline.
Many elements of Miller's adaptation were also incorporated into the most recent series of Batman films, further spurring the comic books' popularity.
The full-page splash offered at auction is a perfect example of Miller's "noir" style, taken from the second book of the series, The Dark Knight Triumphant. It spotlights the severely wounded Batman and his protege Robin clasped in a desperate embrace.
In 2011, Heritage sold another iconic splash page of Batman and Robin, this time taken from the third book, which sold for the then-record sum of $448,125. Similar results could be in store for the current lot.
We have a selection of original comic artwork for sale, including examples from Charles Schulz's Peanuts, the longest and most popular syndicated daily strip in American history.
