A Green Goblin Mego doll sold for an impressive $76,700 at a recent Hake's Auctions sale, setting a new world record for a Mego action figure.
The figure, released in 1975, was one of only two Marvel villains that appeared in the company's World's Greatest Super-Heroes line. The other was another of Spider-Man's foes, the Lizard. Green Goblin Megos can still be acquired secondhand in the company's trademark window box packaging, but the Hake's Auctions sale was for a rare variant released with card packaging. Green Goblin was only included in the first assortment of carded Mego figures, making him the rarest find of all of the company's Marvel toys.
The 47-year-old toy received an 80+ grade from the Action Figure Authority, which assesses the condition of toys. A score of 80+ indicates Near Mint status. In comparison, a Mego for the Lizard that sold at the same auction was graded 75+. The Lizard toy fetched $7,139 due to its lack of rarity compared with the Green Goblin figure.
"Vintage Mego figures are great items to get graded," Action Figure Authority president Chad Thompson said. "With all of the packaging and costume variations, there are varying degrees of rarity, and completist collectors are always on the hunt for the next version of their favorite character. If you’re looking to sell, there’s someone looking to buy, and having an official grade can increase a vintage item’s value greatly."
"Graded action figures -- especially Megos -- always do well for us," Hake’s Auctions president Alex Winter added. "Add in a popular character -- and a rare packaging variation -- and it's a perfect storm of factors that add up to a high-dollar item. We always recommend getting a toy third-party-graded before we bring it to auction -- that way the buyer knows exactly what they’re getting."
Mego, which began producing dolls based on both DC and Marvel figures in 1972, is one of the most well-known companies to release pop culture toys before the advent of action figures. Their World's Greatest Super-Heroes line remains beloved by collectors, and the company launched a collaboration with Topps in August of 2021 to release new figures -- including characters ranging from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine's Sisko and Quark to Ra's al Ghul.
Founded in 1967, Hake's Auctions specializes in pop culture collectibles, including baseball cards, comic books, historical memorabilia, sports merchandise and other novelty items. On the company's website, Winter states that Hake's has even sold fossils from the Devonian Era -- roughly 350 million years ago.
Source: Hake's Auctions