A longtime Alaska comic book buff is selling one of the gems in his vast collection, a rare copy of Batman No. 1 published 70 years ago. Mike Wheat of Fairbanks has put the 1940 comic book on the auction block through Dallas-based Heritage Auction Galleries, where it's expected to fetch more than $40,000. Online bids already have climbed to 35,000 for the book, believed to be one of fewer than 300 still in existence. Online bids will compete with a live auction set for Thursday. The second and fourth Batman issues also will be part of Thursday's auction. They are expected to bring more than $5,000 combined.
