A jaw-dropping selection of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics that are certified by CGC® is now available in the Lawrence Klein Collection Part 1 sale presented by Hake’s Auctions. Online bidding is already underway for the October 21, 2026 auction.
Among the most radical CGC-certified comics in this sale is a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1 graded CGC x JSA 9.8, signed by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird (lot 3). With nearly three weeks remaining on the auction, bidding for this comic is already beyond $65,000 and could climb near the record for this book, which is $264,000 for a CGC Universal 9.8 in 2022.
Created by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were first published as a violent black-and-white comic book at Eastman and Laird’s own Mirage Studios (from their living room) in 1984. The series was created as a parody of contemporary superhero comic books and introduced four turtle brothers — Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello, and Michelangelo — who live secretly in the sewers with their rodent sensei, Splinter.
The comic was a huge success and it was licensed to Playmates, who altered the tone of the noir story to a more child-friendly concept to sell their line of toys and an animated series in 1987. The rebrand was a huge success, but Eastman and Laird weren’t always thrilled with the changes, and they decided to keep producing their own black-and-white Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics for mature audiences at Mirage Studios.
There are 1,427 examples of this book in the CGC Population Report, but this is the only recorded example graded CGC x JSA 9.8, signed by Eastman and Laird.
Other CGC-certified TMNT comics in this auction include:
a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1 Second Printing graded CGC x JSA 9.2, signed by Eastman and Laird (lot 4)
a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1 Third Printing graded CGC x JSA 9.6, signed by Eastman and Laird (lot 5).
a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #2 graded CGC 9.6 (lot 9)
a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #2 graded CGC 9.4 (lot 10)
a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #3 Variant graded CGC x JSA 9.4, signed by Eastman and Laird (lot 13)
a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #3 Variant graded CGC 9.6 (lot 14)
a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #3 graded CGC x JSA 9.0, signed by Eastman and Laird (lot 15)
a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #4 graded CGC x JSA 9.2, signed by Jason Sklaver, Eastman, and Laird (lot 16)
a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #4 graded CGC 9.4 (lot 17)
About CGC
Since revolutionizing comic book grading in 2000, CGC has grown to include certification services for a vast variety of pop culture collectibles, including trading card games (TCGs), sports cards, magazines, video games, and home media. CGC also offers seamless solutions for autograph collectors with CGC Signature Series and JSA Authentic Autograph services. If you collect it, we grade and protect it.
CGC is part of the Certified Collectibles Group, a global provider of expert and impartial authentication and grading services for collectibles. Since 1987, the Certified Collectibles Group companies have certified more than 110 million collectibles, including coins, banknotes, comic books, cards, autographs, and stamps