After introducing our viewers last week to the wonderfully weird world of master art forger Mark Landis, many of you were left wanting more information on this supremely strange individual. Read more at theavantgardediaries.com

Directed by Terri Timely / Produced by Sophie Harris / Edited by Amanda Larson / Photography Direction by Donavan Sell / Production Coordination by Ayesha Janmohamed / Transcription by Simone Tolmie / With special thanks to John Gapper

Today’s classic cover from the Lizard Collection is issue #11 of Fantasy Masterpieces, an anthology series in which Marvel reprinted some of their earlier comics. After this issue the title was changed from “Fantasy Masterpieces” to “Marvel Super-Heroes.”

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The inside back cover is another type of classic, an advertisement for Fords, Chevrolets, and Dodges “below wholesale!!”

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Tonight’s classic cover from the Lizard Collection: issue #5 of Nick Fury, Agent of SHIELD, published in October 1968. The gorgeous psychedelic cover is by the great Jim Steranko, who also wrote the story and pencilled the interior artwork.

Our copy of this book is in very fine to near mint condition, with an almost flawless cover, white paper, and super-bright inks. It looks and feels like it just came off the rack today.

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Tonight’s cover photo from the Lizard Collection is Creepy #16, published in August 1967, featuring an exceptional painting by the late Frank Frazetta. Click the image to see an enlarged version of Frazetta’s painting, isolated from the rest of the cover.

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Back at the end of March I posted a photo of the cover of Spider-Man #40 from the Lizard Collection, with a short synopsis of the story line and a note that the comic book was on the way to the CGC to be graded for quality. Well, here’s that book, finally returned and newly sealed in a hard plastic case, with a rating of 7.5 — the rating we expected, well above average. Note that the CGC appraiser also made a comment that this copy has “White Pages,” which is quite rare; most CGC comics from this era have “Cream to Off-White Pages.” In fact, all 5 of the comics we sent to the CG for grading have received the “White Pages” comment — a happy effect of having been stored for 40 years in a tightly sealed wooden box in a dry climate.

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And by the way, here’s a photo of the wooden crate that held more than a thousand comics:

Tonight’s cover image from the Lizard Collection is one of my favorites — a classic John Romita action scene, bursting with kinetic teenage angst. That’s Peter Parker’s unrequited love Mary Jane Watson onstage in the go-go boots, shakin’ her thang while Spider-Man secretly protects her from thugs behind the curtain — even as his arachnoid heart is breaking. It’s a powerful piece of pop artwork.

If you want more details on this issue, here’s the storyline.

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Tonight’s cover from the Lizard Collection is The Amazing Spider-Man #45, published in February 1967, featuring Spider-Man fighting the evil Lizard (yes!) with one arm in a sling. A classic John Romita Sr. illustration.

Condition: some spine stresses but otherwise excellent, with the LC’s characteristic bright inks and white paper.

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Tonight’s photo from the Lizard Collection: issue #20 of The X-Men, published in May 1966. The story in this one involved a super-powerful alien who called himself (or itself) Lucifer, and who turned out to be the villain responsible for crippling the leader of the X-Men, Professor Xavier.

Like most of the comics in the Collection, this one has very minimal wear, with bright inks and non-yellowed off-white pages.

Bad paintings of Barack Obama — an idea whose time has come. Featuring this surreal stunner with a south-of-the-border/flying underpants theme, showing Obama with what appears to be a taco on his head.