Iron Man First Appearance: Tales of Suspense #39 and How to Identify It

Iron Man first appeared in Tales of Suspense #39 (cover date March 1963), published by Marvel, by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber, Don Heck, Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko. The source puts it this way: "This comic features the first appearance of Iron Man by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber, Don Heck, Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko.".

• Cover date vs. on-sale date: Iron Man's first appearance, "Iron Man Is Born!", appeared in Tales of Suspense #39, which was released in December 1962 but carries a March 1963 cover date.
• Interior story detail (Tony Stark origin): in the story, weapons manufacturer Tony Stark is injured and captured in Vietnam, then secretly builds an iron suit to escape and become Iron Man.

• Indicia: the small print on the first page or inside cover gives the issue number, date and publisher; reprints usually say so there.
• Cover price and barcode: a price or barcode format that did not exist in the year printed means a later edition.
• Paper and staples: decades-old newsprint is tan at the edges; bright white pages on an old date are a warning sign.
• Restoration: color touch, trimmed edges and married covers are common on expensive keys; a grading service can detect them.

Shoot the front cover flat, straight on, in even light, then the indicia page and the back cover. Include the top edge and staples in one frame. The app reads the title, issue number and cover and matches it against the checks above; the indicia photo settles most reprint questions.