From the “Why doesn’t this ever happen to me?” file:

Karl Kissner picked up a soot-covered cardboard box that had been under a wooden dollhouse in his grandfather’s attic. Taking a look inside, he saw baseball cards bundled with twine. They were smaller than the ones he was used to seeing.

This undated photo provided by Heritage Auctions shows some of the more than 700 well-preserved 1910 baseball cards found.
But some of the names were familiar: Hall of Famers Ty Cobb, Cy Young and Honus Wagner.

Then he put the box on a dresser and went back to digging through the attic.

It wasn’t until two weeks later that he learned that his family had come across what experts say is one of the biggest, most exciting finds in the history of sports card collecting, a discovery probably worth millions.

The cards are from an extremely rare series issued around 1910. The few known to exist are in so-so condition at best, with faded images and worn edges. But the ones from the attic in the Ohio town of Defiance are nearly pristine, untouched for more than a century. The colors are vibrant, the borders crisp and white.

“It’s like finding the Mona Lisa in the attic” Kissner said.

While I don’t collect cards like I used to, I do know that the Honus Wagner is the Action Comics #1 of the baseball card world. Here’s what it looks like:

That one card sold for $1.2 million. Yeah, you read that right.

It reminds me of the movie “Comic Book Villains.” Not a bad flick. It’s got some language, but overall, it’s watchable. The ending will make a comic geek sick to his stomach though.