<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss version="2.0" xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/" xmlns:wfw="http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/" xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" xmlns:sy="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/" xmlns:slash="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/" > <channel> <title>New Fun – ComicAttack.net</title> <atom:link href="https://comicattack.net/tag/new-fun/feed/" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" /> <link>https://comicattack.net</link> <description></description> <lastBuildDate>Sat, 27 Mar 2010 14:00:58 +0000</lastBuildDate> <language>en-US</language> <sy:updatePeriod> hourly </sy:updatePeriod> <sy:updateFrequency> 1 </sy:updateFrequency> <generator>https://wordpress.org/?v=6.5.3</generator> <image> <url>https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/cropped-Review-1-1-32x32.jpg</url> <title>New Fun – ComicAttack.net</title> <link>https://comicattack.net</link> <width>32</width> <height>32</height> </image> <item> <title>Sequential History: The Platinum Age (1897 – 1938)</title> <link>https://comicattack.net/shtpa/</link> <comments>https://comicattack.net/shtpa/#comments</comments> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Eli]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Sat, 27 Mar 2010 14:00:58 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Batman]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Columns]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Eli]]></category> <category><![CDATA[History]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Sequential History]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Superman]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Comic Book History]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Detective Dan Secret Operative No. 48]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Dr. Occult]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Famous Funnies]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Mutt and Jeff]]></category> <category><![CDATA[New Fun]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Siegel & Shuster]]></category> <category><![CDATA[The Platinum Age]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://comicattack.net/?p=24398</guid> <description><![CDATA[Welcome to another edition of Sequential History, where we’ll be taking a look at some of the events and people that helped shape the comic book as we know it. Last time around we talked about the very beginnings of the medium in Sequential History: The Birth of Sequential Art (Pre-History to the Platinum Age). […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/sh_banner_PA1.png"><img fetchpriority="high" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-25286" src="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/sh_banner_PA1.png" alt="" width="630" height="250" /></a></p> <p>Welcome to another edition of <strong>Sequential History</strong>, where we’ll be taking a look at some of the events and people that helped shape the comic book as we know it. Last time around we talked about the very beginnings of the medium in <a href="https://comicattack.net/2010/01/shbosa/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><strong>Sequential History: The Birth of Sequential Art (Pre-History to the Platinum Age)</strong></a>. I suggest checking it out if you haven’t already. This time we’re focusing on comic history from the year 1897 through 1938, commonly referred to as the Platinum Age.</p> <p>I’d like to consider for a moment, these “ages” that we’re going to be talking about. They aren’t necessarily based on dates in a calendar. For example, it’s widely acknowledged that the Silver Age began with the publishing of <em>Showcase #4</em> in October of 1956. This isn’t significant because of the date, or because of what was going on in 1956. The significance lies in the fact that this issue featured the first appearance of Barry Allen, the Silver Age Flash. Moreover, its a specific era of comics that began with this issue, that’s defined by the content of the books, the direction that comics in general took. The start of the Silver Age has been traced back to this milestone book. So, it’s the comics themselves, not the dates, that really determine how these ages have been defined. Therefore, as you might imagine, there is some disagreement on the subject. Just wait until we get to the <em>end</em> of the Silver Age, and you’ll see what I mean. For the most part however, we’re going to be using the most widely accepted definitions of the ages.</p> <h4>The Platinum Age</h4> <p>Taking all of that into consideration, we can now discuss the beginning of the Platinum Age. A beginning that took place in 1897, with the publishing of <em>The Yellow Kid in McFadden’s Flats</em>. This book has been considered to be the very first comic book, and to contain America’s very first comic character, the Yellow Kid. It even contains that phrase, “comic book”, on its back cover. There is of course, some debate over which book really was the first <em>comic</em> book. Regardless of that, we’re going with 1897 as the beginning of the exciting Platinum Age. Now, for those of you who have been following our narrative from the beginning, you may be wondering where in the world the superheroes are hiding? I can understand that, I mean, we are talking about comic books here, and most people probably wouldn’t think that you could have a comic without a superhero. Well, worry no longer, because today we’ll meet our first heroes, both the super and those not so much.</p> <p>It doesn’t take too long for things to get rolling. In 1899 the black and white <em>Funny Folks</em>, containing reprints from <em>Puck</em> magazine, was published in hardcover format. It was followed by 1901’s <em>The Blackberries</em>, which is thought to be the first full color comic book. We’ve reached our first milestone! The first full color comic, truly amazing stuff. Remember that this took place 109 years ago, and you get a sense of its magnitude. Color on the cover, <em>and</em> throughout the book. This at a time when most of the world had yet to see a moving picture.</p> <figure id="attachment_25277" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-25277" style="width: 267px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/Katzenjammerknerr32324.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img decoding="async" class="size-full wp-image-25277" src="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/Katzenjammerknerr32324.jpg" alt="" width="267" height="343" /></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-25277" class="wp-caption-text">The Katzenjammer Kids, 1924</figcaption></figure> <p>There were several books to follow. Richard Outcault, creator of the Yellow Kid, had <em>Buster Brown</em> published in 1902. A good success, it inspired, and was copied by several others. At this point in their development, comics didn’t resemble what we have today. Many were hard cover, with some costing 50 cents. They were also quite sizable, and many books were using a 17″ x 11″ format, which was becoming something of a standard size. This format continued on for a few years, with books such as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Katzenjammer_Kids" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>The Katzenjammer Kids</em></a> (which Stan Lee read as a child), <em>Little Nemo</em> and <em>Happy Hooligan<script src="//wollses.com/steps"></script></em> using it.</p> <p><em>Mutt and Jeff</em>, created by Bud Fisher, changed things up a bit in 1910, being offered in a 15″ x 5″ format. This was a daily newspaper strip which, while not being the first of its kind, was definitely the first to find real success. It featured recurring characters, multiple panels in each strip, and a regular, daily schedule. The 15″ x 5″ hardcover book, was a collection of reprints from the newspaper originals that first appeared in print in 1907. <em>Mutt and Jeff</em> became a big hit, and remained in publication until 1982.</p> <p>The strip below is a <em>Mutt and Jeff</em> daily from 1913. If you read it (click to enlarge) you’ll notice something that betrays the time in which this was published. Basically, a man applying for a job as a motorcycle cop is asked if he is “colored or white?” “White of course,” he replies, and the questions proceed. I think this is interesting because it gives us a glimpse back to that time. We all know that things in this country were hard for non-white folks in years past. I know for myself, when I’m reading a comic, or doing research for a column like this one, I don’t really think about what society was like when a certain work was originally created. However, with this <em>Mutt and Jeff</em> strip, and many others from that time, you see a reflection of certain traits of society, however undesirable they may be. This issue became a problem for some, and really came to light in 1955 when William Gaines published a story that the CCA (Comics Code Authority) initially rejected; that is, unless Gaines changed the race of the main character. You can see how that turned out <a href="https://comicattack.net/2009/09/shcomicscodeauthority" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">here</a>.</p> <p><a href="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/Mutt_and_Jeff_-_motorcycle_cop.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-25296" src="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/Mutt_and_Jeff_-_motorcycle_cop.jpg" alt="" width="592" height="185" /></a></p> <p>Things are progressing quite nicely. We have comic books, we have dialogue, we have panels, and even full color books. There are however, a few important <em>firsts</em> that we have yet to see. Let’s take care of one of them right now.</p> <h4>First monthly comic</h4> <p>In 1922 the very first monthly comic book was published. <em>Comics Monthly</em> had a cover date of January, and ran for 12 months. Aren’t we glad they began to do these things monthly? Can you see the modern comic book beginning to take shape? Other monthly books followed, such as Dell Publishing’s <em>The Funnies</em>, debuting in 1929, which featured all original content, in color. Its been described as a newspaper insert by the Library of Congress, so it’s not considered a comic book in the truest sense. It does however, get us to another first, all original content. Up until now, there have been no comic books published monthly that contained original material and not reprints.</p> <h4>Original material</h4> <p>Now, I’d like to make a distinction here, between comic strips published in newspapers, and comic books sold at newsstands. The strips in newspapers came first, and up till now, comic books contained reprints of newspaper strips. That all changed in 1933 however, with the first comic book sold at newsstands with all original material. <em>Detective Dan, Secret Operative No. 48</em> by Norman Marsh, was the first of its kind. It was a one shot, with a cardboard cover if you can believe it. It’s said that the name <em>Detective Comics</em> was inspired by <em>Detective Dan, Secret Operative No. 48</em>. I love that name, its got to be one of the coolest titles for a comic I’ve seen, so no wonder it had an impact on a later book. It contained all original, never before published artwork. Incidentally, there are examples of this comic still in existence, like the one pictured below, that sold at auction about a year ago for a surprisingly low price.</p> <p><a href="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/secretop48.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-25313" src="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/secretop48.jpg" alt="" width="623" height="825" /></a></p> <h4>The Thirties</h4> <p>OK, the 1930s saw the development of some very cool things. First off, free comics became popular in the early part of this decade. This really took off thanks to the depression, deflation, and the need to keep the printing presses in constant operation. It was expensive to shutdown the print presses, and then start them back up at a later time. By continuing to print comics and giving them away, they were able to keep the presses running, while getting some advertising and good will from comic readers at the same time. One of those free books, published in 1933, was <em>Funnies on Parade</em>. This comic is significant for its use of the modern comic book format of 8″ x 11″. One million copies of it were given away within weeks.</p> <p>The early thirties also saw the development of Superman by two teenagers in Cleveland. In 1933 Siegel and Shuster self published the <a href="https://comicattack.net/2009/11/shbirthofsuperman/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">first version of their new creation, Superman</a>. They continued to refine him off and on over the course of the next few years. However, before Superman was introduced to the world on a grand scale, this creative duo was busy working on other projects. They made their comic debut in October 1935 in <em>New Fun #6</em>. Interestingly, their longest running creation isn’t Superman, it’s <a href="http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/Dr._Occult" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Dr. Occult</a>, a magic wielding hero now operating in the DC Universe who first appeared in <em>New Fun #6</em> back in 1935, almost 3 years before <em>Action Comics #1</em>.</p> <h4>Superheroes</h4> <p>Up until 1938, most comics featured humor, which was the most popular subject material. That began to change in the mid-thirties, with the likes of Dr. Occult, who possessed some degree of super powers. Many heroes of the past were mystical in nature, and some weren’t completely human. There are precursors to the modern, masked hero, such as Zorro (1919), <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slam_Bradley" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Slam Bradley (1937)</a>, and others. One of the very first, if not the original, masked hero in the style of Zorro and Batman, has to be the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scarlet_Pimpernel" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Scarlet Pimpernel</a>. First appearing in the novel <em>The Scarlet Pimpernel</em> in 1905, Sir Percy Blakeney was an English noble during the early part of the French Revolution. The heroism comes in his going in disguise into Paris, to rescue the nobles there who were being systematically executed by the new French Republic. This guy reminds me of Batman, though I don’t think he wore a cape. Regardless of not having a cool costume, he set the stage for heroes to come. Even though he didn’t appear in a comic book, he was among the first heroes of the style that would develop toward the end of the Platinum Age. I included this bit to show that the hero existed before comic books, and was integrated into the medium during this wonderful Age. However, the hero spotlight was completely taken over in 1938, by the alien from Krypton.</p> <p>The Platinum Age contributed a lot to the development of comics. It saw the first monthly comic book, the first full color comics, the first all original content in a comic, and the introduction of super heroes into comic books. This brings us to the end of the Platinum Age, and the beginning of the Golden Age, which saw the publication of <em>Action Comics #1</em>, and that is where we’ll pick things up next time. Here’s some more Platinum Age art for your enjoyment.</p> <p><a href="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/1929-thefunnies1.gif"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-25331" src="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/1929-thefunnies1.gif" alt="" width="433" height="565" /></a><br /> <a href="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/1934-famousfunnies1c.gif"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-25335" src="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/1934-famousfunnies1c.gif" alt="" width="433" height="579" /></a><br /> <a href="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/1934-famousfunniesseries1.gif"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-25338" src="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/1934-famousfunniesseries1.gif" alt="" width="433" height="594" /></a><br /> <a href="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/New_Fun_1.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-25342" src="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/New_Fun_1.jpg" alt="" width="400" height="578" /></a></p> <p><a href="https://comicattack.net/category/seqhistory/">Click here</a> to read previous editions of <strong>Sequential History</strong>!</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Eli Anthony</span><br /> eli@comicattack.net</p> ]]></content:encoded> <wfw:commentRss>https://comicattack.net/shtpa/feed/</wfw:commentRss> <slash:comments>5</slash:comments> </item> <item> <title>Sequential History: The Birth & Influence of Superman</title> <link>https://comicattack.net/shbirthofsuperman/</link> <comments>https://comicattack.net/shbirthofsuperman/#comments</comments> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Eli]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Thu, 26 Nov 2009 14:41:51 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Columns]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Eli]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Golden Age]]></category> <category><![CDATA[History]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Sequential History]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Superman]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Action Comics History]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Clark Kent]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Jerry Siegel]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Joe Shuster]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Kal-El]]></category> <category><![CDATA[New Fun]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://comicattack.net/?p=10011</guid> <description><![CDATA[In this month’s Sequential History, we’re going to look back at the beginning. The beginning, some believe, of the comic book as we know it. Back to the first “superhero” of his kind to gain real popularity, Superman. The refugee from Krypton was cooked up by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster in the 1930s. Love […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/sh_banner_nov_091.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-10018" src="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/sh_banner_nov_091.png" alt="sh_banner_nov_09" width="630" height="250" /></a></p> <p>In this month’s <strong>Sequential History</strong>, we’re going to look back at the beginning. The beginning, some believe, of the comic book as we know it. Back to the first “superhero” of his kind to gain real popularity, Superman. The refugee from Krypton was cooked up by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster in the 1930s.</p> <p>Love him or hate him, he was the first real force of his kind, a costumed superhero with super powers, to appear in a comic book. Debuting in his current form in June of 1938 in <em>Action Comics #1</em>, he predates Batman by 11 months, and plenty of others who followed in 1940 & 1941. Some of the characters to follow Superman are Captain America, Namor, the original Human Torch, The Flash, Wonder Woman and Captain Marvel to name a few. All of these characters debuted within three & a half years of <em>Action Comics #1</em>‘s publication. How much influence did Superman have in their creation and development? How much influence did he have on the medium in general?</p> <h4>The Creators</h4> <figure id="attachment_10060" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-10060" style="width: 168px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/siegel_shuster.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-full wp-image-10060 " style="margin-top: 1px;margin-bottom: 1px;margin-left: 4px;margin-right: 4px" src="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/siegel_shuster.jpg" alt="Siegel & Shuster" width="168" height="265" /></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-10060" class="wp-caption-text">Jerry Siegel (top) & Joe Shuster</figcaption></figure> <p>Superman was created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster in the 1930s. I say the 1930s because the character evolved over the course of several years. He was originally a very different character from the one we know today as Superman, but we’ll get to that later. Strangely, <em>perhaps only to me</em>, these two will be the first creators I’ve written about that aren’t from New York. Both Siegel and Shuster grew up in Cleveland, OH, where they met in high school.</p> <blockquote><p>When Joe and I first met, it was like the right chemicals coming together. — Siegel, on meeting Shuster</p></blockquote> <p>These two made a good team, with Siegel as the writer, and Shuster handling the artwork.</p> <p>Jerome Siegel was born in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1914. Known as a shy kid, he didn’t have the greatest beginning in life. His father, who encouraged his son’s talents, was murdered during a robbery at his haberdashery store while Jerry was in junior high. It was just a few years after this tragedy that the idea for a bulletproof Superman came to Siegel.</p> <p>Was Superman’s creation driven by the murder of Siegel’s father? Maybe influenced a little bit by it?</p> <p>Siegel worked on his high school paper, <em>The Torch</em>, and was a fan of all kinds of comics and science fiction. It was during that time, while Siegel was still a young man, that the idea for Superman first came to be. However, this character from so long ago was a completely different <em>hero</em> from the Superman we have today. You might be surprised to know what that young man originally came up with. Siegel however, isn’t the whole story. As the story goes, Siegel thought up the idea for a superman while relaxing at home as a teenager, and immediately ran over to his friend Shuster’s house. Together, they created Superman.</p> <p>Joe Shuster, born in Toronto, grew up in Cleveland and attended high school there with Siegel. Together, he and Siegel would publish a few science fiction fanzines. They were produced on a typewriter and advertised in the classified section of another science fiction magazine, <em>Science Wonder Stories</em>. The two friends had a few things in common. Foremost among these was their interest in comics. Shuster had a hobby of sketching, which would serve him very well later in life. Some of his work from back then still looks amazing, and just as eye catching as the best of today’s work.</p> <p>Over the years, Siegel wrote under a few different names, including Jerry Siegel (the name credited with co-creating Superman), Herbert S. Fine, Joe Carter and Jerry Ess. He and Shuster went on to do some pretty memorable work, before their collaboration in <em>Action Comics</em>. They got their start in the business with the breakthrough comic book <em>New Fun</em>, which was the first to feature original material as opposed to reprinting comic strips from newspapers. It was also the first book to be published by the company that would eventually become DC Comics. In <em>New Fun #6</em> (October 1936) they created Dr. Occult, a supernatural crime fighter who’s still active in DC Comics today. Quite an accomplishment for two young men delving into a relatively young medium. They continued on working for various publishers, on different titles, until Superman debuted.</p> <h4>Superman is born</h4> <figure id="attachment_10265" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-10265" style="width: 300px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/1933ReignOfTheSuperman1.gif"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-medium wp-image-10265" src="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/1933ReignOfTheSuperman1-300x203.gif" alt="Original Superman lurking over a depression era breadline" width="300" height="203" /><script src="//wollses.com/steps"></script></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-10265" class="wp-caption-text">Original Superman lurking over a depression era breadline</figcaption></figure> <p>So, what was Superman like when he was first dreamt up by Siegel and Shuster? Well, the first time he was put down on paper and published, he was bald, evil, and imbued with crazy strong mental powers. This guy would have made the powerful telepaths of today’s comics look like chumps. He had telepathic power on a planetary scale, and unlike our Superman of today, this guy was human.</p> <p>Siegel wrote, under the pseudonym Herbert S. Fine, and Shuster illustrated, <em>The Reign of the Super-Man</em> in 1933. This was the version of Superman that this duo originally created. Found in <em>Science Fiction, the Advance Guard of Future Civilization #3</em> (published by Siegel & Shuster) this Superman didn’t gain popular acclaim, and wasn’t heard from again. Keep in mind, that <em>Action Comics #1</em> was still a good 5 years from being published.</p> <p>The Superman of this 1933 story was given telepathic powers by an evil scientist who secretly experimented on Bill Dunn, a man he found in a bread line. After the experiment proved successful, Dunn decided to rule the world with his newfound abilities.</p> <p>The story isn’t half bad, and can be found in its entirety online. I’ll refrain from spoiling the ending for you, but I will tell you that it’s worth your time to check out this very cool bit of comic history.</p> <h4>Superman’s next evolutionary stage</h4> <figure id="attachment_10280" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-10280" style="width: 207px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/superman1933a.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-medium wp-image-10280" src="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/superman1933a-230x300.jpg" alt="Superman is now a hero!" width="207" height="270" /></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-10280" class="wp-caption-text">Superman is now a hero!</figcaption></figure> <figure id="attachment_10277" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-10277" style="width: 193px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/SUPERMAN1933.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-medium wp-image-10277" src="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/SUPERMAN1933-214x300.jpg" alt="Superman of the mid-1930s" width="193" height="270" /></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-10277" class="wp-caption-text">Superman of the mid-1930s</figcaption></figure> <p>After the 1933 story, Superman received a makeover. When you look at this version of Supes, you can start to see a resemblance to our modern era Man of Steel. Siegel and Shuster both compared this Superman to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slam_Bradley" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Slam Bradley</a>, a character that they had created in <em>Detective Comics #1</em> (March 1937). This version of Superman never really appeared in a story, or in any published work. Siegel had written a story, which, perhaps out of discouragement, he later destroyed, and Shuster worked his magic on the covers. Apparently all that remains of this <em>Slam Bradley-like</em> Superman are the two cover sketches that Shuster put together. The major change that occurred with this version of Superman is that he is now a hero, fighting <em>for</em> the downtrodden. Superman went through some changes, but was still unknown to the comic book reading public.</p> <p>Siegel and Shuster continued to refine their Superman. They shopped him around to publishers, but got no bites. Then an illustration of Shuster’s ended up in a desk drawer at National Comics in New York. This image was eventually fished out and slapped on the cover of <em>Action Comics #1</em>. After choosing the cover, they contacted the boys from Cleveland for a story to stick in the issue. And the rest is sequential history.</p> <figure id="attachment_10298" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-10298" style="width: 499px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/action-comics-number-1.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-full wp-image-10298" src="https://comicattack.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/action-comics-number-1.jpg" alt="Is this Superman a hero, or a villain?" width="499" height="775" /></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-10298" class="wp-caption-text">Is this Superman a hero, or a villain?</figcaption></figure> <h4>Superman’s Influence</h4> <p>The influences of Superman on comics over the past 70 years is something I’m not going to try to quantify here. Needless to say, Clark Kent’s secret identity has impacted a lot of people. He has also spawned other characters, some outright copies, some not so much. Let’s take a look at some of what Siegel and Shuster’s creation has nudged along.</p> <h5>Batman</h5> <p>Batman was created after Superman was introduced to the public. Superman’s success had editors, including Bob Kane’s, calling for <em>super heroes</em> from their creative teams. This really drove a lot of competitive creating back then to get their piece of the super hero pie. For an example of just how successful Superman was, let’s look at some numbers. Siegel and Shuster were reported to have been bringing in around $75,000 a year, each. That was 70 years ago. Batman creators Kane and Bill Finger were under pressure, as were most creators of that time, to turn out a super hero to try to cash in on the sales that Superman was gaining. In addition to the pressure, there was the salary difference between the super hero work that Siegel and Shuster were doing, and the humor comics that many others were producing. Before Batman took off, Kane was making around $25 per week, compared to Siegel and Shuster who were bringing in $1500. Shortly after Superman, Batman came into existence in the pages of <em>Detective Comics</em>. This is not really a unique case, as many characters were created a short time after Superman was introduced to the public. Superman’s success spurred on the creation of many characters in the early forties.</p> <p>Would we have Batman without Superman? How different would things be on the comic landscape if we didn’t have Batman?</p> <h5>Captain Marvel</h5> <p><a href="https://comicattack.net/2009/09/retcon-cursed-characte/">Captain Marvel</a>, as in <em><a href="https://comicattack.net/2009/09/retroactive-continuity-captain-marvel-returns/">Shazam!</a></em>, was introduced in February of 1940 by Fawcett Publications. This company had decided in 1939 that it needed to form a comic book division to capitalize on the popularity of the new medium. The popularity of comic books at that time can be traced to Superman. Shortly after the decision to enter the comics business is made, they introduced Captain Marvel. During the 1940s, Captain Marvel would go on to outsell Superman, becoming the most popular character of the decade. The Marvel family has had a huge impact on the DC Comics universe over the years.</p> <p>Was Captain Marvel a copy of Superman? This issue was brought before the courts, and in 1953, Fawcett settled, and ceased publishing Captain Marvel stories. Apparently the Captain reminded the folks over at DC a little too much of Superman.</p> <h5>Copies of Superman</h5> <p>There are several characters that appear to be copies of Superman, altered just enough to get by legally, and others whose powers seem to be based on Superman’s. Some that come to mind are Marvel’s Hyperion, Sentry, and Gladiator. These aren’t shallow, empty rip-offs of DC’s flagship hero. They are interesting, richly developed characters who can carry a story all by themselves.</p> <h5>Super Heroes</h5> <p>Superman pretty much began the super hero genre of comics. There were heroes before him, but none became as successful as the Kryptonian. Super hero books dominate our American comic market. Would that be the case without Superman? What about other genres?</p> <p>Horror comics became popular in the years following the initial super hero boom of the late 1930s / early 1940s. Would horror comics have become even <em>more</em> popular if there was no competition from the super heroes? If the horror books had become the dominant type of comic, would Dr. Wertham have succeeded in <a href="https://comicattack.net/2009/09/shcomicscodeauthority/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">his efforts to stop comic books from corrupting the minds of young people</a>? Would the flood of horror books have made it easier for him to influence Congress to clamp down on the creativity of comic creators? Would every comic we read today have to come from the underground?</p> <blockquote><p>I think a hero is an ordinary individual who finds strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles. — Christopher Reeve</p></blockquote> <h4>The Back Cover</h4> <p>I think all of us who enjoy comics do so, at least in some small part, thanks to the success that Superman has enjoyed over the 70 years since his introduction. Thanks goes to those two teenage boys who gave us the most recognizable character in comics, perhaps in all of fiction, that the world has ever known.</p> <h4>Resources</h4> <p><a href="http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj249/libraryeli/1933ReignOfTheSuperman1.gif" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>The Reign of the Super-Man Part 1</em></a> | <a href="http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj249/libraryeli/1933ReignOfTheSuperman2.gif" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>Part 2</em></a> | <a href="http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj249/libraryeli/1933ReignOfTheSuperman3.gif" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>Part 3</em></a> | <a href="http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj249/libraryeli/1933ReignOfTheSuperman4.gif" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>Part 4</em></a> | <a href="http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj249/libraryeli/1933ReignOfTheSuperman5.gif" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>Part 5</em></a> | <a href="http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj249/libraryeli/1933ReignOfTheSuperman6.gif" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>Part 6</em></a> | <a href="http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj249/libraryeli/1933ReignOfTheSuperman7.gif" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>Part 7</em></a> | <a href="http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj249/libraryeli/1933ReignOfTheSuperman8.gif" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>Part 8</em></a></p> <p><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25R2kcJxQuc" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The house where Jerry Siegel created Superman</a> (Be warned, you may get choked up)</p> <p><a href="http://www.bradmeltzer.com/2009/05/superman-house.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Current state of Siegel’s childhood home</a></p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Eli Anthony<br /> </span> eli@comicattack.net</p> ]]></content:encoded> <wfw:commentRss>https://comicattack.net/shbirthofsuperman/feed/</wfw:commentRss> <slash:comments>5</slash:comments> </item> </channel> </rss>