#fun fact: one of the owners of Ben and Jerry’s has a condition where he can’t smell or taste anything | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

thecomicsnexus · 6 years ago

Text

Superman, Champion of the Oppressed

ACTION COMICS #1 JUNE 1938 BY JERRY SIEGEL, JOE SHUSTER, HOMER FLEMING, FRED GUARDINEER, RUSSELL COLE, SVEN ELVEN, WILL ELY, KEN FITCH AND BERNARD BEILY

CONTEXT

So if you have been reading my reviews for the Golden Age (in fact, pre-golden age), you know that what we now know as DC was publishing three books. More Fun Comics, New Adventure Comics and Detective Comics. Technically speaking, Detective Comics was being published by the namesake company (Detective Comics Inc) and the other two by Wheeler-Nicholson. Problem was that Nicholson found out the hard way that comic-books were a bad business and ended up broke (to be honest, he didn’t pay the artists well enough, considering how much these artists could get from syndicated jobs, this could be considered a reason for those artists for not selling him the best creations). So his books ended up on Detective Comics hands. And now it was time for a fourth book, one not focused on funnies or mysteries, but on action.

It is important to clarify that Superman wasn’t the first action hero. And he was certainly not the first hero with powers or a secret identity (Zorro and Shadow could be considered inspirations for the character). But he is, definitively the first super-hero.

Now, if you read More Fun Comics, Adventure Comics and Detective Comics up to this point, you will notice that the stories are so-so and the art is not always easy to understand. The jump from comic strips to comic books was still not polished. There were incremental changes to these, like more pages per issue to each feature, and an increase in quality that was probably more than enough for the time (and cost). But when you read Action Comics #1, the Superman feature alone is mesmerizing. It’s like nothing you could have read before. There is a lot of quality to it, and it certainly doesn’t underestimate the readers. Funny enough, it wasn’t the intention of Siegel and Shuster to publish this story through National, and National Comics wasn’t sure about publishing the feature either. It was a hate-hate situation.

Action Comics was started by publisher Jack Liebowitz. The first issue had a print run of 200,000 copies, which promptly sold out, although it took some time for National to realize that the "Superman" strip was responsible for sales of the series that would soon approach 1,000,000 a month. Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster were paid $10 per page, for a total of $130 for their work on this issue. Liebowitz would later say that selecting Superman to run in Action Comics #1 was "pure accident" based on deadline pressure and that he selected a "thrilling" cover, depicting Superman lifting a car over his head. Christopher Knowles, author of Our Gods Wear Spandex: The Secret History of Comic Book Heroes, compared the cover to Hercules Clubs the Hydra by Antonio del Pollaiolo.

In January 1933, Jerry Siegel wrote a short prose story titled "The Reign of the Superman", which was illustrated by his friend Joe Shuster and self-published in a science fiction magazine. It told the story of a bald villain with telepathic powers. Trying to create a character they could sell to newspaper syndicates, Siegel re-conceived the "superman" character as a powerful hero, sent to our world from a more advanced society. He and Shuster developed the idea into a comic strip, which they pitched unsuccessfully.

National Publications was looking for a hit to accompany their success with Detective Comics, and did not have time to solicit new material. Jack Liebowitz, co-owner of National Publications, told editor Vincent Sullivan to create their fourth comic book. Because of the tight deadline, Sullivan was forced to make it out of inventory and stockpile pages. He found a number of adventurer stories, but needed a lead feature. Sullivan asked former coworker Sheldon Mayer if he could help. Mayer found the rejected Superman comic strips, and Sullivan told Siegel and Shuster that if they could paste them into 13 comic book pages, he would buy them.

Comics Buyer's Guide estimated in 2012 that only 50 to 100 original copies of Action Comics #1 exist.

Action Comics #1 has set several sales records for comic books. On February 22, 2010, a copy of Action Comics #1 CGC Grade 8.0 sold at auction for US$1 million, becoming the first million-dollar comic book. The sale, by an anonymous seller to an anonymous buyer, was through the Manhattan-based auction company ComicConnect.com. On March 29, 2010, ComicConnect.com sold another copy for US$1.5 million, making it the most expensive and most valuable comic book of all time. The copy sold is the third highest-graded copy from the CGC, which stands at 8.5 VF+ grade.

As of 2011, there were six known Comic Guaranty LLC (CGC)-graded copies with a grade above VG (CGC 4.0), with only one issue having the grade of VF/NM (CGC 9.0) at that time. EC and Mad publisher William Gaines, whose father was also a comic book publisher and had business dealings with DC Comics at the time Action Comics #1 was published, claimed in a Comics Journal interview that he at one point had dozens of copies of the issue around his house, but they were probably all thrown out. Another copy, rated CGC 5 ("Very Good/Fine"), was discovered in July 2010 by a family facing foreclosure on their home while packing their possessions. Estimated by ComicConnect.com to sell as high as $250,000, the comic fetched $436,000 at auction, saving the family's home.

One copy was stolen from American actor Nicolas Cage, an avid comic book collector, in 2000 (this is a story on itself). In March 2011, it was found in a storage locker in the San Fernando Valley and was verified by ComicConnect.com to be the copy sold to him previously. Cage had previously received an insurance payment for the item. A copy which sold for $2.16 million on November 30, 2011 through ComicConnect.com is believed to have been this same one, having been noted as stolen in 2000 and recovered in 2011. The Hollywood Reporter mentioned in its March 23, 2012 issue that a movie was in development based on the theft of Cage's copy of the comic book and would be titled Action No. 1. The screenplay was a spec script written by Reno 911! creators Robert Ben Garant and Thomas Lennon and sold to Lionsgate. They will produce along with Peter Principato and Paul Young.

A CGC 9.0-graded comic, with white pages, was auctioned for sale on eBay in August 2014. The seller Darren Adams, a comic book store owner in Federal Way, Washington, had purchased the issue from the estate of a man who had originally bought the issue from a newsstand on its release in 1938. The original buyer lived in high altitudes in West Virginia and stored the comic in a stack with others, which provided the optimal "cool, dry and dark" conditions that lent well to a comic's age, according to Adams. The comic changed hands twice prior to the auction; first sold as part of an estate sale when the original purchaser died forty years after its publication, and then to a third person who held the comic for about thirty years. Some years prior to the auction, Adams was contacted by this third person, and seeing the pristine condition of the comic, purchased it for a "seven figure sum". He held onto the comic for a few years before deciding to sell it, keeping the existence of it otherwise a secret, even rejecting a $3 million offer to buy the comic outright. On his decision to sell, he opted to use eBay instead of other comic auction houses like Heritage House, believing the auction site would reach a wider audience and was a better fit for the pop culture nature of the piece. After discussions with the site, Adams and eBay also arranged to donate 1% of the sale to the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, reflecting on Christopher Reeve's role as Superman in motion pictures. The auction ended on August 24, 2014 and sold for over $3.2 million. This was the highest value ever paid for a single issue of a comic book. The purchasers were Vincent Zurzolo and Stephen Fishler, the owners of Metropolis Collectibles; Zurzolo expected the value of the near-mint comic to continue to increase in time.

Ironically, the first thing you see when you open the comic book is this add telling you to basically shred the comic-book.

SYNOPSIS (FROM DC WIKIA)

As a distant planet is destroyed by old age, a scientist places his infant son in a space capsule and launches it toward Earth. The capsule is found by a passing motorist, who brings the baby to an orphanage, where the child astounds the attendants with his superhuman powers. The child, who is named Clark Kent, can jump over buildings, lift enormous weights, and run faster than a freight train. Furthermore, his skin is impenetrable. Realizing that he has powers far beyond normal humans, Clark dedicates himself to serve humanity as Superman, the champion of the oppressed.

Superman learns that an innocent woman named Evelyn Curry is to be executed for murder. He captures the real murderess, and delivers her, bound and gagged, to the governor's mansion. He breaks through the door to confront the governor, and convinces him to call off the execution at the last minute.

At the Daily Star, where Clark works as a reporter, he's given the assignment to cover the stories about a man with amazing strength named Superman. He hears a tip about a wife-beating, and rushes off to cover it -- then changes into Superman, and stops the man before he kills his wife.

Returning to the Daily Star, Superman asks fellow reporter Lois Lane out on a date; she accepts out of pity. A thug named Butch Mason tries to cut in while Clark and Lois are dancing. To protect his secret identity, Clark pretends to be a cowardly weakling. Convinced that Clark is a spineless worm, Lois slaps Butch and walks out. Enraged, Butch and his friends leave the club and take Lois prisoner. Superman spots them and gives chase, smashing the car with his bare hands. He picks Lois up into his arms and carries her to safety. She's astonished, and the next morning, she tells her editor about her experience with Superman -- although she's even more cold to Clark than before.

Clark is given an assignment to go to San Monte, a war-torn South American republic. First, he goes to Washington, D.C., where he spies a slick lobbyist, Alex Greer, trying to convince Senator Barrows to involve the US in a war with Europe. Superman grabs Greer, and demands to know who he's working for. Greer refuses to talk, so Superman jumps up to the top of the Capitol building, and threatens to smash Greer to the ground.

Several years ago, Charles Dawson owned the Circle-D Ranch near Red Gulch, Texas, and was killed in a range war. His son Chuck went to live on his uncle Dan's ranch in Wyoming. Chuck, now a man, decides to take up the fight against his father's killers who fraudulently took the land that was his birthright.

Chuck rides his horse, Blacky, into the town of Red Gulch and stops at the local dance hall to ask a few questions. As he approaches, the door suddenly flies open with a man calling himself Notch Logan running out and firing his pistol inside. Logan picks a fight with Chuck, swearing revenge after the newcomer bests him. After witnessing the brief fight, Red Gulch's sheriff tells Chuck to leave despite Chuck telling him of his business in town.

As Chuck eats at a local cafe, John Burwell, owner of the A-G Ranch, orders "Trigger" Holt to take Butch into town with him and kill Chuck. Holt reveals that Burwell's orders are to make the murder look like a fight as he and Butch arrive at the restaurant. As Chuck leaves, he bumps into "Trigger" who then draws his pistol. Chuck shoots the gun out of his would-be assailant's hand and subdues "Trigger" using "jiujitsu," not knowing Butch is lying in wait around the corner. Butch shoots, grazing Chuck's head, and knocking him out. The sheriff arrives and has the unconscious newcomer taken to jail.

When Chuck wakes up in his jail cell, he convinces the deputy to come over and a struggle ensues. Chuck takes the deputy's gun and orders him to unlock the cell. The deputy is then tied up and our hero finds his pistol in a table drawer. Just as he's about to leave, Chuck hears a footstep in the adjacent office.

Suspecting the Tigress to be behind a recent crime wave, Zatara and his assistant Tong contact Detective Brady upon learning of another robbery attempt. Late that night, Zatara and Tong silently board the train with Brady and Detective Brown. The train gets underway and soon enters a tunnel. After leaving the tunnel, Brown is shot and nearly falls, but is quickly saved by Tong. Determining the detective is only stunned, Zatara conjures a first aid kit for Tong to use as he continues forward. As the magician advances, he sees a dead Detective Brady being thrown out of a boxcar. The Tigress then sneaks up behind him and shoves him off of the train. Zatara uses his magic to float gently to the ground, landing in some underbrush next to the tracks.

The train continues on as Zatara walks back toward the freight yard where he finds Brady's body. After Tong warns the train's engineer, the train is stopped and the state police soon arrive to investigate. Brady is deemed guilty by State Police Captain Kennedy, but Zatara isn't convinced. Zatara then meets Train Inspector Babcock who accuses Zatara of being an accomplice to the train crimes. The master magician muses that Babcock is the key to solving the mystery. The police arrive and Zatara tells them that he'll capture the robbers and prove Brady's innocence.

With the train scheduled to depart at midnight, Zatara arranges for valuables to be distributed all over the train. Tong tells his master that he saw several "evil looking" men enter a shack. Zatara enters the shack and hypnotizes the men only for the Tigress to pistol whip him into unconsciousness, which breaks the hypnotic spell. The Tigress has a henchman douse the shack with kerosene and then leaves with the rest of her men to rob the train. Zatara wakes up and easily unties his bonds, escaping from the burning shack.

Teleporting his assistant to him, Zatara has Tong capture the crooked train inspector Babcock and take him to the police station. Flagging down an oncoming express train, Zatara convinces the engineer to catch up to the freight train. Eventually catching up, Zatara boards and dodges gunfire from the Tigress' henchman. Zatara returns fire using Babcock's pistol and hits the thug.

While a truck arrives to collect the boxes of valuables thrown off of the train, Zatara magically closes the boxcar door but is confronted by the Tigress. Quickly, the magician gestures and turns the femme fatale's pistol into a bullet. Enraged, the villainess leaps off of the train and vanishes.

Police arrive and arrest the remaining henchmen. Zatara tells Captain Kennedy how Babcock marked boxcars containing valuables for the Tigress. At the police station, Babcock confesses to the crimes.

Although the Tigress has escaped, the case is now closed. Zatara is eager to begin the search for his arch-foe but Tong wants to get some sleep before hunting anew.

In the year 1271, Marco Polo, his father, and his uncle set out from Venice to China. On the Armenian coast, an emissary asks that the group visit the pope at his home in Acre. The pope gives them instructions to travel to Tartary with priests and gifts. Again, the adventurers set out for the far reaches of Asia. The ship the men sail on is owned by a country at war with Babylon and is set upon by one of Babylon's warships. Luckily, our heroes escape to safety in an Armenian port. They ignore the warnings of Armenian nobles and continue their travels. After traveling through Turkey, they reach the port of Dora and continue on to the Karghar Pass. The porters are afraid of the savage tribes who inhabit the area and are only prodded to go on by the promise of more pay by the Polos. The party splits in two, with Marco in charge of one half and his father and uncle in the other. Marco's group hides in the hills, while the other group goes through the narrow mountain pass. The tribesmen swarm down from the hills, but Marco's men begin to roll boulders onto their foes.

Pep Morgan is fighting a boxing match against Sailor Sorenson. Sailor's manager, Doc Lowry, is a known cheat, and when it appears Sailor was losing, Doc covers his gloves in liniment. In the next round, Sailor swipes Pep in the eyes, blinding him. But Pep gets lucky on a blind swing and knocks Sailor out. After the fight, the police question Lowry, but the Doc removed the liniment already, so without any evidence, they allow him to walk free.

Months later, Pep and his manager, Pop Burkett, hear about Doc Lowry's new rising champion, Boomerang. Pep is suspicious of Doc using illegal methods to win those fights, so he and Pop buy tickets to watch Boomerang's next match. What starts out as a straightforward fight, suddenly turns odd when Boomerang's opponent begins acting groggy, as if he were drugged. One knockout later and Boomerang is the clear winner, though Pep smells a rat. The next fight will be against Pep himself, so Morgan and Pop return to the gym to get ready.

Later, before the big fight, Doc threatens Pep that he's been waiting for a chance to get back at him since he accused him of cheating. The bell rings, and Pep Morgan and Boomerang face each other in the ring. At first, everything is normal, but just a little after Boomerang lands a blow, Pep begins feeling woozy. Despite this, Pep wills himself to fight on. To Doc's surprise, Boomerang is hit with a knockout punch and goes down. Before Doc Lowry can make an escape, Pop intercepts him with two detectives blocking his way. He noticed that Doc had sewn a hypodermic needle into the gloves, which Boomerang would then use to dope his opponents. Lowry is taken away to prison.

Scoop Scanlon, ace reporter, wakes up his companion and photographer, Rusty, after receiving word of a scoop. Together, they drive over to the docks, where an international jewel-thief, by the name of Arnold, has been caught by authorities. Rusty focuses his camera, and then sees some suspicious men hanging out by the cargo crates. He points it out to Scoop, who notices the bulge in the men's coats look an awful lot like machine-guns. He circles around while the police, unsuspecting, escort Arnold to their patrol car. After a quick nod to the suspicious men, Arnold ducks to the ground as they pull out their tommy-guns. But they're taken off guard when Scoop tackles one of them from behind. The police officers spot Arnold's goons and open fire, taking down all but one, who escapes in a getaway car with his boss, Arnold. Of course, Rusty manages to hop onto the back of the car as it breaks away from the scene, clinging to the spare tire to keep himself from falling off.

Scoop and the police follow behind in their cars, until the police are blocked off by a truck being driven by more of Arnold's cronies. Scoop manages to get through, however, and continues the pursuit. Swerving to get beside Arnold's car, Scoop opens fire on the vehicle with a tommy-gun he recovered, bringing it to a halt. The police catch up and arrest Arnold and his man, while Scoop helps Rusty off the vehicles rear. Rusty takes a few good photos of Arnold being led away, while Scoop phones in the story he was just a part of.

Rusty mentions that he hopes the credit goes where it's due. After all, they never would have caught the car at all if he hadn't been poking holes in the fuel tank while he was hanging on...

Tex Thomson visits England and takes a stroll through the lush green country. He meets a young boy, Robert, who is fascinated by the cowboy life, and invites him along as a traveling companion. The two of them stumble upon a murdered man in the road. Robert goes to find the police while Tex stays behind.

Sonja, a nearby woman, encounters the scene and accuses Tex of the murder, forcing the cowboy to run from the sheriff. Secretly, he trails the girl, learning that Sonja is working with the killer and his gang. They have captured young Robert, the only witness to Tex's innocence!

Tex frees the boy and sends him for help. In the meantime, Tex finds himself captured. Robert returns in time to free Tex, but both men are still in danger from the gang, until the sheriff arrives to round them up.

REVIEW

So I kind of already reviewed the Superman story in this issue, but only because it was part of Superman #1 (my first ever review in this blog). And that was for the best, as the story as it was published in Action Comics was incomplete and made much more sense after having all the parts. I find the story very unique for the time. And even compared to today standards... it’s a pretty powerful story and characters. I mean, Lois Lane is pretty much the same character today!

Because at the time of publication, reporters were either detective characters or action characters, it makes sense for Clark Kent to be so active, and to be an actual reporter.

Speaking of action, the focus of the book is mostly right (there are still some mystery stories). The Zatara story could be considered as a mystery, but the fact that he decided to set the main part of the episode on a train, added the action required for the book.

The rest of the stories (apart from Superman and Zatara) are forgettable. But thanks to reprints and digital copies, have probably been read by more people than anyone could have ever imagined.

I found the quality in the art also much improved from Detective. The stories not so much. The Zatara story relies on magic, and it starts with a crystal ball telling him what the tigress will do. My guess is that crystal ball could have told them even more details, enough details to just put her in prison.

And what is the deal with Tong? is he a genie?

This issue is a milestone in history and it is considered the beginning of the golden age of comics. It is also the beginning of super hero comics (a.k.a. other publishers and creators, seeing how much Action Comics was selling thanks to Superman, started creating their own versions, some of them were sued by National).

I give this issue a score of 8

#joe shuster #jack adler #dc comics #comics #dc #review #national comics #1938 #superman #action comics #zatara #chuck dawson #golden age #zatanna

0 notes