Not to be out-done by Superman’s nesting, Batman #12 (June 1942) continues to deepen the Batman mythos by offering two glimpses into how Bruce Wayne celebrates his mission against crime (which is really an excuse to adventure in tights, at this point): A Hall of Trophies and a detailed glimpse at the secret lair, which […]
Read More »
By Superman #17 (May 1942), Superman has built a “mountain sanctuary”, not-yet-called a Fortress of Solitude, but looking a hell of a lot like it. Here Superman puts the finishing touches on its construction.
Read More »
In Detective Comics #60 (December 1941), the Bat-Signal is used for the first time by the Gotham Police to summon Batman.
Read More »
Continuing my streak of hard-hitting investigative comic book journalism, is the elevator boy in Action Comics #38 (May 1941) the first true appearance of Jimmy Olsen? We have red hair, bowtie and green coat! At this point in history, Jimmy Olsen existed as a character in the Superman radio show for about a year and […]
Read More »
In Superman #11 (May 1941), it seems that Superman finally has the ability to defy gravity and truly fly. Brian Cronin debunks the myth that the Fleischer Superman cartoons were the first place Superman deliberately flew and he believes that Superman actually first flew in the comics in Superman #10 (March 1941). However, while inspecting […]
Read More »
In Batman #5 (April 1941), Batman and Robin drive a suped-up vehicle adorned with bat wing fins and a cowl, the official first version of the Batmobile!
Read More »
Although Batman #5 (April 1941), features another tale of Bat-silliness with dragons, giants and flying carpets, it also features a separate story in which Batman finds the near-lifeless body of Robin, beaten up by criminals. He experiences terrible feelings of rage and vengeance; a dramatic departure from his silent, mysterious, and almost dispassionate first year […]
Read More »
In Superman #10 (March 1941), Luthor appears bald for the first time in a comic book, joining a whole host of other evil bald geniuses who stalk comic book universes: Ultra-Humanite, Hugo Strange, Doctor Sivana. I talked about the history of Luthor’s baldness here.
Read More »
In All-Star Comics #4 (February 1941), the Justice Society of America goes to war against subversives and fifth-columnists… basically Nazis. This was the first adventure the team fought together (even though each character had his own mission that took up the bulk of the story).
Read More »
Joe Simon and Jack Kirby have their first hit with Captain America #1 (December 1940). Captain America is the first character to star in his own comic book, not as a try-out feature in another book, and comes complete with a fully-fleshed out (and interesting) origin, a sidekick and an iconic villain (the Red Skull) […]
Read More »