Welcome to our re-read of the first and greatest superhero team in comics ... and quite a bit more!
My plan is to re-read and discuss the Golden Age Justice Society of America, which ran from All-Star Comics #3 (Winter 1940) to All-Star Comics #57 (February-March 1951), and is currently being reprinted in DC's "DC Finest" line.
But, as ever, I am consumed by context. What events brought us to All-Star Comics #3? What characters did editor Sheldon Mayer and writer Gardner Fox have available from which to choose? What else was competing in the superhero space? To achieve that context, I plan to start the discussion at the publisher's beginning, when Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson launched National Allied Publications Inc. in 1935. That was the first step toward the Justice Society — and to DC Comics as we know it today.
So before we even get to the JSA, I'll re-read and open for discussion all the solo stories starring JSA members, mostly from DC's Archives and Famous First Edition series. Which is actually quite a lot! (Although not as much as I'd prefer. I want it ALL!) I'll be writing about non-JSA superheroes created by National, Detective Comics Inc. and All-American Comics Inc. too, like Crimson Avenger and Doctor Occult. I'll also be tipping my hat to some non-powered characters, principally those who managed to appear outside their parent title, like Slam Bradley and Hop Harrigan. That means no re-read for the likes of "Bart Regan, Spy" and "Speed Saunders." Sorry, fellas, but I had to draw the line somewhere — before I found myself doing a deep dive into the history of Ginger Snap.
But I will be re-reading reprints, or availing myself of online information where reprints don't exist, of 14 of the 17 Golden Age characters who launched or appeared in All-Star Comics #3-57. Those characters include:
- The Atom: All-American Comics #19-46, 48-61, 70-72; All-Star Comics #3-26, 28-35, 37-57; Big All-American Comic Book; Flash Comics #80, 82-85, 87 89-95, 97-100, 102-104; Comic Cavalcade #22-23, 28; Sensation Comics #86.
- Black Canary: All-Star Comics #38-57; Comic Cavalcade #25; Flash Comics #86-88, 90-104.
- Doctor Fate: All-Star Comics #3-12, 14-21; More Fun Comics #55-98.
- Doctor Mid-Nite: All-American Comics #25-102; All-Star Comics #6 (text story), 8-57.
- The Flash: All-Flash #1-32; All-Star Comics #1-7, 10, 24-57; Big All-American Comic Book; Comic Cavalcade #1-29; Flash Comics #1-104, Flash Comics miniature (Wheaties)
- Green Lantern: All-American Comics #16-102; All-Flash #14; All-Star Comics #2-8, 10, 24-57; Big All-American Comic Book; Comic Cavalcade #1-29; Green Lantern #1-38.
- Hawkman: All-Star Comics #1-57, Big All-American Comic Book, Flash Comics #1-104, Flash Comics miniature (Wheaties).
- Hourman: Adventure Comics #48-83, All-Star Comics #1-7, New York World's Fair Comics [#2].
- Johnny Thunder: All-Star Comics #2-4, 6-35, 37-39; Big All-American Comic Book; Flash Comics #1-91; New York World's Fair Comics [#2]; World's Best Comics #1; World's Fair Comics #2-3; Flash Comics miniature (Wheaties).
- Mister Terrific: All-Star Comics #24, Big All-American Comic Book, Sensation Comics #1-63.
- Sandman: Adventure Comics #40-102, All-Star Comics #1-21, Boy Commandos #1, Detective Comics #76, New York World's Fair Comics [#1-2], World's Finest Comics #3-7.
- The Spectre: All-Star Comics #1-23, More Fun Comics #52-101, a single panel in More Fun Comics #51.
- Starman: Adventure Comics #61-102, All-Star Comics #8-23.
- Wildcat: All-Star Comics #24, 27; Big All-American Comic Book; Comic Cavalcade #1-2; Sensation Comics #1-90.
The obvious exceptions here are Superman, Wonder Woman and Batman. Superman and Batman, called "honorary members" in the text, appeared twice in All-Star Comics, but I don't plan to re-read all their adventures from 1938 to 1951. They are peripheral at best to the Golden Age JSA, and would overwhelm the discussion through sheer volume. This problem extends to Wonder Woman as well, who appears in four titles in the Golden Age (Sensation Comics, Wonder Woman, Comic Cavalcade, All-Star Comics). I'll re-read and report on her JSA adventures, but like Batman and Superman, I'll just note her solo stories in passing with a summary that I'll grab somewhere online. That will keep the discussion abreast of any major developments, like new supervillains, in Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman stories.
Here are their appearances that are concurrent with All-Star's run:
- Batman: All-Star Comics # 7 (cameo), 36; Batman #1-63 (February-March 1951); Batman 3-D #1; Detective Comics #1-169 (March 1951); New York World’s Fair Comics [#2]; World’s Best Comics #1, World’s Fair Comics #2-50 (February-March 1951).
- Superman: Action Comics #1-154 (March 1951); All-Star Comics #7 (cameo), 36; New York World’s Fair [#1-2]; Superman #1-69 (March-April 1951); Superman 3-D #1; Superman at the Gilbert Hall of Science; Superman Miniature; World’s Best Comics #1; World’s Fair Comics #2-50 (February-March 1951).
- Wonder Woman: All-Star Comics #8, 11-22, 24-57; Big All-American Comic Book; Comic Cavalcade #1-29; Sensation Comics #1-102; Wonder Woman #1-46 (March-April 1951).
Fortunately, Jeff of Earth-J is already doing a re-read of the Golden Age Superman. Jeff isn't doing a re-read of all Batman books, but he is compiling "The Greatest Joker Stories Ever Told," by which he means "all of them." Recently he's begun re-reading other major Bat-villains, which he discusses in Batman vs. Penguin, Riddler — Prince of Puzzles, The Crimes of Two-Face and Catwoman: Nine Lives of a Feline Fatale.
I should note that my methodology changed over time, as realities required. For instance, I initially lumped books together by monthly cover date, but complications ensued for books without them, like quarterlies and one-shots. As the number of quarterlies and their importance increased, I ended up going by on-sale dates as the primary organizational tool. (Which aren't available for all books, but that's a lesser devil than chronologically misplacing Batman or All-Star Comics). Initially I only included mention of others strips in anthology books if they were of some importance, like Slam Bradley, but eventually I started including all of them. Here and there I would try to improve the format. And so forth. In some imaginary "someday" I'll go back through and make them all consistent.
I've tried to be comprehensive, relying on a variety of sources, from online to reprints to "companion" books. A tip of the cowl to a Luke Blanchard post in what amounts to an outline for this discussion. But I'm sure I've left out tons, especially stories I don't have or can't find, which may be at hand in your collection. I hope folks will do re-reads of stories I've left out, as well as comment on what I've written. So let's hear what I've missed Legionnaires — and what you think!
Replies
Al is shown working as a clerk in a jewelry store in All-Star Comics #8. I don't know if that counts, since it's not by his regular writer. But it would indicate that Gardner Fox didn't think he was rich!
I'm not sure Fox, or anyone else, gave Al Pratt much thought until his post-war upgrade.
NOVEMBER 18, 1941
January 1942
Cover by Howard Sherman
Doctor Fate
Untitled is by Gardner Fox and Sherman (10 pages)
Where I Read It: Golden Age Doctor Fate Archives Vol. 1 (2007)
It's Magic!
I thought Fate was Superman-Lite now, and he does beat up a bunch of crooks while making wisecracks. But also in this issue:
The telepathic bit comes to us from the full-helmet days, but it was only used when it was convenient for the plot. When inconvenient, Inza would, I suppose, just forget she could do it.
The Spectre
Untitled by Jerry Siegel and Bernard Baily (10 pages)
Clarice confronts Jim as he leaves work, but he says they can't reconcile for a reason he can't divulge. We've seen this scene a few bajillion times, but this time is different. Jim suggests they meet the next day to talk it over, and they will — with a surprising outcome.
Percival Popp overhears, as he is hiding in a tree, listening. As you do. Popp follows Corrigan home and again suggests they team up, but Corrigan brushes him off. Popp waits outside Corrigan's house (this is called stalking) when Gat Chenney, an escaped killer with a grudge against Corrigan, arrives. They fight, and Spectre hears the ruckus. He captures Chenney, and leaves Popp on another planet overnight so he can have a pleasant, uninterrupted evening. Popp is convinced he imagined it all, and tells Spectre he and Corrigan will arrest him someday.
Popp tries to reconcile Clarice and Jim, to ingratiate himself with Corrigan. He watches as Armand, who is painting Clarice's portrait (it's good to be rich!), performs some magical ritual. Then he follows the artist, and sees him throw a metal figurine into the river. He tells Corrigan, and when Clarice falls ill, Spectre discovers her life force is in the painting. He races to the figurine, which is important for reasons, but Popp is ahead of him and is diving right where Corrigan's body is. Spectre calls to The Voice, who gives him the power to revive Jim Corrigan. Corrigan comes back to life and swims to the surface with the figurine. Armand arrives, and Corrigan arrests him. For .. painting? Hanging out at the dock? Having a French name? Throwing things in the river? Littering, that must be it.
Where I Read It: Online.
Fun Fact: It's clearly explained that even though Corrigan is alive, he still has all his supernatural powers. He's just not a ghost any more.
Continuing: Green Arrow, Radio Squad, Aquaman, Johnny Quick, Clip Carson.
Doctor Fate needed a few tricks to compensate for his lack of x-ray vision, super-speed and true invulnerability. He couldn't be a complete Superman clone.
I wonder if he would have worked without that clunky half-helmet!
Jim Corrigan being alive again takes some of the uncomfortable, taboo and possibly even blasphemous aspects of the feature.
I think you should start a counter on how annoying Percival Popp gets before the Spectre turns him into wood and runs a chainsaw through him!
The little I've seen of him makes the Three Dimwits look like the Three Musketeers!
I've always wondered where this business of heroes acquiring comedy sidekicks came from. It makes no sense to me.
It feels like a cowboy/Western trope transferred to the superhero.
It feels like a cowboy/Western trope transferred to the superhero.
That sounds right to me, which immediately made me wonder if Westerns swiped it from some other, maybe even earlier, genre. (As a genre, Westerns are only about 140 years old.)
I got to thinking. Knights had squires, Robin Hood had Little John (or Alan-a-Dale), Mandrake had Lothar, Errol Flynn had Alan Hale, Buz Sawyer had Wash Tubbs, Don Quixote had Sancho Panza, The Scarlet Pimpernel had Sir Ffoulkes, Sherlock Holmes had Watson. The Marx Bros. were the stars of their movies as far we're concerned, but they often did their routines outside of the plot, which was usually about a straight man/romantic lead getting the girl, making them technically comedy relief. (I know I'm not alone in fast-forwarding through the Zeppo scenes.) Michael Moorcock's Eternal Champion always had an Eternal Sidekick. Wasn't Porthos somewhat a comedy relief character in Three Musketeers? (I'm asking because I haven't read it.)
Not all of these are strictly funny sidekicks, and some of them may have taken inspiration from Westerns, but the idea of some kind of companion or comedy relief for the dashing hero seems imbedded in the adventure fiction construct. Did Joseph Campbell ever talk about this?
I know I'm not alone in fast-forwarding through the Zeppo scenes.
Zeppo was my favourite Marx brother. I wonder what that says about me?
Pardon me while I have a strange interlude!
Growing up, Zeppo Marx fascinated me. Beyond being their brother, it was like he had no business being in those early films. He had no hook, no gimmick, he was good-looking (at least compared to the others) and he could sing passably.
All the Four Marx Brothers' films were originally Broadway plays. I wonder if Zeppo did anything different on stage than in its movie version? Perhaps he had something that just didn't translate to film?
One explanation I've heard is that Zeppo was the link between the surreal characters played by his brothers and the "real: characters played by the other actors.
I've always wondered what the fifth brother, Gummo, who didn't make it into films, was like.
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