Superheroes in American literature: Introductory part ( I )

A superhero is a type of character that has superhuman powers and, usually, is dedicated to justice, people and saving the planet. Superheroes appear mostly in comic books and they are dominant in American literature. Superheroes share a lot of common superhuman powers like flying, picking up very heavy and big objects, look through objects, read minds, spit fire and so on. The first superhero character is Superman created by American writer Jerry Siegal and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster, and it was published by DC Comics in 1938. This character was created as a challange for the modern era, to make people believe that a man can fly. And they succeded. Today, Marvel Characters Inc. and DC Comics share the ownership over the phrases "super hero" and "super heroes". 

About superheroes:

Well-known superheroes characters are Superman, Batman, Spiderman, Captain America, Captain Marvel, Plastic Man, Wonder Woman and Iron Man. They share extraordinary powers and abilities, unusual skills or advanced equipment. Superheroes are devoted to the people and are willing to rick their lives without expecting any reward, and have a motivation, such as strong belief in justice and humanitarian service (Superman), a sense of responsability (Spider-man), a formal calling (Wonder-woman) or a personal vendetta against criminals (Batman). Superheroes have a hidden identity to protect their families and friends from becoming a target for their enemies or to protect themselves from getting arrested, and they have one or more close friends or family members who know their secrets. They have  code names and use special costumes that represent themselves. Mainly, superheroes work independently. Depending on what they can do, they can have special equipment, also their enemies are, usually, almost the same in all fights. 

Althout superhero fiction is considered a form of fantasy/ adventure, it crosses into many genres. Within their fictional universe, public perception of superheroes varies greatly. 

About superhero comics:

Superhero comics is a form of American comic books. Superhero comics started with Superman in 1938 and since then, the number of superhero characters has raised. Superhero comics feature stories about superhuman powered characters and the universes these characters inhabit. Superheroes became popular in late '30s and early '40s. During the World War II they became stars. 

The first Action Comics was published in 1938, which featured a man with red cape and blue costume who was strong enough to fly with an automobile in his hands. That was "Superman", he came and he was the first character with superpowers much greater than a human being. In 941, the first superwoman was presented. Beautiful, stong and intelligent, Wonder Woman acquired her powers from gods and goddesses. She had bullet-proof bands and a magic, golden lasso. 

After that, appeared many other comic books with superheroes. Here is a short history of the comic books that appeared at that time:

1. One of the first American comic books, that came over 100 years ago, is "The Yellow Kid". It was the first printed comic magazine, published in 1896. 

2. After that, the "true" funny book that appeared was called "Funnies on Parade", in 1933. It was sold in over 10,000 printed copies. It was a succes, so M.C. Gaines continued to print comics.

3. The second comic book that M.C. Gaines published was "Famous Funnies: a Carnavals of Comics", in 1933. It was a 64 pages book, sold with only 10 cents. Because this book didn't bring any profit, they stopped publishing this book. 

4. In 1934, another series of  "Famous Funnies" was published. It had four pages and it was published twice a month through newsstands.

5. Another pre-Superman comic created by Elzie Segar, is "Popeye" in 1929. He was different than the others. He didn't had any spectaculous power, but he ate his spinach and got some extra muscles. 

6."New Fun: The Big Comic Magazine" was created in february of 1935 by Major Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson, who decided not to pay the fees for publishing it in the newspapers. It was published in a bigger size by National Allied Publications Inc.
7. "The Phantom" was the first costumed hero, he was created in 1936 by Lee Falk. Despite his human abilities, the hero was still fighting for the crimes that others comitted. 
8. In 1937 the first true DC comic book came out. "Detective Comics" was created by Major Malcolm Wheeler. The writer didn't had enough money to publish it so he had to collaborate with printer/ distribuitor Harry Donenfeld.

After 1938, the number of Superheroes increased. Superman, Batman, Wonderman and Wonderwoman, were the most famous of them. They appeared in many comic books in different views and situations because people loved them. They were interesting and different in they own ways so the writers could see the succes of writing them. 

More informations about the history of comic books here:  Click here