How could Superman have been so popular in the 1950's?

[dekeuk]

I have often wondered how Superman could have been so popular during the 1950's when all other superhero titles other than Batman and Wonder Woman had been cancelled by the early 1950's. How could there have been no interest in superheroes from 1950 to 1955, and yet Superman's popularity continued to grow throughout that same time frame?

 

Superman was going strong throughout the early 1950's, long before Flash showed up in Showcase #4 in 1956, which began the revival of the superhero genre

 

By 1958 Superman (or Superboy) were appearing in 7 titles regularly including

 

1. Superman

2. Action

3. World's Finest

4. Superboy

5. Lois Lane

6. Jimmy Olsen

7. Adventure (as Superboy)

 

 

And by 1960 he had a leading role in an 8th title Justice League of America

 

Was it the fact there was a Superman TV show that made the difference?

 

And how can there be such intense interest in Superman but no interest in all the other superheroes after about 1950?

 

 

 

 

 

[VintageComics]

Because DC squashed Captain Marvel with a law suit in the late 1940's. Had they not won that legal battle Captain Marvel would have put Supes out of business. Up until then CM was the big ticket for kids.

 

 

[Currin Comics]

Because DC squashed Captain Marvel with a law suit in the late 1940's. Had they not won that legal battle Captain Marvel would have put Supes out of business. Up until then CM was the big ticket for kids.

 

 

 

Was it Fawcett that had the CM title???

[dekeuk]

Because DC squashed Captain Marvel with a law suit in the late 1940's. Had they not won that legal battle Captain Marvel would have put Supes out of business. Up until then CM was the big ticket for kids.

 

 

 

Yeah, I know CM was bigger than Supes at one time.

 

But this does not explain the cancellation of every superhero title not Captain Marvel related by 1950. Let's face it, there was no interest in superheroes from 1950 to 1955 .......... except for huge interest in Superman

 

 

 

 

[adamstrange]

Because DC squashed Captain Marvel with a law suit in the late 1940's. Had they not won that legal battle Captain Marvel would have put Supes out of business. Up until then CM was the big ticket for kids.

 

Fawcett shut down after they lost the lawsuit in 1953 so I really don't think their success or failure would have made a difference. The 1950s Superman TV show would have been a significant factor in the continued success of the character.

[comicdonna]

Since 1938 Superman has been popular. I believe his popularity in the 50's stems back to his first appearance in Action #1 with a bonus of being the start of the superhero in comics.

[goldust40]

Superman's staying power during the '50s would be attributed to his multimedia presence and the fact that by then he had become a pop culture icon (before the term was coined). There'd already been the radio show, the newspaper strips and the Max Fleischer cartoons, and the T.V. show was about to become a fixture on America's screens at this point as well.

 

Whilst nearly all other publishers had taken the alternative genre route from 1950 onwards, DC, like Dell, had maintained a far more family-oriented line (that was hardly affected in the post-code cull) that appealed to a wider (or rather younger) and less discerning demographic. Couple that with their eventual legal triumph over their serious rivals after a decade of litigation, and the 1950s super-hero fan had little choice but to opt for Supes, Batman and their range of spin-off titles.

 

Which doesn't quite explain Wonder Woman's survival during this era (Batman had had radio and T.V. shows like Superman, and was also as culturally significant).

[jools&jim]

 

I think the content and tone of the Mort Weisinger-era issues in particular also had a lot to do with it. Some of the stories and conceits may seem silly by today's standards, but Weisinger and his writers nevertheless managed to craft, codify, and maintain a more-or-less consistent mythos for the character at a time when such things were the exception and not the rule. And stuff like The Phantom Zone, the Fortress of Solitude, Kandor, Brainiac, etc., were just plain cool. Even those goofy, love-'em-or-hate-'em "imaginary" stories contributed to the net effect, precisely because they underscored and validated a continuity (however loose) which they routinely and gleefully violated...

[TheWatcher]

Superman's staying power during the '50s would be attributed to his multimedia presence and the fact that by then he had become a pop culture icon (before the term was coined). There'd already been the radio show, the newspaper strips and the Max Fleischer cartoons, and the T.V. show was about to become a fixture on America's screens at this point as well

 

And the movie serials, too. The TV show ran from '51-'58, and was scheduled to be picked up for the '59 season. The show was a big hit and translated to more comic book sales, same as the Batman TV show in '66 increased popularity and sales for that character.

[goldust40]

I think the content of the Weisinger-era issues in particular also had a lot to do with it. Some of the stories and conceits may seem silly by today's standards, but Weisinger and his writers nevertheless managed to craft, codify, and maintain a more-or-less consistent mythos for the character at a time when such things were the exception and not the rule. And stuff like The Phantom Zone, the Fortress of Solitude, Kandor, Brainiac, etc., were just plain cool; even those goofy, love-'em-or-hate-'em "imaginary" stories contributed to the net effect, precisely because they underscored and validated the continuity (however loose) which they routinely and gleefully violated...

 

Agreed - Weisinger certainly understood what Superman's readership would be interested in, introducing cod- sci-fi elements and the ever- expanding Superman family that inevitably ended any credibility the series may have had. His legacy cast a long shadow over the franchise as it gradually stagnated over the ensuing decade(s). Despite that the series would not have thrived the way it did without his input.

[rodan57]

They could be read and enjoyed by very young children. Parents could see the books are wholesome entertainment.

[adamstrange]

 

Which doesn't quite explain Wonder Woman's survival during this era

DC's rights to Wonder Woman are, evidently, contingent upon continuous publication. Otherwise, they would revert back to William Marston.

[Silent Master]

Which doesn't quite explain Wonder Woman's survival during this era (Batman had had radio and T.V. shows like Superman, and was also as culturally significant).

 

HELLO??? Half-dressed woman fighting crime - tying men up with a golden lasso - from an island of beautiful women... how could she not be popular!

[stevescu1]

Which doesn't quite explain Wonder Woman's survival during this era (Batman had had radio and T.V. shows like Superman, and was also as culturally significant).

Aside from appearing on the Superman radio show, Batman never had his own radio show (a pilot was made though), but he had a few serials.

 

I don't know for sure, but I think with Wonder Woman if they would have stopped publishing her at that time they would have lost the rights.

 

I'm pretty sure by 1950 Superman was outselling Captain Marvel as well. The Superman radio show was the #1 radio show among kids for most of the 1940s.

 

Theres a new book out called Flights of Fantasy and it is a history of the Superman radio and TV show and a great read for anyone who cares about those things.

[HouseofComics.Com]

Great thread. With the tv show running almost the whole decade, I think that's your answer. Plus limited competition and just a very popular concept.

 

I'm also going to toss in the Superman Club of America or whatever it was called. Ran for decades, had a big membership, had to help. Kind of the same way that by really pushing the subs, Dell could move millions of copies of WDCS. A booster shot.

 

Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman probably had the parent's choice factor too. If you were buying something for your child you probably went for the tried and true. Kind of like in the mid-60s when the kids probably preferred Marvel but moms and dads kept buying Superman.

[HouseofComics.Com]

Which doesn't quite explain Wonder Woman's survival during this era

DC's rights to Wonder Woman are, evidently, contingent upon continuous publication. Otherwise, they would revert back to William Marston.

 

Very interesting!

 

Let me toss in a factoid I learned today about early tv. Reading the Marvel Chronicles coffee table book, it said that a tv network actually had a discussion with Marvel about doing a sub-mariner tv show. !!!!! Obviously nothing came of it.

[tth2]

I think the content and tone of the Mort Weisinger-era issues in particular also had a lot to do with it. Some of the stories and conceits may seem silly by today's standards, but Weisinger and his writers nevertheless managed to craft, codify, and maintain a more-or-less consistent mythos for the character at a time when such things were the exception and not the rule. And stuff like The Phantom Zone, the Fortress of Solitude, Kandor, Brainiac, etc., were just plain cool. Even those goofy, love-'em-or-hate-'em "imaginary" stories contributed to the net effect, precisely because they underscored and validated a continuity (however loose) which they routinely and gleefully violated...

Excellent post! (thumbs u

[HouseofComics.Com]

Yeah, we should remember that at least to some extent Alien Batman was what the kids wanted then too. Just about every Batman fan I know finds those his least favorite but one guy I know who grew up with them just adores those over all others.

[dekeuk]

Yeah, we should remember that at least to some extent Alien Batman was what the kids wanted then too. Just about every Batman fan I know finds those his least favorite but one guy I know who grew up with them just adores those over all others.

 

 

Superman easily translated into the sci-fi genre that was so popular in the 1950's since he could fly and was from another planet.

 

Batman did not translate well to sci-fi but they certainly tried. This is probably what kept the Batman titles alive during the 1950's

 

But it still does not explain the cancellation of all the other superhero titles due to lack of interest by the public. How could the public have abandoned all the other superheroes such as Green Lantern, Flash, Sub-Mariner, Human Torch, Plastic Man, Atom, Hawkman, Captain America, etc. These were all GREAT characters but the public lost all interest in them by 1950, but at the same time, the popularity of Superman was reaching unprecedented heights.

 

That just does not make sense to me. Total lack of interest in all superheroes in the early 1950's ........... except for Superman who was HUGE.

 

 

[HouseofComics.Com]

I don't know if it's "unprecedented heights" for Superman, sales-wise. Michelle Nolan once wrote in CBG that it's easier to find Actions from the first hundred than the second hundred.