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30 in 30 - Day 21: Superman and J.F.K.

Started by Brandon Shepherd,

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Brandon Shepherd

Brandon Shepherd

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When the two most powerful men in the world met.

 

November 22, 2013 marks the fiftieth anniversary of the assignation of President John F. Kennedy. Kennedy inspired many in his time, including DC editor Mort Weisinger, who had the 35th President appear in a few Superman comics in the early 1960s. One such notable appearance of the President was in Action Comics #306 (Feb. 1964), featuring a story about Superman and Clark Kent having to appear alongside one another on live television. Clark Kent and Superman do make the appearance together, the final panels of the last page reveal J.F.K. disguised as Clark Kent, with Superman asking, "If I can't trust the President of the United States, who can I trust?" The cover was dated February, 1964, but was published in mid-November, 1963, hitting newsstands only days after Kennedy's untimely death. DC tried to recall the issue but could not pull copies in time, a sequel was halted.

 

Superman #170 (July 1964) featuring "Superman's Mission for President Kennedy!" was published with art by Al Plastino. The story was originally set to run in Superman #168 (cover date Apr 1964), the original art was also drawn by Curt Swan. The story, written by Bill Finger and E. Nelson Bridwell was about the president's campaign aimed at encouraging children to become physically fit. When the story was shelved after news of Kennedy's assignation, Swan's original art work was either given to Jackie Kennedy or lost, accounts on this are conflicting. Legend also has it that President Lyndon Johnson requested the story be run as a tribute, resulting in artist Al Plastino's art work being used for the published version. As a fan of comics and history, it's comics like these I find fascinating, these moments in history that are captured in a four-color time capsule.

 

In 2009 I had the chance to travel to Dallas, Texas for a few days with my father. We were not far from the site where history changed in 1963, I could even see the grassy knoll and book depository from our hotel room window, the street is also marked with two X's, marking the fatal shots. The book depository is now the Sixth Floor Museum, which my father and I visited, it was quite an experience. My father shared with me his memories of where he was when heard the news. The displays inside were fascinating, there were many photographs and objects on display. The area where Lee Harvey Oswold fired the shots are sealed off, leaving a display of that portion of the room as it was in 1963, there are even several boxes stacked to show Oswold's sniper's nest. What got to me the most were a few very large color photographs showing J.F.K. in the open limo, smiling and waving. Looking at these photos, I thought about how genuine his smile looked, this was not a fake politician smile, thinking about this and realizing that these pictures were taken only moments before his death was a somber experience. Not far from these photographs was an area where footage of the funeral was playing, with the flag draped casket lying in state inside the Capital building, because of this and the rest of the museum, I almost felt as if I was there on that day, making this an experience I'll never forget.

 

Brandon

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SW3D

SW3D

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Although not related to comic books, there was a book I read as a kid about the paranormal that always fascinated me. I can't remember the title of the book, but it was about a variety of paranormal things like hauntings, curses, spontaneous combustion, UFO's, Men in Black, and some of the strange coincidences/urban legends surrounding Abraham Lincoln and JFK: http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lincoln–Kennedy_coincidences_urban_legend

 

According to the book, hours after JFK was shot, Hawaii had some kind of earthquake or volcanic activity that caused this lava rock formation... it looks like the portrait of JFK. This image freaked me out! It just blew my mind when I read it! See pic: http://www.mnmuseumofthems.org/Faces/labels/JFK.html

 

SW3D

 

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Garlanda

Garlanda

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As a fan of comics and history, it's comics like these I find fascinating, these moments in history are captured in a four-color time capsule.

 

I, too, love the confluence of comics with real-world events. I've often considered requesting a set of comics that have an appearance by the President while that President was in office (thus ruling out weird Abe Lincoln, George Washington stories).

 

I submitted a raw Action 309 that came back a disappointing 6.5, but at least with a blue label. I've also picked up a Justice League of America 150 in 9.8. This issue came out in 1978, and a certain Georgia peanut farmer didn't even rate a mention on the cover!

732569.jpg

 

You touched on another topic that I also have found fascinating for years... even though most of the comics we discuss have come out in the last 20-50 years, there are still questions, mysteries, and information already lost to antiquity. We know more about Vincent van Gogh's body of work than we do DC Whitman variants. The assumption that "it's just funnybooks" has led to what we can now enjoy as a rich tradition with legendary lost classics...

Miracleman Triumphant

Miracleman 25

original Swamp Thing 88

Swamp Thing (1972 series) 25

just to name a few

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Brandon Shepherd

Brandon Shepherd

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Garlanda,

 

Off the top of my head I can recall a few comics that featured a President while in office, X-Men #136 with Jimmy Carter and X-Men #150 and Adventures of Superman Annual #1, both with Ronald Reagan. I remember a journal from Surfer99 about one of his Bronze Age X appearances featuring Richard Nixon.

 

I too have thought about how some of the publishing information has been lost to time, and how we may never really know who some of the artists were or who really created what character.

 

Brandon

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