Saturday 23 May 2015

DC Spotlight: Action Comics #289 (1962)



Action Comics #289 (DC Comics)

Various (w) & (a)

This issue of Action Comics was published way back in 1962 before I was a comic reader (my earliest memories are around the 1965 mark) and contain the charming all-ages Superman (and Supergirl) stories that are representative of the "silver age" of comics that I grew up with.

The first adventure starring Superman pits both the hero himself and his alter ego Clark Kent against a practical joker plaguing the offices of the Daily Planet. Starring the usual supporting cast of Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen and Perry White the pals have to deal with the spoilt brat of a son of one of the Planet's shareholders a certain Dexter Willis.

One of his pranks with a hair cutter raises the periods Lois Lane's suspicions that Clark is Superman. Fear not Clark gets out of this and  the joke eventually ends up on the prankster.

It was the second story starring Supergirl that is featured on the cover.

Supergirl decides Superman should have some romance and tries to set him up with various women from across time and space despite her foster parents warning she should not interfere. A romantic tragedy ensues.

What also got my attention was a letter to the Editor (Letters pages are mostly a thing of the past these days more's the pity) from Andy Golub bemoaning the fact Supergirl's existence had been revealed to the world. Originally she had been "hidden" as a potential "secret weapon" in case of an emergency. However this chap was in a minority and Supergirl became a major character in the DC universe until her death in Crisis on Infinite Earths in 1985.

 

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