(June 1938)

DC, 1938 Series
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Price
0.10 USD
Pages
68
Indicia Frequency
monthly
On-sale Date
1938-04-18
Indicia / Colophon Publisher
Detective Comics Inc.
Link
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Action_Comics_1
Editing
Vin Sullivan (credited as Vincent A. Sullivan) (editor)

Issue Notes

Indicia:
ACTION COMICS. published monthly by Detective Comics, Inc., 480 Lexington Ave., New York, N. Y. Second class entry pending at Post Office, New York, N. Y. under the Act of March 3, 1879. Subscription rates: 12 issues by mail in the United States, its possessions and Mexico, South America and Spain, $1.50; elsewhere $2.60. The Publisher accepts no responsibility for unsolicited material. Entire contents copyright 1938 by Detective Comics, Inc.

The on-sale date is the publication date reported in the U. S. Copyright Office filing.

In the documentation for the testimony from Detective Comics, Inc. vs. Bruns (Fox) Publications April 6 and 7, 1939, the on-sale date for this issue is described by Jack Liebowitz as being April 18, 1938.

This is confirmed again in the documentation for the Siegel lawsuit against Warner Bros (CASE NO. CV-04-8400-SGL (RZx)) published on March 26, 2008; the on-sale date for this issue is listed as being April 18, 1938.

In a profile in the New York Daily News (27 June 1994), Tom DeAngelo claimed to have been the first to give color to Superman. However, in an interview in Comic Book Marketplace #33, Ed Eisenberg claimed to have originated the color scheme for Superman as an employee of Strauss Engraving Company, which did the coloring for DC at the time.

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents)

Superman / cover / 1 page (report information)

Pencils
Joe Shuster (see notes); ? (see notes)
Inks
Joe Shuster (see notes); ? (see notes)
Colors
Jack Adler ? (see notes); Ed Eisenberg ? (see notes)
Letters
typeset; ? (logo design, see notes)

Genre
superhero
Characters
Butch Matson; Rick Radomski; Superman [Clark Kent]
Reprints
Keywords
automobiles

Indexer Notes

In Alter Ego #56 (February 2006), in an interview with Adler, he reports that he painted the colors on the engraving plates for this story. Information added by Craig Delich.

Adler was employed by the Strauss Engraving Company, which was contracted to do the coloring and related work for DC at this time.

Error Report #2990 by Mike DeLisa states the following: "Cover was not by Shuster, actually by (an) unknown member of DC staff based on one interior panel. Coloring was not (done) by Jack Adler; Adler states that the work was done by DC staff. My source is the Court record and decision, which includes affidavits from Siegel, Shuster, and Adler." DeLisa states the colorist for the cover was Ed Eisenberg.

Superman/Batman (DC, 2003 Series) #41 (December 2007) identifies the bystander on the cover as Rick Radomski of Radomski Hardware. Though this takes place during a dream sequence, the name could be considered canon.

Conversely, the cover mimics a scene within the story. In the story, the owner of the car is Butch Matson, a gangster who threatens Lois Lane, and flees in panic from Superman's wrath in the same manner as depicted on the cover. Very likely the figure on the cover is meant to be Butch Matson.

Per Todd Klein's Facebook posting, Comics Logos A #1: ACTION COMICS on 1 January 2021, Ira Schnapp had been attributed in the past as the Action Comics logo designer, but Schnapp told Michael Uslan in the 1960s that he did not do it. The designer of the logo remains unknown.

$25 Cash Prizes! (Table of Contents: 1) (Expand) /

promo (ad from the publisher) / 1 page (report information)

[Superman Origin] (Table of Contents: 2)

Superman / comic story / 1 page (report information)

Script
Jerry Siegel (signed as Jerome Siegel)
Pencils
Joe Shuster (signed)
Inks
Joe Shuster (signed)
Colors
Strauss Engraving Company
Letters
Joe Shuster (sourced)

First Line of Dialogue or Text
As a distant planet was destroyed by old age, a scientist placed his infant son within a hastily devised space-ship, launching it toward Earth!
Genre
superhero
Characters
Superman [Clark Kent] (origin) (introduction)
Synopsis
A space vehicle from a destroyed world lands on Earth, and its occupant becomes Superman. In addition, a scientific explanation for this being's powers is given.
Reprints
Keywords
ants; grasshoppers; Krypton; Kryptonian rocket; train

Indexer Notes

This strip was originally prepared for newspaper publication, cut up, and re-paged. Black shading was used.

[The Coming of Superman] (Table of Contents: 3)

Superman / comic story / 11.67 pages (report information)

Script
Jerry Siegel
Pencils
Joe Shuster
Inks
Joe Shuster
Colors
Strauss Engraving Company
Letters
Joe Shuster ? (sourced)

First Line of Dialogue or Text
A tireless figure races thru the night seconds count... delay means forfeit of an innocent life.
Genre
superhero
Characters
Bea Carroll (antagonist) (introduction); Evelyn Curry; Alex Greer (antagonist) (introduction); Lois Lane (introduction, last name revealed in issue #2); Butch Matson (antagonist) (introduction); Senator Barrows (antagonist) (introduction); Superman [Clark Kent]; George Taylor (introduction, unnamed, see notes); Governor; Governor's butler
Synopsis
Superman delivers a witness to the governor to stop an execution, then stops a wife-beater. Later Superman, as Clark Kent, goes out with Lois, but she earns the wrath of Butch Matson and Superman must save her. Finally, Clark is assigned a story on the South American republic of San Monte. He heads to Washington DC to find out who is behind Senator Barrows pushing legislation which will embroil the United States in a war in Europe by grabbing lobbyist Alex Greer and scaring the truth out of him.
Reprints
Keywords
Daily Star; United States Capitol; Washington D.C.

Indexer Notes

Superman wears blue boots. The story continues in Action Comics (DC, 1938 series) #2 (July 1938).

Originally prepared for newspaper publication, cut up and re-paged, most probably by Joe Shuster. Vin Sullivan, Sheldon Mayer, and Harry Lampert are often cited as having done the paste-up work based on their own claims.

Black shading was used.

George Taylor was first named in the newspaper strip in May 1939.

[Action Comics] (Table of Contents: 4) (Expand) /

Superman / promo (ad from the publisher) / 0.33 page (report information)

[The A-G Gang] (Table of Contents: 5)

Chuck Dawson / comic story / 6 pages (report information)

Script
Homer Fleming ? (sourced)
Pencils
Homer Fleming (signed as H. FLEMING [currved H])
Inks
Homer Fleming (signed as H. FLEMING [currved H])
Letters
?

First Line of Dialogue or Text
When Charles Dawson, owner of the Circle-D Ranch is killed in a bloody Texas range war, his young son and only heir goes to live with an uncle, a horse raiser in Wyoming -
Feature Logo
"Chuck" Dawson
Genre
adventure; western-frontier
Characters
Chuck Dawson (origin) (introduction); Notch Logan (villain); John Burwell (villain); "Trigger" Holt (villain); Butch (villain); Dan Dawson
Synopsis
Chuck begins a vendetta aginst the crooked ranch owners who have, by fraud, acquired the range lands he inherited after his father's death.
Reprints
Keywords
American Old West; Red Gulch; Texas; Wyoming

Indexer Notes

Synopsis added by Craig Delich.

The Mystery of the Freight Train Robberies (Table of Contents: 6)

Zatara / comic story / 12 pages (report information)

Script
Fred Guardineer (signed)
Pencils
Fred Guardineer (signed)
Inks
Fred Guardineer (signed)
Colors
Strauss Engraving Company
Letters
Fred Guardineer ? (sourced)

First Line of Dialogue or Text
This is serious, Tong.
Feature Logo
Zatara, Master Magician
Genre
adventure; fantasy-supernatural; superhero
Characters
Tigress (antagonist) (introduction); Tong (introduction); Zatara (introduction); Detective Brown; Detective Brady (death); Captain Kennedy; Babcock (train inspector, villain); Monk (thug); Spike (thug)
Synopsis
Zatara and Tong investigate the murders of several railroad detectives and the theft of over $200,000 in loot.
Reprints
Keywords
freight train

Indexer Notes

Synopsis added by Craig Delich.

On the 11th page of this story, the text says Zatara transforms Tigress's gun into "a bullet," but the illustration shows a banana.

South Sea Strategy [Part 1] (Table of Contents: 7)

text story / 2 pages (report information)

Script
Vin Sullivan (credited as Captain Frank Thomas)
Pencils
? (spot illustrations)
Inks
? (spot illustrations)
Colors
Strauss Engraving Company
Letters
typeset

First Line of Dialogue or Text
For an instant, the sky to the west was splashed with all the vivid colors of nature's paint box.
Genre
adventure
Characters
Bret Coleman; Cottonball; Merna Newton; Samuel Newton; South Seas natives (villains)
Synopsis
Bret and Cottonball seek to rescue one Samuel Newton, whose daughter was carried off into the jungle by a pack of savage natives.
Reprints

Indexer Notes

Synopsis added by Craig Delich.

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 8)

Sticky-Mitt Stimson / comic story / 4 pages (report information)

Script
Russell Cole (signed as Alger)
Pencils
Russell Cole (signed as Alger)
Inks
Russell Cole (signed as Alger)
Colors
Strauss Engraving Company
Letters
Russell Cole ? (sourced)

First Line of Dialogue or Text
Beeg airplane!
Feature Logo
Sticky-Mitt Stimson
Genre
humor
Characters
Sticky-Mitt Stimson
Synopsis
Sticky swipes some apples and is pursued by the police. He gets a lucky break to make good his escape.
Reprints

Indexer Notes

Synopsis added by Craig Delich.

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 9)

The Adventures of Marco Polo / comic story / 4 pages (report information)

Script
?
Pencils
Sven Elven (signed)
Inks
Sven Elven (signed)
Colors
Strauss Engraving Company
Letters
Sven Elven (sourced)

First Line of Dialogue or Text
It's the year 1271.
Feature Logo
The Adventures of Marco Polo
Genre
historical; adventure
Characters
Nicolo Polo; Uncle Maffeo; Marco Polo; Niku
Synopsis
Marco, his father and his uncle are given an audience with the new Pope. They are sent on a mission to satisfy a request from the Khan of Tartary for priests and men of learning.
Reprints

Indexer Notes

Marco's uncle is named in Action Comics (DC, 1938 series) #4 (September 1938) and his father in issue #5 (October 1938).

Synopsis added by Craig Delich.

[The Light Heavyweight Championship] (Table of Contents: 10)

Pep Morgan / comic story / 4 pages (report information)

Script
Gardner Fox (sourced)
Pencils
Fred Guardineer (credited)
Inks
Fred Guardineer (credited)
Colors
Strauss Engraving Company
Letters
Fred Guardineer (credited) (sourced)

First Line of Dialogue or Text
Pep Morgan, versatile young athlete is fighting Sailor Sorenson for the coveted light heavyweight championship.
Feature Logo
"Pep" Morgan
Genre
adventure
Characters
Pep Morgan; Pop Burkett; Sailor Sorenson; Boomerang; O'Rourke; Doc Lowery (villain)
Synopsis
When the Boxing Commission runs a dirty fight trainer out of town, he swears his revenge...against Pep.
Reprints

Indexer Notes

Synopsis added by Craig Delich.

[The International Jewel Thief] (Table of Contents: 11)

Scoop Scanlon / comic story / 6 pages (report information)

Script
?
Pencils
Bill Ely (signed as Will Ely)
Inks
Bill Ely (signed as Will Ely)
Letters
Bill Ely ?

First Line of Dialogue or Text
Scoop Scanlon, ace reporter of the Bulletin, rouses his sleepy-eyed pal...
Feature Logo
Scoop Scanlon, Five Star Reporter
Genre
adventure; detective-mystery
Characters
Rusty James (introduction); Scoop Scanlon (introduction); Arnold (villain)
Synopsis
An international jewel thief arrives in America as a prisoner, but Scoop and Rusty are on hand to witness his escape with the help of his gang lying in wait.
Reprints
Keywords
The Bulletin

Indexer Notes

Synopsis added by Craig Delich.

[Murder in England] (Table of Contents: 12)

Tex Thomson / comic story / 12 pages (report information)

Script
Ken Fitch ?
Pencils
Bernard Baily (signed as BERNARD BAILY [thin font])
Inks
Bernard Baily (signed as BERNARD BAILY [thin font])
Colors
Strauss Engraving Company
Letters
Bernard Baily (sourced)

First Line of Dialogue or Text
Having struck it rich in the oil fields of Texas, Tex Thomson has left his native country to tour the world.
Feature Logo
Tex Thomson
Genre
adventure; detective-mystery
Characters
Tex Thomson (introduction, see notes); Bob; Betty; unnamed gangster chief (introduction, villain, death); Monk (villain); Sonja (villain)
Synopsis
Ken is framed for the murder of a man, and, with the help of Betty and Bobby, sets out to prove his innocence.
Reprints
Keywords
England

Indexer Notes

Tex Thomson later becomes Mr. America in Action Comics (DC, 1938 series) #33 (February 1941) and then as the Americommando in Action Comics #54 (November 1942).

[Fred Astaire, Constance Bennett, Charles Boyer, Wheeler and Woolsey] (Table of Contents: 13)

Stardust / cartoon / 1 page (report information)

Script
?
Pencils
Sheldon Moldoff ? (credited as Star Gazer) (sourced) (see notes)
Inks
Sheldon Moldoff ? (credited as Star Gazer) (sourced) (see notes)
Colors
Strauss Engraving Company
Letters
?

First Line of Dialogue or Text
Fred Astaire once sat in a booth during a benefit given in London, and danced with...
Feature Logo
Stardust
Genre
non-fiction; biography
Characters
Fred Astaire; Constance Bennett; Charles Boyer; Bert Wheeler; Robert Woolsey
Synopsis
Interesting facts about celebrities Fred Astaire, Constance Bennett, Charles Boyer and the comedy team of Wheeler and Woolsey are provided in this illustrated filler.
Reprints
Keywords
celebrity

Indexer Notes

Per Craig Delich, art MIGHT be by Sheldon Moldoff. Synopsis added by Delich.

[Lou Gehrig, Lee Grissom, and Babe Ruth] (Table of Contents: 14)

Odds 'n Ends / cartoon / 1 page (report information)

Script
?
Pencils
Sheldon Moldoff (credited)
Inks
Sheldon Moldoff (credited)
Letters
?

First Line of Dialogue or Text
Take it easy, horsey, we'll finish in the money anyhow!
Feature Logo
Odds 'n Ends
Genre
non-fiction
Characters
Babe Ruth; Lou Gehrig; Lee Grissom
Reprints

Indexer Notes

Inside back cover.

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 15) (Expand) /

Johnson Smith & Co. Catalog / advertisement / 1 page (report information)

Editing
Related Scans
Series Information
Table of Contents
  1. 0. [no title indexed]
    Superman
  2. 1. $25 Cash Prizes!
  3. 2. [Superman Origin]
    Superman
  4. 3. [The Coming of Superman]
    Superman
  5. 4. [Action Comics]
    Superman
  6. 5. [The A-G Gang]
    Chuck Dawson
  7. 6. The Mystery of the Freight Train Robberies
    Zatara
  8. 7. South Sea Strategy [Part 1]
  9. 8. ["Beeg airplane!"]
    Sticky-Mitt Stimson
  10. 9. ["It's the year 1271."]
    The Adventures of Marco Polo
  11. 10. [The Light Heavyweight Championship]
    Pep Morgan
  12. 11. [The International Jewel Thief]
    Scoop Scanlon
  13. 12. [Murder in England]
    Tex Thomson
  14. 13. [Fred Astaire, Constance Bennett, Charles Boyer, Wheeler and Woolsey]
    Stardust
  15. 14. [Lou Gehrig, Lee Grissom, and Babe Ruth]
    Odds 'n Ends
  16. 15. [no title indexed]
    Johnson Smith & Co. Catalog
This issue was modified by, among others
  • Katie
  • Steinar Ã…dland
  • Les Andersen
  • Henry Andrews
  • David B
  • Ray Bottorff Jr
  • John Censullo
  • Peter Croome
  • CTGarry
  • Steve Dasinger
  • Edward DeGeorge
  • Craig Delich
  • Mike DeLisa
  • Gregory Fischer
  • Del Gruber
  • Merlin Haas
  • Jan Roar Hansen
  • Matthew Head
  • Bob Hughes
  • Jörg Lasrich
  • R. S. Martin
  • Jon Morris
  • Mike Nielsen
  • Antonio Pontes Junior
  • Mark Q
  • Tony R. Rose
  • Allen Ross
  • Steven Samuels
  • Jim Van Dore