Action Comics
#52
(September 1942)
DC,
1938 Series
- Price
- 0.10 USD
- Pages
- 68
- Indicia Frequency
- monthly
- On-sale Date
- 1942-07-14
- Indicia / Colophon Publisher
- Detective Comics Inc.
- Brand
-
A Superman DC Publication
- Editing
- Whitney Ellsworth (credited as F. W. Ellsworth) (editor); Mort Weisinger (assistant, uncredited); Murray Boltinoff (assistant, uncredited)
Issue Notes
No issue number or date in indicia. On-sale date from copyright registration.
[no title indexed]
Superman; Zatara; Congo Bill; Vigilante; Americommando / cover / 1 page
- Genre
- superhero
- Characters
- Superman [Clark Kent]; Zatara; Congo Bill; Vigilante; Americommando
- Reprints
-
in O Lobinho (2ª Série) (Grande Consórcio Suplementos Nacionais, 1940 series) #50 [cover] -
in The Golden Age of Comic Books (Random House, 1977 series) (April 1977), (April 1977) - in Superman in Action Comics (Abbeville Press, 1993 series) #1 (1993)
- in Superman: The Action Comics Archives (DC, 1997 series) #3 ([October] 2001), #3 ([October] 2001) [back cover; 1/4 page]
- in Superman: Cover to Cover (DC, 2006 series) ([August] 2006)
- in Justice League: Cry for Justice (DC, 2009 series) #1 (September 2009) [cover] which is reprinted
-
in DC Premium (Panini Deutschland, 2001 series) #70 - Justice League: Cry for Justice ([Dezember] 2010) - in The Superman Chronicles (DC, 2006 series) #9 ([August] 2011)
- in Superman: The Golden Age Omnibus (DC, 2013 series) #3 (2016 [February 2017])
- in Superman: The Golden Age (DC, 2016 series) #5 ([June] 2020)
-
Indexer Notes
Art credits verified by Fred Ray. This cover, featuring all of the Action heroes, has been reprinted often. It is worth noting an alternative identification of the cover artist(s), by Golden Age artist and comics historian Jerry Robinson, who had the drawing table next to Fred Ray in the DC bullpen at the time of production. In a comment made while examining the cover more than half a century later (Alter Ego 19 (December 2002), page 5) Robinson concludes that the Superman, Zatara and Congo Bill figures are inked by Ray, but Vigilante is inked by the strip's regular artist Mort Meskin. He adds, 'I'm quite certain Bernard Baily did the Americommando figure'.
Cowhand Goes to Town
Good Books Worth Reading / text article / 0.67 page
- Script
- Josette Frank
- Letters
- typeset
Indexer Notes
Inside front cover. Review of Cowhand Goes to Town by Phil Strong, with pictures by Kurt Wiese. Page includes Superman's Secret Message, and the indicia.
The Emperor of America
Superman / comic story / 13 pages
- Script
- Jerry Siegel (signed)
- Pencils
- John Sikela ? (signed as Joe Shuster)
- Inks
- John Sikela (signed as Joe Shuster)
- Colors
- ?
- Letters
- ?
- Genre
- superhero
- Characters
- Superman [Clark Kent]; Lois Lane; Jimmy Olsen; Perry White; The Emperor of America (villain, introduction)
- Synopsis
- The President of the United States vacates his position in favor of The Emperor, who uses a non-resistance ray to take over America without firing a shot. He doesn't count on Superman providing any opposition, however.
- Reprints
- in Superman: The Action Comics Archives (DC, 1997 series) #3 ([October] 2001)
- in The Superman Chronicles (DC, 2006 series) #9 ([August] 2011)
- in Superman: The Golden Age Omnibus (DC, 2013 series) #3 (2016 [February 2017])
- in Superman: The Golden Age (DC, 2016 series) #5 ([June] 2020)
-
Indexer Notes
Art credits by Craig Delich and Bob Hughes. Archives credits the pencils to Ed Dobrotka.
An imaginary story in post-war America.
Lt. Colonel Boyd "Buzz" Wagner
Supermen of the U.S. Army / cartoon / 1 page
- Genre
- non-fiction; biography
- Characters
- Lieutenant Colonel Boyd David "Buzz" Wagner
Sing a Song of Six Guns!
Vigilante / comic story / 12 pages
- Script
- Joe Samachson ?
- Pencils
- Mort Meskin (signed)
- Inks
- Cliff Young (signed as Cliff)
- Colors
- ?
- Letters
- ?
- Genre
- superhero; western-frontier
- Characters
- The Vigilante [Greg Sanders] (origin); Stuff
- Synopsis
- Greg's show is almost pulled off the air until he learns how to make the jive with some classical kids who've had their instruments heisted by Jiggers Jolton.
Indexer Notes
Vigilante tells his origin and reveals secret identity to Stuff.
Script credit from Bob Hughes.
[no title indexed]
Private Pete / comic story / 0.5 page
- Script
- Henry Boltinoff (signed)
- Pencils
- Henry Boltinoff (signed)
- Inks
- Henry Boltinoff (signed)
- Colors
- ?
- Letters
- ?
- First Line of Dialogue or Text
- This is quite a mission to be sent on!
- Genre
- humor; military
- Characters
- Pvt. Pete
The Battle of a Thousand Years
The Three Aces / comic story / 6 pages
- Genre
- adventure; aviation
- Characters
- Three Aces [Fog Fortune; Gunner Bill; Whistler Will]
Indexer Notes
Script credit added by Craig Delich.
The Case of the Stolen Spectacles!
Presenting Mr. America and Fat Man as The Americommandos / comic story / 8 pages
- Script
- Joseph Greene
- Pencils
- Bernard Baily (signed)
- Inks
- Bernard Baily (signed)
- Colors
- ?
- Letters
- ?
- Genre
- superhero; war
- Characters
- Mr. America [Tex Thomson]
- Synopsis
- Mr. America catches an escaped spy.
Indexer Notes
A continuation of Mr. America of the Mr. America feature. Although billed as Americommandos, the strip still features Mr. America and Fatman. Fatman does not appear in this story.
Script credit per Jerry Bails via Craig Delich.
[no title indexed]
Little Gertie / comic story / 0.5 page
- First Line of Dialogue or Text
- Gertie, I'm going over to Mrs. Whalen's...
- Genre
- humor
- Characters
- Little Gertie
The One-Man Army!
Congo Bill / comic story / 6 pages
- Genre
- jungle; adventure
- Characters
- Congo Bill; Ting Ho
- Synopsis
- Bill carries a secret message through the Japanese lines to a Chinese commander.
- Keywords
- anti-aircraft guns; bomber planes; China; espionage; Imperial Japanese Army; Japanese Imperial Army Air Service; magnetic compasses; racism; rain; World War II
[no title indexed]
Private Pete / comic story / 0.44 page
- Script
- Henry Boltinoff (signed)
- Pencils
- Henry Boltinoff (signed)
- Inks
- Henry Boltinoff (signed)
- Colors
- ?
- Letters
- ?
- First Line of Dialogue or Text
- What a night to stand guard duty!
- Genre
- humor; military
- Characters
- Pvt. Pete
[no title indexed]
Laffs / cartoon / 0.5 page
- First Line of Dialogue or Text
- He's in charge of our complaint department...
- Genre
- humor
Indexer Notes
3 gags.
Crime on Ice!
Zatara / comic story / 9 pages
- Script
- Gardner Fox
- Pencils
- Joe Sulman (signed)
- Inks
- Joe Sulman (signed)
- Colors
- ?
- Letters
- ?
- Genre
- fantasy-supernatural; adventure; superhero
- Characters
- Zatara
Editing
Related Scans
Series Information
Table of Contents
-
0.
[no title indexed]
Superman; Zatara; Congo Bill; Vigilante; Americommando -
1.
Editorial Advisory Board
-
2.
Cowhand Goes to Town
Good Books Worth Reading -
3.
The Emperor of America
Superman -
4.
["Greetings, Superman members! Somewhere over the dense, mosquito-ridden jungles..."]
Supermen of America -
5.
Lt. Colonel Boyd "Buzz" Wagner
Supermen of the U.S. Army -
6.
[no title indexed]
Kool-Aid -
7.
Sing a Song of Six Guns!
Vigilante -
8.
["This is quite a mission to be sent on!"]
Private Pete -
9.
["I want more Superman!"]
Superman -
10.
The Battle of a Thousand Years
The Three Aces -
11.
The Case of the Stolen Spectacles!
Presenting Mr. America and Fat Man as The Americommandos -
12.
Wolf Hunt
-
13.
["Gertie, I'm going over to Mrs. Whalen's..."]
Little Gertie -
14.
Biggest and Best!
World's Finest Comics -
15.
The One-Man Army!
Congo Bill -
16.
["What a night to stand guard duty!"]
Private Pete -
17.
["Meet Yank and Doodle!"]
Prize Comics -
18.
[no title indexed]
-
19.
["He's in charge of our complaint department..."]
Laffs -
20.
["Here it is, boys and girls!"]
Wonder Woman -
21.
Crime on Ice!
Zatara -
22.
Now on Sale
-
23.
[no title indexed]
Wonders of Science Simplified -
24.
[no title indexed]
Modern Concise Encyclopedia
This issue was modified by, among others
- Katie
- Keith Chandler
- Peter Croome
- Steve Dasinger
- Craig Delich
- Merlin Haas
- Matthew Head
- Bob Hughes
- Mike Nielsen
- Tony R. Rose
- Ramon Schenk
- Jim Stangas
- Daniel Thingvold
- Jim Van Dore
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