Jerry Siegel
Jerry Siegel in 1976.
Birth name	Jerome Siegel
Born	October 17, 1914
Died	January 28, 1996 (aged 81) United States
Nationality	American
Area(s)	Writer
Pseudonym(s)	Joe Carter
Notable works	Superman

Jerome "Jerry" Siegel a.k.a. Joe Carter (October 17, 1914 – January 28, 1996) was the co-creator of Superman (along with Joe Shuster), the first of the great comic book superheroes and one of the most recognizable fictional characters of the 20th century. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 256 × 599 pixels Full resolution (469 × 1097 pixel, file size: 268 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Jerry Siegel ... is the 290th day of the year (291st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1914 (MCMXIV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... January 28 is the 28th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full 1996 Gregorian calendar). ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... is the 290th day of the year (291st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1914 (MCMXIV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... January 28 is the 28th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full 1996 Gregorian calendar). ... Superman is a fictional character and comic book superhero , originally created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian artist Joe Shuster and published by DC Comics. ... Joseph Joe Shuster (July 10, 1914 - July 30, 1992) was a Canadian-born comic book artist best known for co-creating the DC Comics character Superman, with writer Jerry Siegel, first published in Action Comics #1 (March 1938). ... A comic book is a magazine or book containing the art form of comics. ... [[ For the bands, see Superheroes (band) and Super Heroines. ... Alice, a fictional character based on a real character from the work of Lewis Carroll. ... (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999...

Biography

Early life

The son of Jewish immigrants from Lithuania, Siegel was the youngest of six children. His father Mitchell was a sign painter who opened a haberdashery and encouraged his son's artistic inclinations. Tragically, Mitchell Siegel was shot and killed in his store by a thief when Jerry Siegel was still in junior high school. For other uses, see Jew (disambiguation). ... A haberdasher is a person who sells small items via retail, commonly items used in clothing, such as ribbons and buttons, or completed accessories, such as hats or gloves. ... Middle school and junior high school cover a period of education that straddles primary education and secondary education and serve as a bridge between them. ...

Siegel was a fan of movies, comic strips, and, especially, science fiction pulp magazines. He became active in what would become known as fandom, corresponding with other science fiction fans, including the young future author Jack Williamson. In 1929, Siegel published what might have been the first SF fanzine, Cosmic Stories, which he produced with a manual typewriter and advertised in the classified section of Science Wonder Stories. He published several other booklets over the next few years. Film is a term that encompasses individual motion pictures, the field of film as an art form, and the motion picture industry. ... This article is about the comic strip, the sequential art form as published in newspapers and on the Internet. ... Science fiction is a form of speculative fiction principally dealing with the impact of imagined science and technology, or both, upon society and persons as individuals. ... Flynns Detective Fiction from 1941. ... Fandom (from the noun fan and the affix -dom, as in kingdom, dukedom, etc. ... Science fiction fandom or SF fandom is the community of people actively interested in science fiction and fantasy literature, and in contact with one another based upon that interest. ... John Stewart Williamson (April 29, 1908 – November 10, 2006), who wrote as Jack Williamson (and occasionally under the pseudonym Will Stewart) was a U.S. writer considered by many the Dean of Science Fiction. [1] // Williamson spent his early childhood in western Texas. ... A fanzine (see also: zine) is a nonprofessional publication produced by fans of a particular subject for the pleasure of others who share their interest. ... Mechanical desktop typewriters, such as this Underwood Five, were long time standards of government agencies, newsrooms, and sales offices. ... Wonder Stories was a science fiction pulp magazine which published 66 issues between 1930 and 1936, edited by Hugo Gernsback. ...

Siegel attended Glenville High School and worked for its weekly student newspaper, The Torch. He was a shy, not particularly popular student, but he achieved a bit of fame among his peers for his popular Tarzan parody, "Goober the Mighty". At Glenville he befriended his later collaborator, Joe Shuster. The writer-artist team broke into comics with Major Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson's landmark New Fun, debuting with the musketeer swashbuckler "Henri Duval" and the supernatural-crimefighter strip "Dr. Occult" in issue #6 (Oct. 1935). Glenville High School is a public high school in the Glenville neighborhood on the East Side of Cleveland, Ohio. ... Front page view of student newspaper The Daily Toreador. ... James H. Pierce and Joan Burroughs Pierce starred in the 1932-34 Tarzan radio series 1964 Edition of Tarzan of the Apes Tarzan, a fictional character created by Edgar Rice Burroughs, first appeared in the 1912 novel Tarzan of the Apes, and then in twenty-three sequels. ... A writer is anyone who creates a written work, although the word more usually designates those who write creatively or professionally, or those who have written in many different forms. ... The definition of an artist is wide-ranging and covers a broad spectrum of activities to do with creating art, practising the arts and/or demonstrating an art. ... Major Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson, a pulp magazine writer and entrepreneur, pioneered the American comic book, publishing the first such periodical consisting of all-original material rather than reprints of newspaper comic strips. ... More Fun Comics was a 1935-1947 American comic book anthology that introduced several major superhero characters and broke ground as the first comic-book series to feature solely original material rather than reprints of newspaper comic strips. ... For other uses of this term, see Musketeer (disambiguation). ... Doctor Occult is a fictional magic user in the DC Comics universe. ...

Superman

Siegel and Shuster created Superman. They used an early version of the character in short stories and in a 1933 comic-strip proposal. In 1938, after that proposal had languished among others at More Fun Comics — published by National Allied Publications, the primary precursor of DC Comics — editor Vin Sullivan chose it as the cover feature for National's Action Comics #1 (June 1938). The following year, Siegel & Shuster initiated the syndicated Superman comic strip. Superman is a fictional character and comic book superhero , originally created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian artist Joe Shuster and published by DC Comics. ... DC Comics is an American comic book and related media company. ... DC Comics is an American comic book and related media company. ... Vincent Vin Sullivan (died on February 3, 1999) is an early comic book editor, artist, and publisher. ... Cover of Action Comics #1, which featured the debut of Superman. ... Year 1938 (MCMXXXVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... Print Syndication is a form of syndication in which news articles, columns, or comic strips are made available to newspapers and magazines. ... The daily Superman newspaper comic strip began in January 6, 1939, and a separate Sunday strip was added on November 5, 1939. ...

In 1946, Siegel and Shuster, nearing the end of their 10-year contract to produce Superman stories, sued National over rights to the characters. In 1947, the team had rejoined editor Sullivan, by now the founder and publisher of the comic-book company Magazine Enterprises; there they created the short-lived comical crime-fighter Funnyman. Siegel went on to become comics art director for publisher Ziff-Davis in the early 1950s, and later returned to DC to write uncredited Superman stories in 1959. When he sued DC over the Superman rights again in 1967, his relationship with the hero he had co-created was again severed. Magazine Enterprises was an American comic book company lasting from 1943 to 1958, which published primarily Western, humor, crime, adventure, and childrens comics, with virtually no superheroes. ... Funnyman #1 (Jan. ... The term art director, is an overall title for a variety of similar job functions in advertising, publishing, film and television, the Internet, and video games. ... Ziff Davis Inc. ... This does not cite any references or sources. ...

Siegel's later work would appear in Marvel Comics, where under the pseudonym "Joe Carter" he scripted the "Human Torch" feature in Strange Tales #112-113 (Sept.-Oct. 1963), introducing the teenaged Torch's high school girlfriend, Doris Evans; and, under his own name, a backup feature starring the X-Men member Angel, which ran in Marvel Tales and Ka-Zar. Siegel wrote as well during this time for Archie Comics, where he created campy versions of existing superheroes in Archie's Mighty Comics line; Charlton Comics, where he created a few superheroes; and even England's Lion, where he scripted The Spider. In 1968, he worked for Western Publishing, for which he wrote (along with Carl Barks) stories in the Junior Woodchucks comic book. In 1970s, he worked for Mondadori Editore (at that time the Italian Disney comic book licensee) on their title Topolino, listed in the mastheads of the period as a scriptwriter (soggetisti e sceneggiatore). Marvel Comics is an American comic book line published by Marvel Publishing, Inc. ... The Human Torch is a comic book superhero in the Marvel Universe. ... Strange Tales was the name of several comic book anthology series that have been published by Marvel Comics. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The X-Men are a group of comic book superheroes featured in Marvel Comics. ... Archangel (Warren Worthington III), originally and still occasionally known as Angel, is a Marvel Comics superhero, best known as one of the founding members of the mutant super-team known as the X-Men. ... Marvel Tales is the title of three American comic-book series published by Marvel Comics, the first of them from the companys 1950s predecessor, Atlas Comics. ... Ka-Zar (pronounced KAY-sar) is the name of three jungle-dwelling fictional characters. ... Archie Comics is an American comic book publisher known for its many series featuring the fictional teenage Archie Andrews, Betty Cooper, Veronica Lodge, Reggie Mantle and Forsythe Jughead Jones characters created by Bob Montana. ... The term camp—normally used as an adjective, even though earliest recorded uses employed it mainly as a verb—refers to the deliberate and sophisticated use of kitsch, mawkish or corny themes and styles in art, clothing or conversation. ... Mighty Comics Group, sometimes referred to as Archie Adventure Series and Radio Comics, refer to the attempt(s) by Archie Comics to revamp and publish superhero (and non-Archie) comics in the mid-1960s. ... Big C logo, used from Sept. ... Robot Archie featured on the cover of Lion. ... The Spider is a comic book character who started out as a a supervillian before becoming a superhero. ... This is a page about the company Western Publishing. ... Carl Barks (March 27, 1901 – August 25, 2000) was a famous Disney Studio illustrator and comic book creator, who invented Duckburg and many of its inhabitants, such as Scrooge McDuck (1947), Gladstone Gander (1948), the Beagle Boys (1951), Gyro Gearloose (1952) and Magica De Spell (1961). ... In Disneys fictional Scrooge McDuck universe, The Junior Woodchucks are the Boy Scout-like youth organization to which Donald Ducks nephews, Huey, Dewey and Louie, belong. ... Arnoldo Mondadori (Poggio Rusco Mantua, November 2, 1889 - Milan, June 8, 1971) was a noted Italian publisher. ... The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS) is one of the largest media and entertainment corporations in the world. ... Mickey Mouse is an Academy Award-winning comic animal cartoon character who has become an icon for The Walt Disney Company. ...

Siegel & Shuster v. Time Warner

Siegel in 1975 launched a public-relations campaign to protest DC Comics' treatment of him and Shuster; ultimately Warner Communications, DC's parent company, awarded Siegel and Shuster $35,000 a year each for the rest of their lives and guaranteed that all comics, TV episodes (which would eventually include the popular Smallville show), films, and (later) video games starring Superman would be required to credit Superman was "created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster." Warner Communications, formerly Kinney National Company, was the parent company for Warner Bros. ... A television program is the content of television broadcasting. ... Smallville is an American television series set in the fictional town of Smallville, Kansas. ... Namcos Pac-Man was a hit, and became a universal phenomenon. ...

In 1986, Siegel was invited by DC Comics' editor Julius Schwartz to write an "imaginary" final story for Superman, following the pivotal Crisis on Infinite Earths storyline and the miniseries The Man of Steel, which reintroduced Superman. Siegel declined, and the story was instead given to writer Alan Moore, and published in September 1986 in two parts entitled Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow? (the story was published in Superman #423 and Action Comics #583). Julius Schwartz, editor for DC Comics Julius Julie Schwartz (June 19, 1915 - February 8, 2004) was a comic book and pulp magazine editor, and a science fiction agent and prominent fan. ... Crisis on Infinite Earths was a 12-issue comic book limited series (identified as a 12-part maxi-series) and crossover event, produced by DC Comics in 1985 in order to simplify their fifty-year-old continuity. ... The Man of Steel is a nickname often used to describe the nearly indestructible comic book superhero, Superman. ... Alan Moore (born November 18, 1953, in Northampton) is an English writer most famous for his influential work in comics, including the acclaimed graphic novels Watchmen, V for Vendetta and From Hell. ... Superman: Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow? is a DC Comics trade collection of the final issues of the pre-Crisis on Infinite Earths titles Superman #423 and Action Comics #583. ...

Siegel died in 1996. In 2005, he was posthumously awarded the Bill Finger Award For Excellence In Comic Book Writing. He was inducted into the Jack Kirby Hall of Fame in 1993. The Bill Finger Award For Excellence In Comic Book Writing is an American award for comic book writers who were not sufficiently honored for their work in the medium. ... Jack Kirby (August 28, 1917 – February 6, 1994) was one of the most influential, recognizable, and prolific artists in American comic books, and the co-creator of such enduring characters and popular culture icons as the Fantastic Four, the X-Men, the Hulk, Captain America, and hundreds of others stretching...

Posthumous Superman lawsuits

On April 16, 1999 Siegel's wife and daughter secured half of all rights to "each and every work (in any medium whatsoever, whenever created) that includes or embodies any character, story element, or indicia reasonably associated with Superman or the Superman stories, such as, without limitation, Superman, Clark Kent, Lois Lane, Perry White, Jimmy Olsen, Superboy, Supergirl, Lana Lang, Lex Luthor, Mr. Mxyzptlk, Ma and Pa Kent, Steel, the planet Krypton, Kryptonite, Metropolis, Smallville, or the Daily Planet."[1][2] is the 106th day of the year (107th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1999 Gregorian calendar). ... For other uses, see Clark Kent (disambiguation). ... Lois Joanne Lane-Kent is a fictional character who appears in DC Comics’ Superman stories. ... Perry White is a fictional character who appears in the Superman comics, and is the editor-in-chief of the Metropolis newspaper the Daily Planet. ... Jimmy Olsen (full name James Bartholomew Olsen) is a fictional character, a photojournalist who appears in DC Comics’ Superman stories. ... Superboy is the name of several fictional characters in the DC Universe, most of them youthful incarnations of Superman. ... For other uses, see Supergirl (disambiguation). ... Lana Lang is a supporting character in DC Comics Superman series. ... Lex Luthor is a fictional character and DC Comics supervillain, created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. ... Mr. ... Steel is a name used by several fictional characters owned and published by DC Comics in their universe. ... Krypton is a fictional planet in the DC Comics universe. ... Lex Luthor in front of a displays of kryptonite and holding Green Kryptonite. ... Cities with at least a million inhabitants in 2006 A metropolis (in Greek μήτηρ, mētēr = mother and πόλις, pólis = city/town) is a big city[1], in most cases with over half million inhabitants in the city proper, and with a population of at least one million living in... Smallville is the fictional hometown of Clark Kent. ... The Daily Planet is a fictional broadsheet newspaper that appears in Superman stories published by DC Comics. ...

Superboy was the subject of a legal battle between Time Warner, the owner of DC Comics and the estate of Jerry Siegel. The Siegels argued that the character of "Superboy" was an independent contractor at the time of the original Superboy pitch, and DC wasn't interested. After returning from World War II, Siegel found that DC published a Superboy story using ideas from his original pitch. DC Comics is an American comic book and related media company. ...

Federal judge Ronald S. W. Lew issued a summary judgment ruling that the Siegel heirs had the right to revoke their copyright assignment to Superboy and had successfully reclaimed the rights as of November 17, 2004. Warner Bros. replied that it "respectfully disagrees" with the ruling and will appeal. 17 November is also the name of a Marxist group in Greece, coinciding with the anniversary of the Athens Polytechnic uprising. ...

References

Jones, Gerard, Men of Tomorrow: Geeks, Gangsters and the Birth of the Comic Book (Basic Books 2004)

• "Secret Identities" by Bob Rozakis
• The Grand Comics Database: "Joe Carter - Writer" Search Results
• Comic Book Awards Almanac
• The Siegel's Copyright Termination Notice
• Heirs to Jerry Siegel Regain Rights to Superman - Fulfill Dream

External links

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:

Jerry Siegel

• Index and synopsis of all of Siegels 790 DC writing credits
• Superman Thru the Ages (tribute site)
  • Brief biography of Siegel
  • The history of Superman (with links to some of Siegel's earliest work)
• "The Real Heroes of Superman" multi-part series on Flixens.com
• Classic Comic Books (detailed critical studies of comic books)
  • Superman
  • Action Comics
  • The Spectre
  • Federal Men
  • Slam Bradley
  • Spy
  • Radio Squad
  • Nature Boy
  • The Star Spangled Kid
  • Dr. Occult
  • Legion of Super-Heroes
  • Superboy
  • Jimmy Olsen