In the Golden Age of Comic Books of the 1940s, Will Eisner created a superhero version of Uncle Sam for Quality Comics. In that version, Uncle Sam was a mystical being who was the spirit of a slain patriotic soldier of the American Revolutionary War, but now appeared in the world whenever his country needed him. The character was used for a few years from 1940 to 1943 when it was discontinued. DC Comics acquired the character as part of its acquisition of the Quality characters and now he occasionally appears as a supporting character, leader of the Freedom Fighters. Superman, the catalyst of the Golden Age, from Superman #14, January-February 1942. ... // Events and trends The 1940s were dominated by World War II, the most destructive armed conflict in history. ... Will Eisner (March 3, 1917 – January 3, 2005) was an acclaimed American comics writer and artist who is considered one of the most important contributors to the development of the medium. ... Superman (left) and Batman, two of the most recognizable and influential superheroes. ... The Lake George, New York Uncle Sam statue is the tallest in the world. ... There have been two comic book publishing companies by the name Quality Comics. ... The American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), also known as the American War of Independence, was a war fought primarily between Great Britain and revolutionaries within thirteen North American colonies. ... 1940 was a leap year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1943 is a common year starting on Friday. ... The current DC Comics logo, adopted in May 2005. ... Freedom Fighters #1 (April, 1976) Freedom Fighters is the name of a minor DC Comics comic book superhero team made up of characters acquired from the defunct company, Quality Comics, and the short-lived comic book series of the same name featuring those characters. ...

His origin was rewritten somewhat in The Spectre, where he was the third Uncle Sam, the first having been created in 1870, when the Spirit of America resurrected a political cartoonist who had been killed by Boss Tweed, and the second having fought in World War I. The new origin also states that, before this the Spirit of America had taken human form as the Minuteman, Brother Jonathan and, during the American Civil War, had been split in two as Johnny Reb and Billy Yank. It was also stated he had disappeared at the end of World War II, invalidating any previous appearances since then (although most of them had already been invalidated by the Crisis on Infinite Earths). Retroactive continuity – commonly contracted to the portmanteau word retcon – refers to adding new information to historical material, or deliberately changing previously established facts in a work of serial fiction. ... Cover to The Spectre #31, November 1989. ... 1869 tobacco label featuring Boss Tweed William Marcy Tweed (April 3, 1823–April 12, 1878), known as Boss Tweed, was an American politician and political boss of Tammany Hall who became an icon of urban political machines. ... World War I was primarily a European conflict with many facets: immense human sacrifice, stalemate trench warfare, and the use of new, devastating weapons - tanks, aircraft, machineguns, and poison gas. ... Minutemen can refer to: The Minutemen, a generic term for militia in the American Revolutionary War. ... The American Civil War was fought in the United States from 1861 until 1865 between the United States – forces coming mostly from the 23 northern states of the Union – and the newly-formed Confederate States of America, which consisted of 11 southern states that had declared their secession. ... Johnny Rebel or Johnny Reb was the slang term for any Confederate soldier, or the Confederate army as a whole, during the American Civil War. ... Billy Yank is the personification of the Northern states of the United States of America. ... World War II was a truly global conflict with many facets: immense human suffering, fierce indoctrinations, and the use of new, extremely devastating weapons like the atom bomb World War II, also known as the Second World War, was by far the bloodiest, most expensive, and most significant war in... Cover to Crisis on Infinite Earths #1. ...

In The Spectre the Spirit was resurrected in a new form, called the Patriot, but has since reverted to Uncle Sam.

In an alternate DC universe, Uncle Sam becomes Green Lantern. Wonder Woman gives him Abin Sur's ring, as Hal Jordan was killed in this reality and wasn't able to take the ring. Cover to Green Lantern: Rebirth #6, art by Ethan Van Sciver. ... Wonder Woman is a DC Comics superheroine. ...

DC Comics published a graphic novel called Uncle Sam, however this is not set in the DC Universe, and features a very different version of the character. This Uncle Sam is a ragged old man who is tormented by visions of visiting historical episodes and modern aspects of the United States at its worst. In particular, the bloody crushing of Shays' Rebellion is considered a particularly disillusioning moment for the character which suggested for him that the USA's professed ideals have never been seriously respected since the nation's beginning. The DC Universe (DCU) is the fictional shared setting where most of the comic stories published by DC Comics take place. ... Shayss Rebellion was an armed uprising in Western Massachusetts that lasted from 1786 to 1787. ...