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| 1914-1992 |
"Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster are the spiritual fathers of Superman (1938), the most famous superhero comic on Earth, along with Bob Kane's Batman and Stan Lee and Steve Ditko's Spider-Man. Siegel was the franchise's first scriptwriter, while Shuster was its first artist. Together they laid the foundations for the character's entire mythos. They gave him an origin story, a home city – Metropolis – and introduced characters who are still used by Superman comics artists today, such as Lois Lane, Jor-El, Jimmy Olsen and Lex Luthor.
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| Drew Friedman's Portrait of Joe Shuster & Jerry Siegel |
"The impact of the most famous Kryptonian of all time cannot be underestimated. Superman not only became one of the most iconic comics characters of all time: he spawned an entirely new and quintessential American genre: superhero comics. An entire industry was built around comic books about humanitarian crusaders with inhuman powers. Virtually all of them have taken elements from tropes pioneered by Siegel and Shuster. The duo was directly responsible for turning DC Comics into one of the major comics companies in the world.
"And yet, no matter how many other superheroes have been created since, Superman remains the most legendary. He is the only one who managed to become an internationally recognizable American national symbol, only matched by Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse in terms of global resonance. Sadly, Siegel and Shuster's lifestory is also very American. Despite creating an international hit they were never able to profit from it because of contractual issues. Others became billionaires with their creations, while they almost went bankrupt. In their case 'truth, justice and the American way' left a very sour aftertaste..." (continued)
Issues to which this artist has contributed:
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