Taking a multifaceted approach to attitudes toward race through popular culture and the American superhero, All New, All Different? explores a topic that until now has only received more discrete examination. Considering Marvel, DC, and lesser-known texts and heroes, this illuminating work charts eighty years of evolution in the portrayal of race in comics as well as in film and on television. Beginning with World War II, the authors trace the vexed depictions in early superhero stories, considering both Asian villains and nonwhite sidekicks. While the emergence of Black Panther, Black Lightning, Luke Cage, Storm, and other heroes in the 1960s and 1970s reflected a cultural revolution, the book reveals how nonwhite superheroes nonetheless remained grounded in outdated assumptions. Multiculturalism encouraged further diversity, with 1980s superteams, the minority-run company Milestone’s new characters in the 1990s, and the arrival of Ms. Marvel, a Pakistani-American heroine, and a new Latinx Spider-Man in the 2000s. Concluding with contemporary efforts to make both a profit and a positive impact on society, All New, All Different? enriches our understanding of the complex issues of racial representation in American popular culture.

Superman may be faster than a speeding bullet, but even he can't outrun copyright law. Since the dawn of the pulp hero in the 1930s, publishers and authors have fought over the privilege of making money off of comics, and the authors and artists usually have lost. Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, the creators of Superman, got all of $130 for the rights to the hero. In Empire of the Superheroes, Mark Cotta Vaz argues that licensing and litigation do as much as any ink-stained creator to shape the mythology of comic characters. Vaz reveals just how precarious life was for the legends of the industry. Siegel and Shuster—and their heirs—spent seventy years battling lawyers to regain rights to Superman. Jack Kirby and Joe Simon were cheated out of their interest in Captain America, and Kirby's children brought a case against Marvel to the doorstep of the Supreme Court. To make matters worse, the infant comics medium was nearly strangled in its crib by censorship and moral condemnation. For the writers and illustrators now celebrated as visionaries, the "golden age" of comics felt more like hard times. The fantastical characters that now earn Hollywood billions have all-too-human roots. Empire of the Superheroes digs them up, detailing the creative martyrdom at the heart of a pop-culture powerhouse.

In Geniuses, Addicts, and Scribbling Women, contributors argue for critical attention to the ways in which writers have been portrayed through various genres, modalities, and historical periods, and the significant impact these portrayals have had on the popular imagination.

The multiverse has portaled into the mainstream. Entering the Multiverse unpacks the surprising growth of the multiverse in media and popular culture today, and explores how the concept of alternate realities and parallel worlds has acted as a metaphor for centuries. Edited by leading media and popular culture scholar Paul Booth, this collection explores the many different manifestations of the multiverse across different genres, media, fan-created works, and cultural theory. Each chapter delves into different aspects of the multiverse, including its use as a metaphor, as a scientific reality, and as a media-industry strategy. Addressing the multiplicity of multiversal meanings through multiple perspectives and always with an eye toward engagement with contemporary cultural issues, the chapters also examine various distinctions and contradictions, in order to provide a strong basis for further thinking, writing, and research on the concept of the multiverse. Chapters in this collection tell the story of the multiverse in multiple realities: creative nonfiction, academic essay, screenplay, art, poetry, video, and audio essay. A compelling read for students, researchers, and scholars of media and cultural studies, film and media culture, popular culture, comics studies, game studies, literary studies, and beyond.

Almost immediately after his first appearance in comic books in June 1938, Superman began to be adapted to other media. The subsequent decades have brought even more adaptations of the Man of Steel, his friends, family, and enemies in film, television, comic strip, radio, novels, video games, and even a musical. The rapid adaptation of the Man of Steel occurred before the character and storyworld were fully developed on the comic book page, allowing the adaptations an unprecedented level of freedom and adaptability. The essays in this collection provide specific insight into the practice of adapting Superman from comic books to other media and cultural contexts through a variety of methods, including social, economic, and political contexts. Authors touch on subjects such as the different international receptions to the characters, the evolution of both Clark Kent's character and Superman's powers, the importance of the radio, how the adaptations interact with issues such as racism and Cold War paranoia, and the role of fan fiction in the franchise. By applying a wide range of critical approaches to adaption and Superman, this collection offers new insights into our popular entertainment and our cultural history.

Superman is the original superhero, an American icon, and arguably the most famous character in the world--and he's Jewish! Introduced in June 1938, the Man of Steel was created by two Jewish teens, Jerry Siegel, the son of immigrants from Eastern Europe, and Joe Shuster, an immigrant. They based their hero's origin story on Moses, his strength on Samson, his mission on the golem, and his nebbish secret identity on themselves. They made him a refugee fleeing catastrophe on the eve of World War II and sent him to tear Nazi tanks apart nearly two years before the US joined the war. In the following decades, Superman's mostly Jewish writers, artists, and editors continued to borrow Jewish motifs for their stories, basing Krypton's past on Genesis and Exodus, its society on Jewish culture, the trial of Lex Luthor on Adolf Eichmann's, and a future holiday celebrating Superman on Passover. A fascinating journey through comic book lore, American history, and Jewish tradition, this book examines the entirety of Superman's career from 1938 to date, and is sure to give readers a newfound appreciation for the Mensch of Steel!

Comic books and superhero stories mirror essential societal values and beliefs. We can be Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Spider-Man, Black Panther or Rocket Raccoon through our everyday choices. We can't fly, fix hyper drives or hear human heartbeats a mile away, but we can think about what Matt Murdock would do in a conflict, how Superman would respond to natural disasters and how Captain America would handle humanitarian crises. This book analyzes the impact of dozens of comics by examining the noble personalities, traits and actions of the main characters. Chapters detail how superheroes, comic books and other pop culture phenomena offer more than pure entertainment, and how we can better model ourselves after our favorite heroes. Through our good deeds, quick thinking and positive choices, we can become more like superheroes than we ever imagined.

The most comprehensive guide to the history of DC Comics ever published In 1938, Superman led the charge. The world's first Super Hero was soon followed by his Justice League teammates Batman, Wonder Woman, the Flash, Aquaman, Shazam! and Green Lantern. These heroes, and their Super-Villainous foes such as Lex Luthor and The Joker, became the foundation of DC Comics. You can trace these characters' evolution, and learn about the company and creators who made them the enduring pop culture icons they are today in DC Comics Year By Year: A Visual Chronicle - the most comprehensive, chronological history of DC Comics ever published. Fully updated, this best-selling, visually stunning book details the debuts and careers of every major hero and villain in the DC Universe. It also chronicles the company's fascinating 85-year history, highlighting its publishing milestones and expansion into movies and television, alongside the real-world events that shaped the times. Created in full collaboration with DC Comics and written by leading comics historians Matthew K. Manning, Daniel Wallace, Mike McAvennie, Alex Irvine, Alan Cowsill and Melanie Scott, the new edition brings the DC Comics story right up to date, covering recent landmark events such as Rebirth, Dark Nights: Metal, Doomsday Clock and Heroes in Crisis. DC Comics Year By Year: A Visual Chronicle is guaranteed to keep fans enthralled for hours on end. (TM) & © DC Comics. (s19)

Superman has traditionally been one of the consistently best-selling comic book titles in history, featuring arguably the greatest superhero ever created. The character has not only survived since his origins in 1938, but has ridden the various waves of popular culture since that time, being successfully reintroduced to young audiences every few years, in print and on the big screen. This ebook features comic book covers for the classic title Superman during the height of its creative run, issues #101-200, plus eight Annuals; also publication information, including creator listings, story synopses, trivia, and more. Big, beautiful, full-color vintage comic book cover scans which will look fantastic on your e-reader. This is volume 6 of The Complete Comic Book Covers Library.

Simon & Schuster celebrates ninety-five years of crossword puzzle excellence with 300 new, never-before-published Thursday to Sunday-sized brain breakers. Sharpen your pencils—unless you dare to use a pen. In 1924, Simon & Schuster published its first title, The Cross Word Puzzle Book. Not only was it the publisher’s first release, it was the first collection of crossword puzzles ever printed. Today, 95 years later, Simon & Schuster’s legendary crossword puzzle legacy continues with a brand-new collection of 300 crosswords, which offer hours of challenging fun for puzzle solvers of every level. Created by the best contemporary constructors—and edited by top puzzle master John M. Samson—Simon & Schuster Mega Crossword Puzzle Book #19 is designed with convenience in mind and features perforated pages so you can tear out puzzles individually and work on them on-the-go. With its timeless and unique collection of puzzles, this super-sized book is sure to delight long-time puzzle stalwarts and new enthusiasts alike.