Episode #205: Superman Family Comic Book Cover Dated December 1956: Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #17!

Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #17, December 1956, was published around October 16, 1956. It contained 32 pages for the cover price of a dime. The editor was Mort Weisinger. Curt Swan pencilled the cover, which was inked by Ray Burnley. They were the art team for all three 8 page stories in this issue, which were written by Otto Binder. These stories have been reprinted in Showcase Presents: Superman Family vol. I.


Jimmy Olsen In The 50th Century began with Superman giving Jimmy a ride in a rocket the Man of Steel had repaired, so that Olsen could do a story about being the first reporter to fly in the stratosphere (about 6 - 30 miles high). A meteor shower began to fall into the atmosphere, and Superman protected the rocket with his fist. Unfortunately, the concussion from Superman's fist propelled Jimmy's rocket fast enough to break the time barrier.

When Jimmy's rocket reentered the atmosphere, he bailed out of the rocket with a parachute, before the spacecraft crashed into the Earth. As Jimmy glided to the ground, he saw a farmer in a field. After he landed, Jimmy approached the farmer to find that he was a robot farmer. Jimmy discovered that he had traveled 3,000 years into the future, to October 10, 4956, to be exact.

After receiving the directions to Metropolis, Jimmy walked to his hometown and discovered that it had a much different skyline. Even the Daily Planet building seemed a mile high. He was rubber necking as he explored this very different Metropolis, and accidentally fell into the open doors of an empty underground elevator that stretched 8,000 miles to China.

Jimmy activated his signal watch, but was saved by a large robot bird, which we never see in this story again. Once he was returned to street level, Jimmy introduced himself and said he was from the 20th Century. One of the pedestrians recognized his name as being Superman's secret identity, and directed him to the Superman Museum. Jimmy was introduced to Professor Xerxes, who introduced himself as an expert on the Man of Steel. He allowed Jimmy to use some of his devices to simulate Superman's powers in a number of rescues. The Professor gave his reasons as protecting the Man of Steel's reputation from a current bestseller, Superman Was A Hoax by John Smyth.

When Jimmy walked by a bookstore, he was exposed by author John Smyth, causing the pedestrians to rush into the bookstore to buy a copy.

In front of the same underground elevator he fell into, Jimmy activated the signal watch again, and the signal traveled through the time barrier, and Superman was able to follow the signal to Jimmy. As it turned out, the reason the signal watch didn't work at the beginning of the story was that the elevator had been lined with lead as a shield against underground radiation.

After demonstrating his super powers in different ways, Superman took Jimmy to the same bookstore, and exposed John Smyth as a disguised Professor Xerxes. The Professor had set up Jimmy in order to boost sales of his book.

With order restored in the 50th Century, Superman and Jimmy returned to the 20th Century, but unfortunately for Olsen, he didn't remember his adventure in the 50th Century, being mistaken for Superman.

This story reminded me a little bit of the Back To The Future movie trilogy that would be released 30 years later.

While it made sense in this silver age story for the concussion from Superman's hit on the meteor to propel the rocket, it would seem that Jimmy would have been crushed by the g-forces from the speed that it would take to break the time barrier.

It was cool to see the Daily Planet still in existence in the 50th Century, and the plot twist of Jimmy simulating  the Man of Steel's powers was fun to read. And the Professor's plot to use Jimmy to boost sales of his book was different. It reminded me of the biggest literary hoax from the early 1970's. Writer Christopher Irving had used some forged letters allegedly from Howard Hughes to convince a publisher to release what turned out to be a fake Howard Hughes autobiography. When the reclusive billionaire denounced the book, the fraud was exposed and Irving would spend some time in jail.

This was a fun, futuristic Jimmy Olsen adventure, almost like he met the Jetsons, and I give it 3 Superman Capes out of 5.

The Case Of The Cartoon Scoops began as Jimmy read a letter from an anonymous admirer, who somehow knew that Jimmy had taken art classes in school. The letter writer encouraged Jimmy to use his talent and draw a series of Superman cartoons for the Daily Planet. Perry White looked at Jimmy's first effort for a good laugh, but liked it enough to make it a regular feature.

Jimmy began to get some phone calls from someone who suggested ideas for his Superman feature, which Jimmy used. The cartoons began to take on a pattern of things that would happen soon after that edition of the Daily Planet was published.

As it turned out, Clark was this anonymous "Swami", disguising his voice when he called Jimmy. Things backfired on Jimmy when the next cartoon "Swami" suggested was Superman smashing Jimmy's Superman souvenir collection. Sure enough, the Man of Steel showed up to destroy the collection, and Jimmy couldn't bear to watch. But much to his surprise, Superman only banged together some pans to create the noise. Then the Man of Steel revealed that he had been Jimmy's "Swami". Then Superman took Jimmy to the original admirer who had written Jimmy at the beginning of this story.

Jimmy's secret admirer had been none other than "Sly" Saunders, who was about to get out of jail. His purpose for suggesting the Superman cartoons was to gradually learn Superman's crime fighting tactics in order to foil the Man of Steel.

Jimmy learned a valuable lesson about checking out his sources, especially when they are anonymous.

Unlike past stories where Clark or Superman played a trick on Jimmy, I liked this one more, for the most part. Jimmy was once again falling into the trap of being gullible. This time, Clark and Superman were keeping a close eye on Jimmy, making sure he wasn't hurt while he learned the hard way not to let his sources manipulate him. The only time I thought that Superman went too far was to threaten to destroy Jimmy's collection. Putting Jimmy through the stress and shock of losing his collection was too much.

That is why I'm giving this story 3 Superman Capes out of  5 instead of 4.

The Radioactive Boy began as Jimmy put evidence for the next day's trial of the Barney Bolton gang in the Daily Planet's safe. Editor Perry White then assigned him to cover Metropolis' new Atomic Plant.

While outside the structure that shielded the atomic pile, Jimmy bumped into another person, which knocked him against the brick structure. Jimmy was worried about being contaminated with radioactivity.

As he walked back to the Daily Planet, some strange things happened that convinced Jimmy that he had become a radioactive menace. Plants wilted at a street vendor's cart, a bird died after flying too close to him, and Jimmy noticed that even his footprints glowed. He was convinced when he saw his glowing reflection in a storefront window.

Jimmy went straight to the roof of the Daily Planet building and flew to a remote area. After landing, Jimmy hid in a cave to wait out his doom. Superman quickly found him after using a geiger counter to follow his trail. The Man of Steel was despondent because there was nothing he could do for his Pal. He agreed to carry out Jimmy's final wishes, follow through on the Bolton Case, after Olsen gave the Man of Steel the combination to the Planet's safe. Then Superman agreed to tell Jimmy his secret identity, Clark Kent.

Outside the cave we were surprised to learn that the Man of Steel was actually crime leader Barney Bolton himself. He had spied on Perry and Jimmy from the Planet's fire escape, and Bolton's gang had been stationed along Jimmy's path, spraying him with a harmless phosphorescent powder to make him glow, as well as tricking Jimmy into thinking he was radioactive. Bolton had hidden aboard the Flying Newsroom, and flew the helicopter back to the Daily Planet building.

When Bolton, still disguised as Superman, approached the safe, he was surprised to find the real Superman waiting for him, along with Jimmy Olsen. Jimmy had summoned the real Superman with his signal watch after the disguised Bolton left. What tipped Jimmy off was when Bolton gave his secret identity as the most unlikely person to be Superman, Clark Kent. Also, as Jimmy's eyes adjusted to the dim light which back lit the fake Man of Steel, Olsen noticed the mask like look of Superman's face.

After Bolton had been taken to prison, Jimmy relayed the entire story to Clark, who was shocked that the revelation of his true identity had made Jimmy suspect the situation was a hoax. I guess Clark covered his tracks a little too well.

One thing I didn't understand about this story was that Superman was in the same room when Jimmy exposed Bolton's ruse by pulling off his mask. But Superman wasn't shown in the background when Olsen explained to Bolton how he deduced that the situation was a fake. It's not made clear if Superman left the building or not. If he didn't, I don't understand Clark's reaction. Also, I don't understand what Jimmy was doing with evidence for a trial the next day. Wouldn't the police have it already, for both the prosecution and defense to use in preparation for the trial?

These are minor quibbles with this story, which was my favorite of the issue. Jimmy was fooled in the beginning, but his quick wits allowed him to get to the bottom of the ruse. I like these stories better than Superman or Clark playing a trick on Jimmy. When Jimmy enters the cave, there's nothing to indicate that he isn't radioactive and waiting to die alone, without exposing anyone else to radiation. The ways that Bolton's gang went about convincing Jimmy he was a danger were cleverly done in a short amount of space.

I have to give this story 4 Superman Capes out of 5.

NOTE: The results of DC Comics' 5,000 Prize Slogan Contest will be revealed in the issues with the March 1957 cover date.

Elsewhere in DC Comics, 31 titles carried the December or December 1956/January 1957 cover date.

Next Episode: Superman Comic Books Cover Dated February 1960: Superman #135 & Action Comics #261!


In 2 Weeks: Superman Family Comic Book Cover  Dated January/February 1957: World's Finest Comics #86!

Check out SLIPSTREAM, a new web comic book written by jeffrey Taylor, co-host of the FROM CRISIS TO CRISIS podcast, and drawn by yours truly. Thanks to SUPERMAN HOMEPAGE .com contributor Adam Deschanel for putting the website together. http://www.clockworkcomics.co.uk/. It will begin November 2011.

Also, if you know the original publication information for a Superman story involving his alien zoo at his Fortress of Solitude, reprinted in the 1970 SUPERMAN BUMPER BOOK, a UK Superman hardcover anthology, post it in comments or through the contact information below.

You can join the SUPERMAN FAN PODCAST and MY PULL LIST groups or pages on facebook, and follow both the podcast and blog on twitter @supermanpodcast.

SUPERMAN FAN PODCAST is a proud member of thefollowing:
- The LEAGUE OF COMIC BOOK PODCASTERS athttp://www.comicbooknoise.com/league ,
The COMICS PODCAST NETWORK! - http://www.comicspodcasts.com/,
- The SUPERMAN WEBRING of websites, and
- The SUPERMAN PODCAST NETWORK athttp://fortressofbaileytude.com/supermanpodcastnetwork !

SUPERMAN FAN PODCAST is athttp://supermanfanpodcast.mypodcast.com/ . Send e-mail about this podcast to supermanfanpodcast@gmail.com.

The theme of this podcast is PLANS IN MOTION, composed by Kevin MacLeod, and part of the royalty free music library at http://incompetech.com.

MY PULL LIST is my spoiler free comic book review blog of the titles I read every week. It can be found at http://mypulllist.blogspot.com/. Send e-mail about this blog to mypulllist@gmail.com.

Superman and all related characters are trademark and copyright DC Comics. Any art shown on this podcast is for entertainment purposes only, and not for profit.

Thanks for listening to the SUPERMAN FAN PODCAST and, as always, thanks to Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster.

Episode #204: Superman Comic Books Cover Dated January 1960: Superman #134 & Action Comics #260!

Superman #134, January 1960, was published on November 5, 1959. It contained 32 pages for the cover price of a dime. The editor was Mort Weisinger, and the cover was pencilled by Curt Swan and inked by Stan Kaye. Rare for the silver age, this issue contained one three part story, or, as featured on the cover, A Great 3-Part Novel, titled The Super-Outlaw From Krypton. This 26 page story was written by Otto Binder, pencilled by Wayne Boring and inked by Stan Kaye.

The first chapter of the story was nine pages long and titled The Super-Menace Of Metropolis. It began with Superman rescuing a ship that had struck an iceberg. But instead of carrying the ship back to harbor, the Man of Steel ripped part of a cable from the bottom of the ocean, cutting off transatlantic communications. Superman used the cable to tow the ship back to safety.

Later, the Man of Steel smashed into a meteor. But instead of smashing it to bits, he only knocked a hole in it, allowing the meteor to strike a dam and flood farmland.

Superman saved some shipwrecked men from a sea monster, which looked like a dinosaur sized walrus. But instead of taking the castaways back to civilization, the Man of Steel carried the sea monster to Metropolis and walked it down the street. Its immense size caused property damage wherever it went. Superman raided a fish market to feed it, but he was not shown paying for it.

The leaders of Metropolis met and came to the conclusion that Superman needed to be captured and authorized a worldwide search for kryptonite, with which to subdue the Man of Steel.

A heartbroken Lois lured Superman to a super static device, in a desperate hope that this out of control Man of Steel was only a malfunctioning robot. Her theory was proved wrong when Superman was unaffected but the machine melted from the intense energy that was generated.

Afterwards, Superman flew to the top of a mountain, laughing maniacally and monologiung  that his plan was working, but wasn't finished yet. To prove his point, he flew to a traffic tunnel, using his super breath to blow the vehicles out the other end. Superman followed it up by pulling a subway train up through the roof of the subway tunnel to street level, then pulling the subway train through the streets of Metropolis and leaving the train outside the city. This gave the Man of Steel a good belly laugh as he flew away.

Chapter Two was nine pages long and titled The Revenge Against Jor-El. Superman continued his mayhem by filling up the Grand Canyon with boulders. As he flew away, we learned through a thought balloon that he was not the real Man of Steel.

In the bottle city of Kandor the real Superman watched events unfold outside by watching a monitor. Through a flashback we saw that Superman flew to his Fortress of Solitude to check on the life support system of Kandor. Kull-Ex used a machine to activate an exchange ray, which switched the two men into each other's clothes. Using a life mask, Kull-Ex began his evil impersonation of Superman.

After continuing his campaign of mayhem, Kull-Ex continued his monologue, knowing Superman was watching on the Ultra Scanning Screen. Through a flashback in a flashback, we learned that Kull-Ex's father Zell-Ex, was a down on his luck scientist. His plans for an all purpose Kryptonian vehicle, which could drive on land, sea, underground, or fly in the air, were blown out of his window. By the time he could finish his plans and take them to the patent office, Superman's father Jor-El had been granted a patent for an almost identical vehicle. Zell-Ex fruitlessly accused Jor-El of stealing his invention.

Zell-Ex and his son happened to reside in Kandor, and that was how Kull-Ex happened to wind up in Superman's Fortress of Solitude. After his Father died, Kull-Ex vowed to carry out the family's revenge against the son of Jor-El.

Superman's greatest concern was the potential damage to Earth caused by a super battle between the two Kryptonians, if the Man of Steel somehow managed to escape.

The eight page third and final chapter was titled The Duel Of The Supermen. Linda Lee went into action as Supergirl out of concern for her super cousin. She learned that this Superman was an impostor when he did not recognize her. After giving him a brief summary of her origin, Kull-Ex disclosed his plan to Supergirl off panel.

Supergirl flew to the Fortress of Solitude and freed Kal-El from the bottle city of Kandor. Superman quickly whispered a plan into Supergirl's ear, then she dashed out of the Fortress. Kull-Ex quickly appeared, and Superman found that, even with super powers, he was no match for Kull-Ex, who eventually trapped the Man of Steel in a lead box containing a speck of kryptonite. A weakening Superman asked Kull-Ex to open the Fortress's observation dome, and he learned that Supergirl had lifted the mountain containing the Fortress into space.

They were far enough into deep space to overtake light rays that had reflected from long lost Krypton. In a very unique type of flashback, Kull-Ex learned that he had accidentally picked up his Father's plan and had colored on the back. Then he tossed it into the feed trough of a junk eating animal (about the size of a hippo). Kull-Ex realized that Jor-El had told the truth and his Father had been mistaken. To make things up for Superman, he used his super vision to find another nugget of the element of zenium. Kull-Ex returned Superman to Kandor with the zenium, which the Man of Steel used to power the exchange device one last time, returning both Kryptonians where they belonged, and reuniting them with their own clothes.

Kull Ex then broadcast a television signal worldwide, confessing his deeds and exonerating Superman. He vowed to Superman that he would dedicate the rest of his life to scientific study. Superman returned to Metropolis and his life as Clark Kent, as Superman statues were restored and Metropolis once again loved the Man of Steel.

This was a good average silver age Superman story about Superman going berserk. His exploits were more goofy than menacing, with no toppled governments or mass casualties. Kull Ex's plot reminded me of the story covered in Episode #192 from Superman #130, The Town That Hated Superman, except this time it was a Kandorian, not a human obsessed for revenge against Superman.

Lois was heartbroken, grasping for straws in the hope that the superhero she loved had not gone berserk. Supergirl quickly realized that Superman was an impostor when he didn't recognize her, and played a key role in making Superman's plan succeed.

I couldn't help but think that maybe Clark was a little selfish to lay low as Superman, with all the clean up that needed to be done after Kull-Ex's mayhem. The Man of Steel's reputation may have been restored, but it would have helped for Superman to help clean up after Kull-Ex, who, even though he repented of his evil, had not made restitution for the damage he called.

Wayne Boring's art did a great job of conveying the emotions on the various faces of the characters in this story, and I give this story 3 Superman Capes out of 5.

Action Comics #260, January 1960, was published around November 25, 1959. It contained 32 pages for the cover price of a dime. The editor was Mort Weisinger, and the cover was pencilled by Curt Swan and inked by Stan Kaye.

The twelve page Superman story in this issue was Mighty Maid, written by Otto Binder and drawn by Al Plastino. This story has been reprinted in Showcase Presents: Superman vol. II and Showcase Presents: Supergirl vol. I.

When Lois Lane got caught in a tornado while covering Tornado Alley, she was surprised to learn that it was a super powered female, not Superman, who rescued her. She introduced herself as Mighty Maid, and had traveled from another dimension to meet Superman, who was very famous there.

Superman and Mighty Maid fell in love and began a whirlwind romance. Superman showed her the wonders of the world. Perry assigned Lois to cover the story, and the heartbroken reporter witnessed Mighty Maid accepting Superman's proposal. She still managed to deliver the big scoop that the Man of Steel planned to leave Earth and live in Might Maid's dimension.

After a goodbye tour around the world, Superman and Mighty Maid appeared before TV and news cameras to say goodbye, then vanished in the blink of an eye.

Two figures splashed into the ocean at super speed, and Superman and Mighty Maid emerged in an underwater cavern. Mighty Maid removed her disguise and revealed her true identity of -- Supergirl!?

We learned that Superman created the ruse when he discovered an alien ship was approaching Earth to destroy it. Their motive was revenge for an attack on their fleet of migrating ships by Kryptonian forces, who mistook the fleet as an invading force. The alien survivors vowed to recover and send ships to destroy Krypton. When they later saw, through their telescopes, that Krypton exploded, they followed Kal-El's rocket and vowed to take out their revenge on his adopted world. Superman also learned that their monitors couldn't penetrate the oceans, hence their hiding in the underwater cavern.

Superman used his x-ray vision to see that the aliens had called off their attack since they were fooled into thinking that the Man of Steel had left Earth. On board the alien ship, the crew had gone into suspended animation for their long voyage home. Superman left a note explaining the misunderstanding, thanks to the memory of some Kandorians who remembered the incident. The Man of Steel hoped it would defuse the situation when the aliens reached their home world.

The Man of Steel returned to Metropolis, and explained to a surprised Lois that he returned because he found out that Mighty Maid's people aged differently. and she was only 15 years old. That was true, since Supergirl was only 15.

This had to be the creepiest Superman story I ever read. It was a clever ruse Superman pulled off, but did he have to pick his own 15 year old cousin to be a part of it? why not pick Wonder Woman (although crossovers were rare in this part of the silver age), or give Lois a temporary super power serum.

I could have just as easily believed that the aliens could have destroyed Earth out of spite, just to make sure that Superman wouldn't return.

Also, once again, to save Earth, Superman has to fool Lois as well. It was sad to watch a heartbroken Lois have to set aside her emotions to cover the story of  the Century.

I give this story 5 out of 5 for being the creepiest Superman story ever. For a clever plot to fool the aliens, I would give the story a 3, but for picking his own 15 year old cousin to play his love interest, I have to drop the rating to 2 Superman Capes out of 5.

The eight page Supergirl story of this issue was titled The Girl Super Baby, written by Otto Binder and drawn by Al Plastino. This story has been reprinted in Showcase Presents: Supergirl vol. I.

Linda Lee was using her telescopic vision to watch life on a tropical island, when she saw a man about to drown. Keeping her promise not to reveal her super powers yet, she changed into Supergirl and burrowed underground until she emerged in the water under the drowning man. Supergirl pushed him onto dry land, making it look like a geyser pushed him out of the water. She noticed that he was younger than when she first saw him. As she flew through her tunnel back home, she began to de-age. Using her telescopic vision and super hearing she saw the man say he had discovered the Fountain of Youth.

When Supergirl returned home, she had become a Super Tot. She chased a butterfly until it flew into the trunk of a car. A jewel thief closed it, not knowing she had flown inside. Super Tot took a nap until the two jewel thieves arrived at an abandoned Indian camp, which had a legend that an Indian spirit would cause the downfall of evildoers. When the crooks opened the trunk, Super Tot squirted them in the eyes with their shaving cream before they could see her, then she flew away.

After changing clothes and hanging their wet clothes to dry, they used a scarecrow for target practice. Super Tot was behind it, and caught the lead bullets. She pressed them into a ball, which she threw.The lead ball melted because of the air friction, and happened to cover a kryptonite meteorite that Superman had accidentally dug up while unearthing fossils. Superman was able to recover and fly off, grateful for the happy coincidence, and unaware of his super cousin's involvement.

Super Tot's actions continued to plague the crooks, although they never saw her. When she was hungry, she ate everything in their pantry, and flew away before she was discovered. When she flew into a pipe, she accidentally discovered the crooks' hiding place for their stolen jewels. she used her x-ray vision to peek inside, but generated too much heat, igniting the bag. Smoke coming out of the pipe prevented the thieves from retrieving their loot, but attracted the attention of some forest rangers, who captured the crooks.

As she flew back home, Supergirl returned to her normal age as the effects of the Fountain of Youth wore off.

After the creepy previous story, this was a nice change. It was an average silver age Supergirl story, and the humorous antics involving the jewel thieves reminded me of the movie Home Alone. I give it 3 Superman Capes out of 5.

The final six page story starred Congo Bill, making his 12th appearance as Congorilla in The Gladiator Of The Jungle, written by Robert Bernstein and drawn by Howard Sherman.

Elsewhere in DC Comics, 26 titles carried the January or January/February 1960 cover date.

Next Episode: Superman Family Comic Book Cover Dated December 1956, Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #17!


In 2 Weeks: Superman Comic Books Cover Dated February 1960: Superman #135 & Action Comics #261!


Check out SLIPSTREAM, a new web comic book written by jeffrey Taylor, co-host of the FROM CRISIS TO CRISIS podcast, and drawn by yours truly. Thanks to SUPERMAN HOMEPAGE .com contributor Adam Deschanel for putting the website together. http://www.clockworkcomics.co.uk/. It will begin November 2011.

Also, if you know the original publication information for a Superman story involving his alien zoo at his Fortress of Solitude, reprinted in the 1970 SUPERMAN BUMPER BOOK, a UK Superman hardcover anthology, post it in comments or through the contact information below.

You can join the SUPERMAN FAN PODCAST and MY PULL LIST groups or pages on facebook, and follow both the podcast and blog on twitter @supermanpodcast.

SUPERMAN FAN PODCAST is a proud member of thefollowing:
- The LEAGUE OF COMIC BOOK PODCASTERS athttp://www.comicbooknoise.com/league ,
The COMICS PODCAST NETWORK! - http://www.comicspodcasts.com/,
- The SUPERMAN WEBRING of websites, and
- The SUPERMAN PODCAST NETWORK athttp://fortressofbaileytude.com/supermanpodcastnetwork !

SUPERMAN FAN PODCAST is athttp://supermanfanpodcast.mypodcast.com/ . Send e-mail about this podcast to supermanfanpodcast@gmail.com.

The theme of this podcast is PLANS IN MOTION, composed by Kevin MacLeod, and part of the royalty free music library at http://incompetech.com.

MY PULL LIST is my spoiler free comic book review blog of the titles I read every week. It can be found at http://mypulllist.blogspot.com/. Send e-mail about this blog to mypulllist@gmail.com.

Superman and all related characters are trademark and copyright DC Comics. Any art shown on this podcast is for entertainment purposes only, and not for profit.

Thanks for listening to the SUPERMAN FAN PODCAST and, as always, thanks to Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster.

Episode #203: Superman Family Comic Book Cover Dated November/December 1956: World's Finest Comics #85!

World's Finest Comics #85, November/December 1956, was published around September 27, 1956 (which, four years later would be the day I was born). The editor was Jack Schiff, and the cover was pencilled by Dick Sprang and inked by Stan Kaye, who were the art team for the Superman/Batman story in this issue. The title was The Super-Rivals, written by Edmond Hamilton. This story was reprinted in World's Finest Comics Archive vol. I and Showcase Presents: World's Finest vol. I.

In the kingdom of Balkania, ruler Princess Varina decided to visit America, over the objections of her Prime Minister. On the next day, Perry White assigned Clark Kent and Lois Lane to cover the arrival of the Princess's ocean liner in Metropolis Bay. In Gotham City, Commissoner Gordon asked Batman and Robin to greet her as well.

When Princess Varina arrived in her ocean liner to Metropolis Bay, Batman and Robin used the Batplane to sky write Welcome Princess Varina while Superman played tugboat in bringing her ship into the harbor. Waiting on the dock was Lois Lane and Vicki Vale, of Vue Magazine in Gotham City. They both agreed that their respective heroes would bored welcoming a girl. Lois and Vicki got a surprise when Batman and Superman ignored them as they escorted the Princess off of her ship.

During the Metropolis ticker tape parade which greeted Princess Varina, Superman and Batman impressed her when they kept an overcrowded balcony from collapsing. At City Hall, the two heroes argued over who would protect her, and brushed off Captain Stefan, Princess Varina's Aide, when he insisted on watching over Her Majesty. He joined Lois and Vicki in being jealous of the World's Finest Heroes, but for different reasons. At a press conference, Lois asked Princess Varina if she had a fiance in her home country. Her Majesty answered cryptically that she might marry someone in the United States.

Superman and Batman competed against each other to see who could top the other in granting her every whim. When Batman escorted the Princess around Metropolis in the Batmobile, driven by Robin, Superman carved S & V in a heart on the side of cliff in the countryside as they drove by.

On the next day, when the Princess and her party boarded a train bound for Gotham City, joined by Lois and Vicki, Superman flew the entire train to its destination. During Gotham City's parade which greeted the Princess, Commissioner Gordon warned Batman about a rumor some gangsters would try to rob the Royal Jewels. Princess Varina and her delegation settled into a mansion outside of Gotham.

While Superman and Batman escorted the Princess to her temporary home, Lois and Vicki plotted to find out which hero the Princess would marry. When they got the opportunity to speak with Princess Varina privately, she revealed to them that she was in love with Captain Stefan, but the Balkanian Parliament forbid her to marry a commoner. Of course, Lois and Vicki promised to help the two lovers elope.

Unknown to them, their conversation was heard by Superman and Batman, who shared the news with Princess Varina's Prime Minister. This was very bad news, because if the Princess abdicated, her country would plunge into civil war. We also discover that Superman and Batman had feigned romantic interest in the Princess to create an obstacle to her elopement at the Prime Minister's request.

Superman and Batman played along when Princess Varina requested a hat just like the one worn by Lois Lane, which was only available in Metropolis. They appeared to leave, Superman following Batman who flew the Batplane, but it was actually flown by Robin, who towed a Superman dummy behind the Batplane. Batman and Superman stayed hidden, and observed Captain Stefan and Princess Varina driving away to elope.

While Batman followed the eloping lovers in the Batmobile, Superman carved a roller out of stone wide enough for a two lane road. With it, the Man of Steel rolled a detour through the countryside, which the lovers took, and led back to the mansion.

Pete Kaney's mob had kept the mansion under surveillance,  and used the opportunity to attempt to rob the Princess while she was outside the security of the mansion. But while Superman and Batman secretly took out the gang's two gunmen, the outnumbered Captain Stefan took care of the remaining gangsters. Superman and Batman let the Captain take the entire credit for saving Princess Varina, and her country's grateful Parliament granted permission for the two lovers to wed in appreciation for Stefan's bravery.

As Princess Varina and her fiance returned to Balkania by ocean liner, Lois hoped the two heroes had learned their lesson.

Dick Sprang's art as usual was great. It turned out that Lois Lane wasn't the only one jealous of her superhero. Vicki Vale was just as jealous of Batman.

I wasn't a great fan of Superman and Batman almost fighting over the affections of Princess Varina, but I couldn't think of an alternate solution for keeping her country from falling into civil war. First of all, they were fighting over the affections of a foreign dignitary. And what if their plan worked and she fell in love with Superman or Batman? The heroes risked wrecking her relationship with Captain Stefan. The ending of the story made it better for me, when Batman saw the opportunity to allow Stefan take the credit for saving the Princess. Of course, it involved placing both of them at risk, but the two heroes were ready to jump in at a moment's notice. And the Balkanian Parliament could also have awarded Captain Stefan a title for his bravery.

Thanks to the twist at the end, I give this story 3 Superman Capes out of 5, instead of 2, as I otherwise would have.

Tomahawk starred in the six page second story of the issue, The Frontier Destroyer, drawn by Fred Ray.

This issue's final story starred Green Arrow in the six page tale, The Dangers From Tomorrow, drawn by George Papp.

Elsewhere in DC Comics, 30 titles carried the November, or November/December 1956 cover date.

Next Episode: Superman Comic Books Cover Dated January 1960: Superman #134 & Action Comics #260!


In 2 Weeks: Superman Family Comic Book Cover Dated December 1956: Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #17!


 Check out SLIPSTREAM, a new web comic book written by jeffrey Taylor, co-host of the FROM CRISIS TO CRISIS podcast, and drawn by yours truly. Thanks to SUPERMAN HOMEPAGE .com contributor Adam Deschanel for putting the website together. http://www.clockworkcomics.co.uk/. It will begin November 2011.

Also, if you know the original publication information for a Superman story involving his alien zoo at his Fortress of Solitude, reprinted in the 1970 SUPERMAN BUMPER BOOK, a UK Superman hardcover anthology, post it in comments or through the contact information below.

You can join the SUPERMAN FAN PODCAST and MY PULL LIST groups or pages on facebook, and follow both the podcast and blog on twitter @supermanpodcast.

SUPERMAN FAN PODCAST is a proud member of thefollowing:
- The LEAGUE OF COMIC BOOK PODCASTERS athttp://www.comicbooknoise.com/league ,
The COMICS PODCAST NETWORK! - http://www.comicspodcasts.com/,
- The SUPERMAN WEBRING of websites, and
- The SUPERMAN PODCAST NETWORK athttp://fortressofbaileytude.com/supermanpodcastnetwork !

SUPERMAN FAN PODCAST is athttp://supermanfanpodcast.mypodcast.com/ . Send e-mail about this podcast to supermanfanpodcast@gmail.com.

The theme of this podcast is PLANS IN MOTION, composed by Kevin MacLeod, and part of the royalty free music library at http://incompetech.com.

MY PULL LIST is my spoiler free comic book review blog of the titles I read every week. It can be found at http://mypulllist.blogspot.com/. Send e-mail about this blog to mypulllist@gmail.com.

Superman and all related characters are trademark and copyright DC Comics. Any art shown on this podcast is for entertainment purposes only, and not for profit.

Thanks for listening to the SUPERMAN FAN PODCAST and, as always, thanks to Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster.

Episode #202: Superman Comic Book Cover Dated December 1959: Action Comics #259!

Action Comics #259, December 1959, was published around October 29, 1959. It contained 32 pages for the cover price of a dime. Mort Weisinger was the editor, and the cover was pencilled by Curt Swan and inked by Stan Kaye.

The Revenge Of Luthor was the thirteen page Superman story in the issue, written by Jerry Siegel (his 5th silver age comic book story) and drawn by Al Plastino. It was reprinted in Showcase Presents: Superman vol. II.

Superman caught a meteor that was heading toward an airliner, only to discover that it was red kryptonite. It made the Man of Steel dizzy enough to make him fall out of the sky and crash into the ground. He had a nightmare of the swirling faces of Lex Luthor, Lois Lane, Lana Lang and Superboy.

The Man of Steel awoke to find that he wasn't alone. He was joined by Superboy, his younger self. After using their x-ray vision to check their fingerprints, the Twins of Steel flexed their superpowers and realized they were the same person.

Superman changed into his Clark Kent identity, and so did Superboy. The elder Clark reminded his younger self that if people saw Superboy and Superman together, and then a younger and older Clark Kent, it would expose their secret identity. A very annoyed elder Clark Kent ordered his younger self to go the Fortress of Solitude and await his call by supersonic whistle.

Back in Metropolis, Clark worried about a dumb Superboy getting in the way of his Superman work, as Perry White assigned him to interview a bank president. As he neared the bank, a helicopter disguised as a flying saucer landed, and a gang of robbers disguised as aliens robbed the bank. Superman went into action, but Superboy collided with the Man of Steel. The robbers made their escape, and Superman took out his anger on Superboy, accusing him of being made stupid by the red kryptonite. Superboy accused Superman of becoming a grouch because of the red kryptonite.

Superman apologized to Superboy, and suggested they try to work together. They found a counterfeiter, but when Superboy examined a box with fake bills, his x-ray vision was too strong and ignited the evidence.

After they flew away, Superboy was distracted by a rodeo, and flew to the arena. Superman had to swoop in and corral the bulls which were driven berserk by Superboy's red cape. In front of the rodeo crowd Superman and Superboy made their disagreement public by arguing in front of the rodeo audience. The news flashed around the world, and caught the attention of Lex Luthor.

Superboy found a cage that had a sign posted above it, Luthor Trap To Capture Superboy! Enter Here, Please. Luthor may be an arch fiend, but at least he's polite. Superboy didn't think it could be a serious trap, so he entered it, only to discover that the bars of the sage were made of kryptonite.

Later, Superman was challenged to a fight by Superboy, only to discover that the Boy of Steel was a robot containing kryptonite, and was knocked out.

Superman and Superboy awoke to find themselves in Luthor's cave. Enclosed in a protective sphere, Lex had kidnapped Lois Lane and Lana Lang, to watch the two heroes fight to the death. Unfortunately for Luthor, they fought to a stalemate. Changing plans, Luthor made Superman lay face down on the ground. When he allowed the Man of Steel to stand, Luthor showed two lead cabinets. One contained Superboy, the other held kryptonite. If Superman opened Superboy's locker, Luthor would kill Superboy with the kryptonite. If the Man of Steel opened the kryptonite cabinet, he would die.

Superboy tapped the door to his cabinet, letting Superman know which one he was in. The Man of Steel was faced with an impossible choice.

Superman awoke to find himself alone. It had all been a dream. The story ended with the Man of Steel wondering what his choice would have been.

Of these early silver age Jerry Siegel stories, this has been my favorite so far. When I first read this story, I felt a little cheated by the cliffhanger ending. But after re-reading it and thinking about it, I decided to consider the story as a look into Superman's greatest fear: not being smart or powerful enough to save someone. Usually in stories that are mostly dream sequences, I can usually spot when the dream begins. This time I didn't. With the introduction of red kryptonite in the story, I accepted the appearance of Superboy as a believable result of red K exposure. Well done, Jerry, that was a good bit of storytelling.

Knowing some of the Siegel and Siegel story after Superman, I wonder how much, if any, of his own anger Jerry gave to Superman. In covering the Man of Steel's silver age stories, I don't think that I've seen him this angry in the stories we've covered so far. I admired Superboy for standing up to Superman, but he also showed himself to be an easily distracted teen. But then in dreams we don't always act as we do in reality. I wonder if Superman's treatment of Superboy was a reflection of how Mort Weisinger treated the talent working for him. But then, maybe I'm reading too much into the story.

Not only was Superman a grouch, he seemed to be a little full of himself when he thought of when he was Superboy, thinking that he wasn't this dumb. While Superboy stories showed him able to control his powers well, he didn't have the experience he's gained as an adult superhero.

After reading the story a few times, I decided that it really wouldn't have been a tough choice for Superman. I think that he would be willing to sacrifice himself to save others. He wouldn't want his adopted parents to suffer the loss of their son.

I give this story 4 Superman Capes out of 5.

Congo Bill made his 11th appearance as Congorilla in The One Ape Circus, written by Robert Bernstein and drawn by Howard Sherman.

Supergirl's 7th story was titled The Cave Girl Of Steel, written by Otto Binder and drawn by Jim Mooney. It was reprinted in Supergirl Archives vol. I and Showcase Presents: Supergirl vol. I.

Linda Lee secretly used her x-ray vision to save a toddler that had crawled into a plastic bag.  While she was happy to use her superpowers in any way she could, she felt her super deeds were trivial when compared to Superman's.

As Supergirl, she decided to travel into the prehistoric past to have some exciting adventures without breaking Superman's ban on revealing herself to the world. (Leave it to a teenager to find a loophole.)

When she emerged in the prehistoric past, she saved a baby that had been snatched by a pterodactyl. She then tamed a brontosaurus (now called an apatosaurus) and rode it to explore her surroundings. Supergirl then used her pet brontosaurus to help some cavemen back across a river, after their crude bridge collapsed. The tribe's Chief invited Supergirl to dine with them, but she had second thoughts when she discovered that they ate everything raw.

A bolt of lightning struck a tree and began a fire, and so Supergirl showed the cave tribe how to keep the fire going. Their bonfire was doused by a wave from the river, caused by a fire breathing sea serpent. Supergirl saved the tribe from the serpent, and goaded it into using its fire breath to ignite the tribe's fire. She then returned to modern times.

The next day, the orphans toured a museum, and saw a stone carving from the stone age, which depicted a flying girl. Linda Lee saw that, as Supergirl, she had made history. I just hope Superman never sees this stone carving.

Obviously, cavemen and dinosaurs never existed together, but this was still a fun story, and better than the previous Supergirl story. It was quite a coincidence when she saved two young children in two different eras. She had a fun adventure, taming a dinosaur and interacting with cavemen. It was funny when she discovered they ate raw fish.

This was a fun, lighthearted prehistoric adventure, and I give it 4 Superman Capes out of 5, instead of 3, because it was such an improvement from the last Supergirl story.

Elsewhere in DC Comics, 32 titles carried the December or December 1959/January 1960 cover date.

Next Episode: Superman Family Comic Book Cover Dated November/December 1956: World's Finest Comics #85!


In 2 Weeks: Superman Comic Books Cover Dated January 1960: Superman #134 & Action Comics #260!


 Check out SLIPSTREAM, a new web comic book written by jeffrey Taylor, co-host of the FROM CRISIS TO CRISIS podcast, and drawn by yours truly. Thanks to SUPERMAN HOMEPAGE .com contributor Adam Deschanel for putting the website together. http://www.clockworkcomics.co.uk/. It will begin November 2011.

Also, if you know the original publication information for a Superman story involving his alien zoo at his Fortress of Solitude, reprinted in the 1970 SUPERMAN BUMPER BOOK, a UK Superman hardcover anthology, post it in comments or through the contact information below.

You can join the SUPERMAN FAN PODCAST and MY PULL LIST groups or pages on facebook, and follow both the podcast and blog on twitter @supermanpodcast.

SUPERMAN FAN PODCAST is a proud member of thefollowing:
- The LEAGUE OF COMIC BOOK PODCASTERS athttp://www.comicbooknoise.com/league ,
The COMICS PODCAST NETWORK! - http://www.comicspodcasts.com/,
- The SUPERMAN WEBRING of websites, and
- The SUPERMAN PODCAST NETWORK athttp://fortressofbaileytude.com/supermanpodcastnetwork !

SUPERMAN FAN PODCAST is athttp://supermanfanpodcast.mypodcast.com/ . Send e-mail about this podcast to supermanfanpodcast@gmail.com.

The theme of this podcast is PLANS IN MOTION, composed by Kevin MacLeod, and part of the royalty free music library at http://incompetech.com.

MY PULL LIST is my spoiler free comic book review blog of the titles I read every week. It can be found at http://mypulllist.blogspot.com/. Send e-mail about this blog to mypulllist@gmail.com.

Superman and all related characters are trademark and copyright DC Comics. Any art shown on this podcast is for entertainment purposes only, and not for profit.

Thanks for listening to the SUPERMAN FAN PODCAST and, as always, thanks to Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster.

Episode #201: Superman Family Comic Book Cover Dated October 2011: Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #16!

Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #16, October 1956, was published around August 23, 1956. It contained 32 pages for the cover price of a dime. Mort Weisinger was the editor, and the cover was pencilled by Curt Swan and inked by Stan Kaye. All three stories, the first two of which were eight pages long and the final one six pages long, were all done by the same creative team, writer Otto Binder, penciller Curt Swan and inker Ray Burnley.

The Three Lives Of Jimmy Olsen began with Clark and Jimmy checking the safe at the Daily Planet building. They were ensuring the lead container filled with radium was still safe. It was worth $25,000.00, and had been entrusted to the Daily Planet to distribute to needy hospitals in the area.

While Clark left the building to check which hospitals needed the radium the most, Jimmy searched for news stories. He was met by Swami Rami, who asked Jimmy if they had met in a past life. Swami took Jimmy to his studio and hooked him up to a machine that would allow Olsen to relive past lives. Jimmy went into a trance induced sleep.

His first past life was in ancient Egypt, where Chief Perri of the Weekly Hieroglyphic sent him in search of the rogue thief Pyramid Petrus. After Jhimmie found Petrus' hideout, he summoned Samson with his signal horn. Samson demolished the hideout, and only found two stone chests and a note left by Petrus, If you open the wrong chest, a nest of poisonous serpents will spring forth. Which chest am I in? Jhimmie flipped a coin to decide which one to open, but he woke up before he could decide. (Isn't that always the case when you dream?)

Jimmy's second past life was in ancient Greece, where Chief Whiteus sent Jymius to capture a giant lion which was roaming the nearby hills, for a news report for the scrolls. Jymius tracked the giant lion to a cliff, but it was too wide for him to jump over. He used his signal flute to summon Hercules, who uprooted a tree to use it as a bridge. Once across, Hercules was able to find the giant lion and quickly subdue it. They had become lost, and Jymius flipped a coin to decide the correct path to take. Jimmy awoke before he found the right one.

His third and final past life adventure took place in Scandinavia during the era of the Vikings. The Chief sent Jimmy the Red to find the Viking Pirate treasure. Jimmy used his signal gong to summon Thor, who used his hammer to smash through icebergs to clear their path. Jimmy flipped a coin to find the right course to avoid the whirlpool fjord, but he awoke before he could find the treasure.

Swami Rami informed Jimmy that he would need more radium in order for him to explore his past lives fully. Jimmy returned to the Daily Planet to borrow the lead container of radium, intending to return it. Clark happened to be using his telescopic vision to keep an eye on the radium, and saw Jimmy removing it. When it became obvious to Clark that Jimmy was taking it to the Swami, he sprang into action as Superman.

Swami hooked Jimmy to the machine again, and intended to leave with the stolen radium as soon as Jimmy had been put into a hypnotic trance. Superman spoiled his plans by crashing into his studio and smashing the machine. The Man of Steel exposed the Swami as "Con" Conners, and explained to Jimmy Conners' scam, without explaining how he had discovered it.

After Superman returned to his apartment as Clark Kent, he thought to himself how Conners had tried the same scam on him. Clark wondered how he could have had past lives on Earth if he had been born on Krypton?

My first question about this story was, if Clark was aware of Conners' scam, why didn't he set up a sting with the police to nab Conners before Jimmy fell victim to the same scam? I guess writer Otto Binder would then have had to write another story to meet his deadline instead of this one.

In this story, Jimmy was extremely gullible, reminding me a little bit of Jack Larson's portrayal of Olsen in the 1950's Adventures Of Superman TV show. I thought he became very misguided, willing to borrow the radium in an obsessive search for knowledge about past lives. He could have been fired by Perry White for "borrowing" the radium.

Jimmy's dreams seemed to indicate a fixation about Superman. While, as the end of the story showed, the Swami's machine suggested Jimmy's adventures of past lives, it's unclear if the appearance of a powerful hero came from hypnotic suggestion or Jimmy's own relationship with Superman. These adventures were humorous, showing Jimmy in much the same job he had in real life.

While "Swami" Conners appeared in a golden or orangish skin tone in most of the story, beginning on page six of the story, his skin tone was colored green. After Superman exposed Conner, he looked funny with his face painted a different color than his normal skin tone exposed after Superman removed his turban.

I did a brief search on Wikipedia about radium, and discovered that it is a very radioactive element. Since it's chemical structure is similar to calcium, the human body metabolizes it into bone, causing bone related illnesses. While it does have scientific and medical applications, it would be very unlikely that a newspaper would be entrusted to distribute such a dangerous element to needy hospitals, if only for liability reasons. Another internet search revealed that $25,000 in 1956 is worth $203,458.02 in 2011.

Overall, this was a good average silver age story, but because of Jimmy's selfish actions with the valuable radium, I have to give this story 2 Superman Capes out of 5.

The Boy Of Steel began with Lois performing her usual morning ritual of making everyone in the office hot cocoa (which we see for the first time in this story). She accidentally spilled the cup she made for Jimmy on the back of his shirt, but he acted as if he didn't notice. He continued typing his latest news report while eating some space berries Superman had brought from an alien planet. Lois tried cutting a lock of his hair, with no success, then tried the ultimate test of invulnerability by hitting him on the back of the head with her shoe.

Lois shared her suspicion with a skeptical Clark that Jimmy had somehow become invulnerable. Clark got a surprise of his own when an ash from someone else's cigarette caused a fire in Kent's trashcan, while his foot was resting on it. Clark had also been eating some of the space berries, and for once Lois suspected the space berries of giving someone invulnerability, instead of suspecting Clark was Superman, much to his belief.

After Jimmy left the building, Clark changed into Superman to follow him and attempt to solve this mystery. Superman arrived on the scene after Jimmy had been knocked into a light pole by a car. Jimmy was unhurt, but the car and pole were damaged. Jimmy tested his new found invulnerability by attempting to stab himself in the hand with a knife, breaking the blade, and smashing a brick on top of his head.

Jimmy began using his new ability for the public good, rescuing someone from a fire, moving a fallen power line away from people and taking the brunt of a falling cornice on top of his head.

In an ironic twist, Clark covered Jimmy's super deeds, instead of the other way around. As he followed Jimmy, he noticed that Olsen had a faint glow around his body, after Jimmy walked into the shadow of a building. After returning to the Daily Planet building to research his theory, Clark confirmed that Jimmy's invulnerability was caused from the atomic bomb test he witnessed with Superman (using safety goggles of course).

Clark saw Lois pigging out on the space berries, and when she was about to stick herself with a pin, he used his x-ray vision to soften it so that it bent against her skin. Convinced she was now invulnerable also, Lois left to use her new power to find scoop some breaking news.

This presented Clark with a new problem, having to keep an eye on both of his friends. It was definitely a job for Superman. He followed Lois to the scene of an emergency, a truck carrying explosives had overturned and was on fire. Lucky for Superman, Jimmy had run to the same scene as well, so the Man of Steel was able to grab both Planet reporters and fly them to safety before the truck exploded. Superman then stepped on the feet of both of his friends to sow that they had lost their invulnerability.

Back at the Daily Planet offices, Lois and Jimmy were sad because the space berries were all gone, and they would not have super powers again, much to Clark's relief.

My first thought about this story was that DC's use of radiation to grant super powers was not as dynamic as Marvel would do just a few years later. Future Jimmy Olsen stories will have him undergo strange transformations and have various super powers. I liked how having powers didn't go to Jimmy's head, as in some past stories, but he used his new ability to follow Superman's example and protect the public.

For once, Lois found another reason for Clark not to have singed feet, other than suspecting him of being Superman. If I were Clark, I'd keep some space berries hidden in his drawer for emergencies. Clark certainly milked it in this story.

One of the few concerns about this story was about how Clark had to fool his friends to protect his secret identity. It's one of the hallmarks of silver age Superman stories, one of the staples that editor Mort Weisinger went to time and again.

Finally, when Superman saved Lois and Jimmy from the exploding truck, I couldn't help but think about the collateral damage. The two Planet reporters weren't the only people in the area, and wouldn't the explosion cause extensive property damage in the block. Couldn't Superman have saved everyone just as well by flying the truck high into the air so that it would explode harmlessly above the city?

Otherwise, I thought this was a good silver age story about a heroic Jimmy, and I give it 3 Superman Capes out of 5.

The Super Liar Of Metropolis began with Jimmy Olsen in the lobby of the Daily Planet, buying a candy bar at a store. He overheard a conversation in a phone booth next to the store. The man on the phone was telling someone to set up the lie detector for Jimmy Olsen.

Jimmy rushed to his office and took a lie serum that, according to its label, would last for three hours. Superman had captured it from a crook who had created the formula so that fellow criminals could foil police lie detector tests. Jimmy found that it worked all too well.

When Perry asked Jimmy if his latest story was good, he responded that it was one of the worst he ever wrote. White ripped it up without even reading it, causing Jimmy to write another one.

Later, Jimmy turned down tickets to a game from Lois, and a date from a famous actress. When Superman flew to the Daily Planet offices and noticed a sad looking Olsen, Jimmy said nothing was wrong. He then told the Man of Steel that the midtown bridge was collapsing.

Superman immediately flew there, only to find the bridge was undamaged, but he did save a painter who fell from his scaffolding on the bridge.

As Jimmy left the building, he was kidnapped by gangsters, who took him to their hideout and hooked him up to a lie detector machine. The crooks grilled him about Superman's secret identity. Jimmy gave the name of the last person he would ever suspect of being the Man of Steel, Clark Kent.

Jimmy was released and he returned to the Daily Planet offices. The lie serum kept him from telling Clark he was in danger. Gangsters barged into Clark's officer, ready to test Jimmy's claim by shooting Kent. Speaking of Jimmy, he happened to be behind the door of Clark's office. A quick thinking Clark used his x-ray vision to melt the wire to a fan on his desk, causing a fire. He used his super breath to spread the smoke, obscuring the gunmen's aim, making it seem that the gunmen had started the fire themselves.

Olsen disarmed the gunmen by hitting their gun arms with an atlas, and the crooks were captured and arrested by the police. They were disgusted that they had suspected a weakling like Kent of being Superman, as he acted as if he was ready to faint after the excitement was over.

After the police took the crooks into custody, Clark had no hard feelings toward Jimmy. He realized his Pal had good motives in trying to protect Superman's true identity. Jimmy tossed the empty bottle of lie serum in the trash, having gotten a good lesson how lying was more trouble than it was worth.

This story had an interesting premise of Jimmy trying to foil a lie detector test conducted by criminals. In an ironic twist, he revealed Superman's true secret identity. A quick thinking Clark was able to cover his secret identity by starting a desk fire.

I did think it was unrealistic for Perry to rip up Jimmy's report without reading it, but maybe he was making a point to his cub reporter.

Using the lie serum created some humorous complications in Jimmy's life, losing out on game tickets and spending time with a Hollywood actress.

One unforeseen consequence of Jimmy's actions with the serum was endangering an innocent person of being suspected as Superman. Fortunately Jimmy guessed Clark, who was able to save the day and keep his secret safe.

This was another good average silver age Superman story, and I give it 3 Superman Capes out of 5.

Elsewhere in DC Comics, 35 titles carried the October or October/November 1956 cover date.

Next Episode: Superman Comic Book Cover Dated December 1959: Action Comics #259!

In 2 weeks: Superman Family Comic Book Cover Dated November/December 1956: World's Finest Comics #85!

 Check out SLIPSTREAM, a new web comic book written by jeffrey Taylor, co-host of the FROM CRISIS TO CRISIS podcast, and drawn by yours truly. Thanks to SUPERMAN HOMEPAGE .com contributor Adam Deschanel for putting the website together. http://www.clockworkcomics.co.uk/. It will begin November 2011.

Also, if you know the original publication information for a Superman story involving his alien zoo at his Fortress of Solitude, reprinted in the 1970 SUPERMAN BUMPER BOOK, a UK Superman hardcover anthology, post it in comments or through the contact information below.

You can join the SUPERMAN FAN PODCAST and MY PULL LIST groups or pages on facebook, and follow both the podcast and blog on twitter @supermanpodcast.

SUPERMAN FAN PODCAST is a proud member of thefollowing:
- The LEAGUE OF COMIC BOOK PODCASTERS athttp://www.comicbooknoise.com/league ,
The COMICS PODCAST NETWORK! - http://www.comicspodcasts.com/,
- The SUPERMAN WEBRING of websites, and
- The SUPERMAN PODCAST NETWORK athttp://fortressofbaileytude.com/supermanpodcastnetwork !

SUPERMAN FAN PODCAST is athttp://supermanfanpodcast.mypodcast.com/ . Send e-mail about this podcast to supermanfanpodcast@gmail.com.

The theme of this podcast is PLANS IN MOTION, composed by Kevin MacLeod, and part of the royalty free music library at http://incompetech.com.

MY PULL LIST is my spoiler free comic book review blog of the titles I read every week. It can be found at http://mypulllist.blogspot.com/. Send e-mail about this blog to mypulllist@gmail.com.

Superman and all related characters are trademark and copyright DC Comics. Any art shown on this podcast is for entertainment purposes only, and not for profit.

Thanks for listening to the SUPERMAN FAN PODCAST and, as always, thanks to Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster.