The Golden Age: 1938-1955

Cultures:

* Egyptian/Mesopotamian* Classical (Greek/Roman)* Judeo-Christian* Norse mythology

Predecessors:

* Sherlock Holmes (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)* Tarzan* Zorro* The Shadow* Doc Savage* Hugo Danner (Gladiator, by Philip Wylie)

Creators/Important names:

* Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster* Bob Kane and Bill Finger* William Moulton (Charles) Marston* Martin Goodman* Joe Simon and Jack Kirby* Stanley Lieber* Maxwell (M.C.) Gaines* William “Bill” Gaines* Harvey Kurtzman* Dr. Fredric Wertham

Companies:

* National/D.C.* Marvel/Timely* Fawcett* E.C.

Heroes/Heroines:

* Dr. Occult (DC)* Superman (DC) * Batman (DC) * The Human Torch (Marvel)* Sub-Mariner (Marvel)* The Spectre (DC)

* Captain Marvel (Fawcett) * The Flash (All-American)* Green Lantern (All-American)* Hawkman (All-American)* Wonder Woman (All-American) * Plastic Man (Quality)* Captain America (Marvel)

(The five underlined superheroes are those I expect you to know the most about: who created them; their historical antecedents; their powers (or lack thereof); the way they were marketed; and the way their characters changed during this time.

For example: I would expect you to know that Superman shares some similarities to Hugo Dan-ner; that he also shares several qualities with Moses; and that in his original incarnation by Siegel and Shuster, he was evil.)

Concepts:

* Comics’ origins in pulp magazines and men’s magazines (like Stag)* The move from comic books as collections of newspaper strips to original content* Early creators and the struggle for credit* The “copycat” nature of early superheroes* The target audience of comic books* Messiahs (defenders) vs Golems (avengers)* Comic books as propaganda* Racism/sexism in comic books* The growth of comics during the Golden Age (including numbers)* The birth of the teenager* The popularity of superheroes as it waxed and waned in the postwar era* The Red Scare and its effect on comics* The challenges of censorship and the reasons it was proposed* The two waves of comic censorship: legislative and popular* The rise of E.C. and its effect on comics (including MAD) — especially superheroes* The Comics Code Authority (compared to the Hays Code)* The two major competitors of comic books through the 1950s and 1960s* Distribution* Licensing (including examples of what can happen when you give away control of a character)* Deontology, utilitarianism, and virtue ethics