History of Superman - The Silver Age

The Silver Age

Comic historians disagree on when exactly the "Silver age of comic books" began, but most would place it at either 1955 (with the introduction of J'onn Jonzz, the Martian Manhunter) or 1956, with the introduction of Barry Allen, the second Flash. The latter introduced what would become a new trend for DC: new versions of old heroes. This Flash had the same powers as his predecessor, but a different costume, identity, origin, etc. Other Silver Age successors of Golden Age heroes would surface in time. This Flash also introduced the concept of Earth-2, which is a parallel dimension in which all of the old heroes lived. In time, there would be a Superman on Earth-2 to explain some of his inconsistencies (see Kal-L). The Superman readers would see from the 1960s onwards until COIE was the Superman of Earth-One.

Under the editorship of Mort Weisinger, the 1950s and early 1960s oversaw a major expansion of the character's mythos with such memorable foes as Brainiac and Bizarro appearing, as well as the arrival of his cousin Kara—also known as Supergirl--and the formation of the Justice League of America. Despite this, the 1960s would be a gloomy decade for Superman. Foreshadowing this, in 1959, George Reeves, the actor who had embodied the Man of Steel in the 1950s Adventures of Superman television series allegedly took his own life. Two Superman related pilots, The Adventures of Superpup (1958) and The Adventures of Superboy (1961), failed. In 1966, a lavish Broadway musical entitled It's a Bird...It's a Plane...It's Superman premiered with actor Bob Holiday in the title role. Despite generally positive reviews from critics, the musical was a financial failure and ended its run after only 129 performances. In contrast to this, 1966 also saw the arrival of a successful Saturday morning animated series entitled The New Adventures of Superman.

Meanwhile, in the comics, by the mid 1960s, Superman was facing more competition for consumer appeal than ever before. Batman had come out of the shadows, so to speak, and become a marketing bonanza, thanks in part to his own television series, which had much higher production values than the Adventures of Superman television series. Also, a rival company called Marvel Comics had unleashed a myriad of new characters including The Incredible Hulk, The Fantastic Four and Spider-Man whose more sophisticated characterization encouraged more compelling storytelling. Superman remained popular and viable, but he was no longer alone.

During the 1940s and 1950s, the Superman mythos gradually added familiar elements firmly established by the late 1950s, such as greater emphasis on the science fiction elements of Superman's world, including his Kryptonian origins as well as an updated version of his origins.

In the version that became established by the early 1960s (and memorably summarized at the start of each episode of the 1950s Adventures of Superman television series), Superman is born on Krypton as Kal-El, the son of Jor-El (a leader-scientist) and Lara. When Kal-El is two or three years-old, Jor-El learns that Krypton is doomed to explode. He brings this warning to the Science Council, Krypton's rulers. The Science Council refuses to warn their fellow Kryptonians and forbids Jor-El to do so. Jor-El immediately begins work on a rocket that will allow the whole family to escape the coming disaster; however, events move too quickly, and only a small model is completed by the time of the final quakes. Lara stays by her husband's side rather than accompany Kal-El to Earth so that his ship will have a better chance of surviving the trip. Knowing that Earth's lower gravity and yellow sun will give the boy extraordinary powers, Jor-El launches Kal-El's rocketship toward Earth moments before Krypton explodes.

Kal-El's ship lands in a field near the town of Smallville and is discovered by Jonathan and Martha Kent. They name the child Clark after Martha's maiden name. After formally adopting him, the Kents raise him. The Kents discover his amazing powers and train their adopted son to use his powers constructively. At the age of eight, Clark adopts the superhero identity "Superboy" and fights crime, both in the present and in the far future as a member of the Legion of Super-Heroes. After his graduation from high school and the death of his adoptive parents, Clark moves to Metropolis to attend Metropolis University. During his junior year, Clark changes his superhero name to "Superman". After graduating with a degree in journalism, Clark is hired by the Daily Planet.