Action Comics #1
Action Comics #1 is the issue that crystallized what a superhero could be, introducing Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster's Superman — the template from which virtually every costumed, super-powered champion of the oppressed who followed was drawn. Published on April 18, 1938, by National Allied Publications (a corporate predecessor of DC Comics), it arrived at a moment when comic books were still largely reprinting newspaper strips, and it redefined the medium as a home for original, boldly imaginative storytelling. Beyond Superman himself, the issue also delivered the first appearance of Lois Lane and the magical crime-fighter Zatara, whose backwards-speech spellcasting would eventually pass to his daughter Zatanna and become one of DC's most enduring magical traditions. The cover image of Superman hoisting a car over his head — chosen almost by accident by publisher Jack Liebowitz because it looked most thrilling — became one of the most homaged and parodied images in the history of graphic art.
The story that launched a superhero revolution begins here: "Superman Origin" introduces the Man of Steel in his very first appearance, a landmark moment in comic history. Written by Jerry Siegel and brought to life with bold, definitive art by Joe Shuster—pencils, inks, and lettering all by the co-creator—this iconic debut follows Superman as he uses his powers to protect the innocent, from stopping a violent assault to thwarting a political conspiracy. The cover, also by Joe Shuster, captures the moment the world first saw the symbol of hope.
In "The Coming of Superman," a mysterious stranger with incredible powers steps in to save lives and expose injustice—first stopping an execution, then confronting a violent man in the streets. As Clark Kent, he shares a date with Lois Lane, drawing the jealousy of Butch Matson, while secretly preparing for a dangerous assignment in the South American republic of San Monte. There, he uncovers a conspiracy in Washington DC involving Senator Barrows and lobbyist Alex Greer, who may be pushing the U.S. into war in Europe.
In "The 4-G Gang, Part 1," Chuck takes up the fight against the corrupt ranch owners who swindled the land he inherited from his father, setting out on a dangerous path of justice in the dusty frontier. With grit and determination, he confronts the powerful men who’ve stolen his family’s legacy, beginning a showdown that promises to shake the heart of the western range.
In the first episode of Action Comics #1, Marco, his father, and his uncle are granted an audience with the new Pope, setting in motion a journey to fulfill a request from the Khan of Tartary for priests and men of learning. The story unfolds with a quiet urgency, grounding its epic scope in the personal stakes of a family bound by duty.
In "The International Jewel Thief," a notorious criminal arrives in America under guard, but his escape is just the beginning of a high-stakes chase. Scoop and Rusty find themselves in the middle of the action as the thief vanishes into the shadows, aided by a hidden gang ready to strike.
ComicBooks.com Value
Show all 18 grades ▾
More listings for this title
Sell my copy
Have this issue — or a whole collection? Get a fair offer from us, skip the marketplace fees and the hassle.
We Buy Collections ▸History
The road to publication stretched back to January 1933, when a teenage Jerry Siegel wrote a prose story called 'The Reign of the Superman' featuring a bald telepathic villain; he and his Cleveland friend Joe Shuster then reconceived the character as a heroic figure from a more advanced society and spent years unsuccessfully pitching the strip to newspaper syndicates. The break came when National Allied Publications — under new co-owner Jack Liebowitz, after Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson's bankruptcy — tasked editor Vin Sullivan with assembling a fourth anthology title under a crushing deadline; Sullivan, tipped off by Sheldon Mayer to the languishing Superman strips, asked Siegel and Shuster to cut-and-paste their rejected newspaper panels into 13 comic-book pages, and the resulting story became the lead feature. Because Liebowitz wanted the most eye-catching cover, Superman's page was placed first, cementing his role as the book's flagship; the first print run of 200,000 copies sold out, though it took National some time to fully realize that the Superman installment was the engine driving sales that would soon approach one million copies a month.
Trivia · 8 facts
- First appearance of Superman (Jerry Siegel, writer; Joe Shuster, artist) — the debut of the character widely credited with establishing the superhero genre.
- First appearance of Lois Lane, Clark Kent's fellow reporter and Superman's most enduring supporting character, introduced here as a reporter at the Daily Star (later renamed the Daily Planet).
- First appearance of Zatara the Master Magician (created by Fred Guardineer), whose backwards-speech spellcasting would later be inherited by his daughter Zatanna, a major DC mystic hero introduced in 1964.
- The issue is a 64-page anthology (68 pages including covers) containing nine additional features alongside Superman: Chuck Dawson (western, by Homer Fleming), Zatara Master Magician (Fred Guardineer), a text story 'South Sea Strategy' (by Vin Sullivan under the alias Captain Frank Thomas), Sticky-Mitt Stimson (by Russell Cole, credited as Edwin Alger), The Adventures of Marco Polo (by Sven Elven), Pep Morgan (by Fred Guardineer, credited as Gene Baxter), Scoop Scanlon Five Star Reporter (by Will Ely), Tex Thomson (by Bernard Baily), and a final-page astronomy feature 'Stardust,' plus an inside-back-cover gag page by Sheldon Moldoff.
- Superman's debut story is only 13 pages; in it Clark Kent works at the Daily Star (not yet the Daily Planet), the paper is located in Cleveland rather than Metropolis, and Superman cannot yet fly — he leaps tall buildings and outruns a freight train.
- The issue was published on April 18, 1938 (cover-dated June 1938) by National Allied Publications; Jack Liebowitz later stated that placing Superman on the cover was 'pure accident,' driven entirely by the deadline need for the most compelling image.
- The first major authorized reprint appeared in 1974 as Famous First Edition C-26, an oversized reproduction including the original interior advertisements; DC followed with promotional reprints in 1976 (Safeguard soap and sleeping bag giveaways), a 50th-anniversary reprint in 1988, a U.S. Postal Service commemorative edition in 1998, a Millennium Edition in 2000, and a complete Facsimile Edition in 2022 that restored the inside covers previously omitted from earlier reprints.
- Tex Thomson (spelled 'Thomson' through Action Comics #55) is one of only two non-Superman features from this issue to sustain a long run in the title; he later evolved into a superhero identity as Mr. America and then the Americommando, while Zatara continued in Action Comics through issue #141.
Cast · 27 characters
Full credits
Reprints
Reprinted in Detective Comics #15 (1938), Detective Comics #16 (1938), Superman #[1] (1939), Superman from the Thirties to the Seventies #[nn] (1971), Secret Origins #1 (1973), Stålmannen jubileumsalbum #[nn] (1974), Supermann #2/1974 (1974), Famous First Edition #C-26 (1974), Action Comics [Safeguard Deodorant Giveaway] #1 (1976), Action Comics [Superman Sleeping Bag] #1 (1976), Lynvingen #2/1976 (1976), Supermann #2/1976 (1976), Superboy #3/1976 (1976), Secret Origins of the Super DC Heroes #[nn] (1976), Secret Origins of the Super DC Heroes #[nn] (1976), The Golden Age of Comic Books #[nn] (1977), Stålmannen #9/1979 (1979), A Smithsonian Book of Comic-Book Comics #[nn] (1981), Rampage Monthly #52 (1982), Action Comics [Nestlé Quik 10¢ Cover] #1 (1983), Action Comics [Superman Peanut Butter] #1 (1983), Superman from the Thirties to the Eighties #[nn] (1983), Superserien #9/1984 (1984), The American Comic Book #[nn] (1985) + 36 more
Key issues in Action Comics
Reviews
Reader reviews
No reader reviews yet.