SUPERMAN 1939 JERRY SIEGEL INTERNAL MEMO Memorabilia
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Superman Creator Jerry Siegel Plagiarism Internal Letter - Philip Wylie Gladiator Lawsuit Threat
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Superman Creator Jerry Siegel Plagiarism Internal Letter - Philip Wylie Gladiator Lawsuit Threat
DESCRIPTION
A 15% BUYER'S PREMIUM WILL BE ADDED TO THIS ITEM AT CONCLUSION OF THE AUCTION
Superman Creator Jerry Siegel Plagiarism Internal Letter - Philip Wylie Gladiator Lawsuit ThreatThis rare internal document from 1939 provides an inside look at how National Comics (later DC) confronted the first legal threat after the unprecedented success of Superman in Action Comics #1--as publishers feared a lawsuit accusing co-creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster of plagiarism!
Sci-fans were quick to note that Siegel and Shuster's creation had some resemblance to the lead character of Philip Wylie's acclaimed Gladiator novel from 1930. Less than a year after Superman debuted in Action Comics #1, National Comics executive Jack Liebowitz was sending this letter to writer Jerry Siegel.
This original in-office copy of the National memo is dated March 10, 1939, and provides what might be the first confirmation that Wylie had actually acted upon his threats of a lawsuit. Liebowtiz begins the letter by noting that Siegel had provided a "comparison between the Gladiator and Superman" that "was quite to the point"--nothing that National had been dealing with an "attorney handling this case." (National executive Harry Donenfeld would later mock Siegel for plagiarizing from Wiley amidst some cruel correspondence.)
In another revealing statement, Liebowitz adds that the same attorney is also representing George Bernard Shaw. This provides the first indication that the playwright had ever addressed National over their character being reminiscent of the title of his acclaimed play "Man and Superman."
Liebowitz warns that Wylie's claims "is liable to be a tough case." Officially, however, there has never been anything to indicate that National ever settled with the acclaimed sci-fi author--before the unearthing of this rare artifact from the year that changed comics history.
Superman Creator Jerry Siegel Plagiarism Internal Letter - Philip Wylie Gladiator Lawsuit ThreatThis rare internal document from 1939 provides an inside look at how National Comics (later DC) confronted the first legal threat after the unprecedented success of Superman in Action Comics #1--as publishers feared a lawsuit accusing co-creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster of plagiarism!
Sci-fans were quick to note that Siegel and Shuster's creation had some resemblance to the lead character of Philip Wylie's acclaimed Gladiator novel from 1930. Less than a year after Superman debuted in Action Comics #1, National Comics executive Jack Liebowitz was sending this letter to writer Jerry Siegel.
This original in-office copy of the National memo is dated March 10, 1939, and provides what might be the first confirmation that Wylie had actually acted upon his threats of a lawsuit. Liebowtiz begins the letter by noting that Siegel had provided a "comparison between the Gladiator and Superman" that "was quite to the point"--nothing that National had been dealing with an "attorney handling this case." (National executive Harry Donenfeld would later mock Siegel for plagiarizing from Wiley amidst some cruel correspondence.)
In another revealing statement, Liebowitz adds that the same attorney is also representing George Bernard Shaw. This provides the first indication that the playwright had ever addressed National over their character being reminiscent of the title of his acclaimed play "Man and Superman."
Liebowitz warns that Wylie's claims "is liable to be a tough case." Officially, however, there has never been anything to indicate that National ever settled with the acclaimed sci-fi author--before the unearthing of this rare artifact from the year that changed comics history.