Samson is a fictional superhero that appeared in comic books published by Fox Feature Syndicate. He first appeared in ''

Fantastic Comics ''Fantastic Comics'' was an American comic book superhero anthology title published by Fox Feature Syndicate during the Golden Age of Comic Books. The title introduced the characters Banshee, Black Fury (John Perry), Nagana, Queen of Evil, Samson, ...

'' #1 (Dec. 1939). The writer was uncredited, but is believed to be

Will Eisner William Erwin Eisner (March 6, 1917 – January 3, 2005) was an American cartoonist, writer, and entrepreneur. He was one of the earliest cartoonists to work in the American comic book industry, and his series '' The Spirit'' (1940–1952) was no ...

; the artist was

Alex Blum Alexander Anthony Blum (February 7, 1889 – September 1969) was a Hungarian-American comic book artist best remembered for his contributions in the 1940s and 1950s to the long-running comic book series ''Classics Illustrated''. Biography Born ...

, using the

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...

"Alex Boon".

Publication history

After appearing in ''Fantastic Comics'' in 1939, Samson was given his own title in the fall of 1940. He simultaneously appeared in ''Big 3'' comics, along with The Flame and the

Blue Beetle Blue Beetle is the name of three fictional superheroes who appear in a number of American comic books published by a variety of companies since 1939. The most recent of the companies to own rights to Blue Beetle is DC Comics, which bought the ri ...

. Samson's origin story was revealed in ''Samson'' comics #1. ''Fantastic Comics'' ceased publication in November 1941 with issue #23. After six issues, ''Samson'' comics was changed to ''Captain Aero'' (September 1941) and Samson no longer had his own title. Finally, Samson was replaced in ''Big 3'' comics in issue #7 (Jan. 1942; this issue proved to be last) by the patriotic hero V-Man. A short-lived revival appeared in 1955 from another publisher, Ajax-Farrell. Samson is among the

public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work to which no exclusive intellectual property rights apply. Those rights may have expired, been forfeited, expressly waived, or may be inapplicable. Because those rights have expired, ...

characters Image Comics revived in a new anthology title, '' The Next Issue Project'', which premiered in December 2007. ''

Project Superpowers ''Project Superpowers'' is a comic book limited series published by Dynamite Entertainment beginning January 2008. It was co-plotted by Jim Krueger and Alex Ross, with scripts by Jim Krueger, covers by Alex Ross, and interior art by Doug Klaub ...

'', a similar golden-age revival project from Alex Ross and

Dynamite Entertainment Dynamite Entertainment is an American comic book publisher founded by Nick Barrucci in 2004 at Mount Laurel, New Jersey. It is best known as the owners of '' The Boys'' franchise across several IP medias. Dynamite primarily publishes adaptations ...

also announced in 2007, also features a character that is ostensibly the Fox Features Samson, though the visual design seems to have been inspired by the

Gold Key Comics Gold Key Comics was originally an imprint of American company Western Publishing, created for comic books distributed to newsstands. Also known as Whitman Comics, Gold Key operated this way from 1962 to 1984. Currently, Gold Key Comics is owned b ...

character Mighty Samson.

Background

Samson (he had no secret identity, although he was called "Sam" the few times he was shown wearing street clothes) was a direct descendant of the biblical figure. Like his ancestor, Samson had immense strength and endurance, but could lose his powers when his hair was cut. Samson only learned about his heritage when he was a grown man, after his mother revealed his ancestry. While in college, his friend Professor Brun showed him a new invention, an "iconoscope", which allowed the viewer to watch remote scenes without a transmitter. The iconoscope picked up the image of an eastern holy man, who was praying for a higher power to send someone to battle evil. Samson used his superpowers to visit the holy man, and agreed to be that champion. According to ''Jess Nevins' Encyclopedia of Golden Age Superheroes'', Samson fights "giant robots, monsters, mad scientists, thugs, dinosaurs, dictators, warmongers, zombies, and radium thieves". Kurt Mitchell and Roy Thomas wrote: "Pitting his superhuman strength against whole armies, Samson's feats outdid the contemporary Superman but he was far more ruthless, killing his foes barehanded without batting an eye". In issue #10 of ''Fantastic Comics'', Samson gained a young orphan sidekick whom he named David (his real name was unrevealed). David had no apparent superpowers yet was the sole survivor of a plane crash. Orphaned after the crash, Samson took him into his care. David's role mainly consisted of being rescued by Samson after being captured by criminals.

Powers and abilities

Samson, due to his relation to the Biblical character, had super strength and endurance, and invulnerability. He lost these powers if his hair was cut. These powers were restored once his hair regrew. Samson's hair grew at an accelerated rate.

Footnotes

References

Background on Samson and other Fox heroes
{{Samson Dynamite Entertainment characters Fox Feature Syndicate superheroes Fox Feature Syndicate titles Comics characters introduced in 1939 Golden Age superheroes Public domain comics