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Doc Savage is a fictional character of the competent man hero type, who first appeared in American
pulp magazine Pulp magazines (also referred to as "the pulps") were inexpensive fiction magazines that were published from 1896 until around 1955. The term "pulp" derives from the Pulp (paper), wood pulp paper on which the magazines were printed, due to their ...
s during the 1930s and 1940s. Real name Clark Savage Jr., he is a
polymath A polymath or polyhistor is an individual whose knowledge spans many different subjects, known to draw on complex bodies of knowledge to solve specific problems. Polymaths often prefer a specific context in which to explain their knowledge, ...
ic
scientist A scientist is a person who Scientific method, researches to advance knowledge in an Branches of science, area of the natural sciences. In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, philosophers engag ...
,
explorer Exploration is the process of exploring, an activity which has some Expectation (epistemic), expectation of Discovery (observation), discovery. Organised exploration is largely a human activity, but exploratory activity is common to most organis ...
, detective, and
warrior A warrior is a guardian specializing in combat or warfare, especially within the context of a tribal society, tribal or clan-based warrior culture society that recognizes a separate warrior aristocracy, social class, class, or caste. History ...
who "rights wrongs and punishes evildoers." He was created by publisher Henry W. Ralston and editor John L. Nanovic at Street & Smith Publications, with additional material contributed by the series' main writer, Lester Dent. Doc Savage stories were published under the Kenneth Robeson name. The illustrations were by Walter Baumhofer, Paul Orban, Emery Clarke, Modest Stein, and Robert G. Harris. The heroic-adventure character would go on to appear in other media, including radio, film, and comic books, with his adventures reprinted for modern-day audiences in a series of paperback books, which had sold over 20 million copies by 1979. Into the 21st century, Doc Savage has remained a nostalgic icon in the U.S., referenced in novels and
popular culture Popular culture (also called pop culture or mass culture) is generally recognized by members of a society as a set of cultural practice, practices, beliefs, artistic output (also known as popular art
f. pop art F is the sixth letter of the Latin alphabet. F may also refer to: Science and technology Mathematics * F or f, the number 15 (number), 15 in hexadecimal and higher positional systems * ''p'F'q'', the hypergeometric function * F-distributi ...
or mass art, sometimes contraste ...
. Longtime
Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is a New York City–based comic book publishing, publisher, a property of the Walt Disney Company since December 31, 2009, and a subsidiary of Disney Publishing Worldwide since March 2023. Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin G ...
editor
Stan Lee Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber ; December 28, 1922 – November 12, 2018) was an American comic book author, writer, editor, publisher, and producer. He rose through the ranks of a family-run business called Timely Comics which later bec ...
credited Doc Savage as being the forerunner to modern superheroes.


Publication history

'' Doc Savage Magazine'' was printed by Street & Smith from March 1933 to the summer of 1949 to capitalize on the success of '' The Shadow'' magazine and followed by the original '' Avenger'' in September 1939. In all, 181 issues were published in various entries and alternative titles. Doc Savage became known to a new generation of readers when Bantam Books began reprinting the individual magazine novels in 1964, this time with covers by artist James Bama that featured a bronze-haired, bronze-skinned Doc Savage with an exaggerated widows' peak, usually wearing a torn khaki shirt and under the by-line "Kenneth Robeson". The stories were not reprinted in chronological order as originally published, though they did begin with the first adventure, ''The Man of Bronze''. By 1967, Bantam was publishing once a month until 1990, when all 181 original stories (plus an unpublished novel, ''The Red Spider'') had run their course. Author Will Murray produced seven more Doc Savage novels for Bantam Books from Lester Dent's original outlines. Bantam also published a novel by
Philip José Farmer Philip José Farmer (January 26, 1918 – February 25, 2009) was an American author known for his science fiction and fantasy fiction, fantasy novels and short story, short stories. Obituary. Farmer is best known for two sequences of novels, t ...
, ''Escape From Loki'' (1991), which told the story of how in
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
Doc met the men who would become his five comrades. Clark Savage Jr. first appeared in March 1933 in the first issue of ''Doc Savage Magazine''. Because of the success of the Shadow, who had his own pulp magazine, the publishers Street & Smith quickly launched this pulp title. Unlike the Shadow, Clark Savage, "Doc" to his friends, had no special powers but was raised from birth by his father and other scientists to become one of the most perfect human beings in terms of strength, intelligence, and physical abilities. Doc Savage set up base on the 86th floor of a world-famous New York skyscraper (implied, but never outright stated, as the
Empire State Building The Empire State Building is a 102-story, Art Deco-style supertall skyscraper in the Midtown South neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, United States. The building was designed by Shreve, Lamb & Harmon and built from 1930 to 1931. Its n ...
; Phillip José Farmer, in his '' Doc Savage: His Apocalyptic Life'', gives good evidence that this is likely the case). Doc Savage fights against evil with the assistance of the "Fabulous Five".


Comics, films, pulp magazines

Doc Savage has appeared in comics and a movie, on radio, and as a character in numerous other works, and continues to inspire authors and artists in the realm of fantastic adventure. ''Doc Savage Magazine'' was created by Street & Smith Publications executive Henry Ralston and editor John Nanovic to capitalize on the success of Street and Smith's pulp character, The Shadow. Ralston and Nanovic wrote a short premise establishing the broad outlines of the character they envisioned, but Doc Savage was only fully realized by the author chosen to write the series, Lester Dent. Dent wrote most of the 181 original novels, hidden behind the " house name" of Kenneth Robeson. (See List of Doc Savage novels for a complete list of the titles in the original pulp magazine series.) One Lester Dent biographer hypothesizes that one inspiration for Doc Savage may have been the American military officer and author Richard Henry Savage, who wrote more than 40 books of adventure and mystery stories and lived a dashing and daring life. The character first appeared on screen in a 1975 film, '' Doc Savage: The Man of Bronze''. It was announced on May 30, 2016, that Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson would be playing Clark "Doc" Savage, billed as the "World's First Superhero", and the film would be directed by Shane Black with a script by Anthony Bagarozzi and Chuck Mondry. In 2020, the concept was changed from a film to a television show.


Fictional character biography

A team of scientists assembled by his father deliberately trained his mind and body to near- superhuman abilities almost from birth, giving him great strength and endurance, a photographic memory, a mastery of the
martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; ...
, and vast knowledge of the sciences. Doc is also a master of disguise and an excellent imitator of voices. He is a
physician A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...
, scientist, adventurer, detective, inventor, explorer, researcher, and, as revealed in ''The Polar Treasure'', a musician. Dent described the hero as a mix of
Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a Detective fiction, fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a "Private investigator, consulting detective" in his stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with obser ...
' deductive abilities, Tarzan's outstanding physical abilities, Craig Kennedy's scientific education, and
Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War ...
's goodness. He also described Doc Savage as manifesting "
Christ Jesus ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Christianity, central figure of Christianity, the M ...
liness." Doc's character and world-view is displayed in his oath, which goes as follows: By the third story, Doc already has a reputation as a "superman".


Doc Savage's aides

Savage is accompanied on his adventures by up to five other regular characters (referred to in the 1975 movie and in marketing materials from the Bantam Books republication as "The Fabulous Five"), all highly accomplished individuals in their own right. * Lieutenant Colonel Andrew Blodgett "Monk" Mayfair, an industrial chemist. Monk got his nickname from his simian build, notably his long arms, and his covering of red hair. He is in a constant state of "friendly feuding" with "Ham" Brooks. This began when his friend taught him some French words to say to an officer and Monk repeated them, not knowing they were a string of insults. The result was a lengthy stay in the guardhouse. * Brigadier General Theodore Marley "Ham" Brooks, an accomplished attorney. Ham is considered one of the best-dressed men in the world, and as part of his attire, carries a sword cane whose blade is dipped in a fast-acting anesthetic. His nickname was acquired when Monk, in retaliation for his guardhouse incarceration, framed Brooks on a charge of stealing hams from the commissary. In the only case which Ham ever lost, he was convicted of stealing the hams. *
Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...
John "Renny" Renwick, a construction engineer. Renny is a giant of a man, with "fists like buckets of gristle and bone." His favorite pastime is knocking the panels out of heavy wooden doors. He always wears a look of depression, which deepens the happier he grows. His favorite—and frequently used—expression, is "Holy Cow!" * Major Thomas J. "Long Tom" Roberts, an
electrical engineer Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the study, design, and application of equipment, devices, and systems that use electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It emerged as an identifiable occupation in the l ...
. "Long Tom" got his nickname from using an antiquated cannon of that nickname in the successful defense of a French village in World War I. Long Tom was a sickly-looking character but fought like a wildcat. * William Harper "Johnny" Littlejohn, an
archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...
and
geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the structure, composition, and History of Earth, history of Earth. Geologists incorporate techniques from physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, and geography to perform research in the Field research, ...
. Johnny has an impressive vocabulary, never using a small word when a big one could suffice. ("I'll be superamalgamated!" is a favorite expression.) Johnny wore eyeglasses with a magnifying lens over his left eye in early adventures—that eye having been damaged in World War I. Doc later performed corrective surgery that restored Johnny's sight in that eye, but Johnny retained the magnifier as a monocle for use both as a magnifying glass and as a memento. In later stories, Doc's companions become less important to the plot as the stories focus more on Doc. The "missing" characters are explained as working elsewhere, too busy with their own accomplishments to help. Toward the end of the series, usually only Monk and Ham appear with Doc. Doc's cousin Patricia "Pat" Savage, who has Doc's bronze skin, golden eyes, and bronze hair, also is along for many of the adventures, despite Doc's best efforts to keep her away from danger. Pat chafes under these restrictions, or indeed any effort to protect her simply because she is female. She is also able to fluster Doc, even as she completely charms Monk and Ham.


The 86th Floor

Doc's office is on the 86th floor of a New York City skyscraper, implicitly the
Empire State Building The Empire State Building is a 102-story, Art Deco-style supertall skyscraper in the Midtown South neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, United States. The building was designed by Shreve, Lamb & Harmon and built from 1930 to 1931. Its n ...
, reached by Doc's private high-speed elevator. Doc owns a fleet of cars, trucks, aircraft, and boats which he stores at a secret hangar on the Hudson River, under the name ''The Hidalgo Trading Company'', which is linked to his office by a pneumatic-tube system nicknamed the "flea run". He sometimes retreats to his Fortress of Solitude in the
Arctic The Arctic (; . ) is the polar regions of Earth, polar region of Earth that surrounds the North Pole, lying within the Arctic Circle. The Arctic region, from the IERS Reference Meridian travelling east, consists of parts of northern Norway ( ...
, which pre-dates
Superman Superman is a superhero created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, which first appeared in the comic book ''Action Comics'' Action Comics 1, #1, published in the United States on April 18, 1938.The copyright date of ''Action Comics ...
's similar hideout of the same name. The entire operation is funded with gold from a
Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...
n mine given to him by the local descendants of the
Maya people Maya () are an ethnolinguistic group of Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica. The ancient Maya civilization was formed by members of this group, and today's Maya are generally descended from people who lived w ...
in the first ''Doc Savage'' story. (Doc and his assistants learned the little-known Mayan language of this people at the same time, allowing them to communicate privately when others might be listening.)


Technology

Lester Dent kept current with the scientific developments of his era. While some of Doc's gadgets were simply science fiction many of his 'futuristic' devices were actual inventions, or ideas engineers were attempting to produce. Futuristic devices described in the series include the flying wing, the answering machine,
television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...
,
automatic transmission An automatic transmission (AT) or automatic gearbox is a multi-speed transmission (mechanics), transmission used in motor vehicles that does not require any input from the driver to change forward gears under normal driving conditions. The 1904 ...
, night vision goggles, electromagnetic rail guns, and a hand-held automatic weapon, known variously as the machine pistol, the supermachine pistol, or the rapid-firer. A wide range of ammunition types were used for the machine pistols, including incendiary bullets that smash on contact, coating the target with a high-temperature paste-fed fire, high explosive bullets able to uproot trees, ordinary lead bullets, and the sleep-inducing "mercy bullets". Doc also developed an automated typewriter.


Villains

Doc's greatest foe, and the only enemy to appear in two of the original pulp stories, was the Russian-born John Sunlight, introduced in October 1938 in the ''Fortress of Solitude''. Early villains in the "super-sagas" were fantastic schemers bent on ruling the world. Later, the magazine was retitled ''Doc Savage, Science Detective'', and Doc dealt with more conventional criminal organizations. The super-saga was revived in 1948 by new editor Daisy Bacon shortly before the final cancellation of the magazine. In a September 20, 1948, letter to Lester Dent, Bacon wrote "As long as we are dropping the science detective and returning to just Doc Savage, I think we should return to a real adventure story..." A key characteristic of the Doc Savage stories is that the threats, no matter how fantastic, usually have a rational explanation. For example, a giant mountain-walking spider is revealed as a blimp, a scorching death comes from super-charged electric batteries, a "sea angel" is a mechanical construct towed by a submarine, Navy ships sunk by a mysterious force are actually sabotaged, and so on. But Doc Savage also battles invisible killers, a murderous teleporter, and superscientific foes from the center of the Earth. In earlier stories, some of the criminals captured by Doc receive "a delicate brain operation" to cure their criminal tendencies. These criminals return to society, unaware of their past, to lead productive lives. The operation is mentioned in
Truman Capote Truman Garcia Capote ( ; born Truman Streckfus Persons; September 30, 1924 – August 25, 1984) was an American novelist, screenwriter, playwright, and actor. Several of his short stories, novels, and plays have been praised as literary classics ...
's novel '' In Cold Blood'', as an older Kansan recalls Doc's "fixing" of the criminals he had caught.


Lester Dent

Lester Dent, the series' principal author, had a mixed regard for his own creations. Though usually protective of his own work, he could be derisive of his pulp output. In interviews, he stated that he harbored no illusions of being a high-quality author of literature; for him, the Doc Savage series was simply a job, a way to earn a living by "churning out reams and reams of sellable crap", never dreaming how his series would catch on. Comics historian Jim Steranko revealed that Dent used a formula to write his Doc Savage stories, so that his heroes were continually, and methodically, getting in and out of trouble. Dent was initially paid $500 per story and this was later increased to $750 during the
Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
, enabling him to buy a yacht and vacation in the Caribbean.


Bibliography


Novels

All of the original stories were reprinted in paperback form by Bantam Books in the 1960s through 1990s. Of the first 67 paperback covers, 62 were painted in extraordinary monochromatic tones and super-realistic detail by James Bama, whose updated vision of Doc Savage with the exaggerated widow's peak captured, at least symbolically, the essence of the Doc Savage novels. The first 96 paperbacks reprinted one of the original novels per book. Actor and model Steve Holland, who had played '' Flash Gordon'' in a 1953 television series, was the model for Doc on all the covers. The next 15 paperbacks (consisting of stories 97 through 126 in the Bantam reissue series) were "doubles", reprinting two novels each (these were actually shorter novellas written during paper shortages of World War II). The last of the original novels were reprinted in a numbered series of 13 "omnibus" volumes of four to five stories each. It was one of the few pulp series to be completely reprinted in paperback form. ''The Red Spider'' was a Doc Savage novel written by Dent in April 1948, about the
Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...
with the Soviet Union. The story was killed in 1948 by new editor Daisy Bacon, though previous editor William de Grouchy had commissioned it. It was forgotten until 1975, when Doc Savage scholar Will Murray found hints of its existence in the Street & Smith archives. After a two-year search, the carbon manuscript was located among Dent's papers. It finally saw print in July 1979 as Number 95 in Bantam's Doc Savage series. When the original pulp stories were exhausted, Bantam Books hired
Philip José Farmer Philip José Farmer (January 26, 1918 – February 25, 2009) was an American author known for his science fiction and fantasy fiction, fantasy novels and short story, short stories. Obituary. Farmer is best known for two sequences of novels, t ...
to pen the tale of how Doc and his men met in World War I. ''Escape from Loki'' was published in 1991. It was followed by seven traditional Doc Savage stories written by novelist Will Murray, working from unpublished Lester Dent outlines, beginning with ''Python Isle.'' Philip José Farmer had earlier written the book '' Doc Savage: His Apocalyptic Life'' in 1973, which described the characters and the stories on the entertaining premise that Doc actually existed and the novels chronicled his exploits in "fictionized" form. In 2011, Altus Press revived the series with another Murray-Dent posthumous collaboration, ''The Desert Demons.'' Nine new novels are planned for the new series ''The Wild Adventures of Doc Savage''. In 2011, ''Doc Savage: Horror in Gold'' was published. In 2012, Altus Press published ''Doc Savage: Death's Dark Domain'', ''Doc Savage: The Forgotten Realm'', ''Doc Savage: The Infernal Buddha'' and ''Doc Savage: The Desert Demons''. ''Doc Savage: Skull Island'', a crossover with King Kong, was released in 2013. Murray teamed Doc up with another Street & Smith pulp-era hero, The Shadow, in Doc Savage: ''The Sinister Shadow'' (2015) and Doc Savage: ''Empire of Doom'' (2016). Sanctum Books, in association with Nostalgia Ventures, began a new series of Doc reprints (starting November 2006), featuring two novels per book, in magazine-sized paperbacks. Several editions came with a choice of the original pulp cover or the covers from the Bantam paperbacks, and most include the original interior artwork, as well as new essays and reprints of other old material. In late 2008, Nostalgia Ventures ended their relationship, and Sanctum Books continues with the reprints on their own.


Radio

Two ''Doc Savage'' radio series were broadcast during the pulp era. The first, in 1934, was a 15-minute serial which ran for 26 episodes. The 1943 series was based not on the pulps, but on the comic book version of the character. No audio exists from either series, although some scripts survived. In 1985,
National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...
aired ''The Adventures of Doc Savage'', as 13 half-hour episodes, based on the pulps and adapted by Will Murray and Roger Rittner. Daniel Chodos starred as Doc.


Comic books


Golden Age

Street & Smith Comics published comic book stories of Doc both in '' The Shadow'' comic and his own title. These started with ''Shadow Comics'' #1–3 (1940). In May 1940, the character moved to his own book, ''Doc Savage Comics''. Originally, these stories were based on the pulp version, but with ''Doc Savage Comics'' #5 (1941), he was turned into a genuine superhero when he crashed in Tibet and was given a blue hood with a sacred
ruby Ruby is a pinkish-red-to-blood-red-colored gemstone, a variety of the mineral corundum ( aluminium oxide). Ruby is one of the most popular traditional jewelry gems and is very durable. Other varieties of gem-quality corundum are called sapph ...
in the forehead that deflected bullets and hypnotized anyone who gazed into its mystical red light. These stories had a Doc (now known as "The Invincible") who bore little resemblance to the character in the pulps. This lasted through the end of ''Doc Savage Comics'' in 1943 after 20 issues, and briefly with his return to ''Shadow Comics'' in vol. 3, #10 (Jan. 1944). He would last until the final issue, vol. 9, #5 (1948), though did not appear in every one. He also appeared in '' Supersnipe Comics'' #9 (June 1943).


Modern Age

Post- Golden Age, there have been several Doc Savage comic books: * Gold Key Comics—A 1966, one-issue adaptation of ''The Thousand-Headed Man'' to tie into the planned movie starring Chuck Connors. Doc resembles Connors on the cover. *
Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is a New York City–based comic book publishing, publisher, a property of the Walt Disney Company since December 31, 2009, and a subsidiary of Disney Publishing Worldwide since March 2023. Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin G ...
—In 1972, eight standard color comics with four adaptations of books—''The Man of Bronze'', ''Brand of the Werewolf'', ''Death in Silver'', and ''The Monsters''—and one giant-size issue of reprints that was promoted as a movie issue. In May 2010, DC Comics reprinted the eight-issue series as a trade paperback. In 1975, the Marvel imprint Curtis Magazines released eight black-and-white magazines as a movie tie-in. These were also collected by DC Comics and reprinted in July 2011 as a trade paperback. All are original stories by Doug Moench, John Buscema, and Tony DeZuniga. The character also teamed up with the Thing in '' Marvel Two-in-One'' #21, an important issue that would form the basis of later significant stories like "The Project Pegasus Saga" and "Squadron Supreme: Death of a Universe", and
Spider-Man Spider-Man is a superhero in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, he first appearance, first appeared in the anthology comic book ''Amazing Fantasy'' #15 (August 1962) in ...
in ''Giant-Size Spider-Man'' #3. *
DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...
—A 1987–1990 four-issue
miniseries In the United States, a miniseries or mini-series is a television show or series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. Many miniseries can also be referred to, and shown, as a television film. " Limited series" is ...
tryout, then 24 issues and one ''Annual'', mostly written by Mike W. Barr. Original adventures, including a reunion with Doc's Mayan sweetheart/wife Monya and John Sunlight, adventures with Doc's grandson "Chip" Savage, and backstory on Doc's parents and youth. Included a four-issue crossover with DC's then-current run of '' The Shadow'' called ''The Shadow Strikes!''. In 2009, DC would publish a special one-shot Doc Savage crossover with
Batman Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...
written by
Brian Azzarello Brian Azzarello (born August 11, 1962) is an American comic book writer and screenwriter who first came to prominence with the hardboiled crime series ''100 Bullets'', published by DC Comics' mature-audience imprint Vertigo (DC Comics), Vertigo. ...
with art by Phil Noto and a cover by J. G. Jones. Other characters involved included the
Black Canary Black Canary is the name of two superheroines appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. As one of the earliest female superheroes in the DC Comics universe, the character has made numerous appearances in prominent team-up titles, ...
, the Avenger, Rima the Jungle Girl, the Spirit, and Doc Savage's group the Fabulous Five. It is a prologue to '' First Wave'', a six-issue miniseries with art by Rags Morales. The First Wave line was then expanded to include a ''Doc Savage'' ongoing series written by Paul Malmont, with art by Howard Porter. Malmont only wrote the first four issues, with other authors writing the rest of the series. It ran for 18 issues, with the final issue released only in digital format. * Millennium Publications published several miniseries and one-shots, including '' Doc Savage: The Monarch of Armageddon'', a four-part miniseries, from 1991 to 1992. Written by Mark Ellis and penciled by Darryl Banks, the treatment "come closest to the original, capturing all the action, humanity, and humor of the original novels". Other miniseries were ''Doom Dynasty'' and ''Devil's Thoughts'', the one-shots ''Pat Savage: Woman of Bronze'' and ''Manual of Bronze'', and an unfinished two-part adaptation of ''Repel''. *
Dark Horse Comics Dark Horse Comics is an American comic book, graphic novel, manga and Artist's book, art book publisher founded in Milwaukie, Oregon, by Mike Richardson in 1986. The company was created using funds earned from Richardson's chain of Portland, O ...
—In 1995, Dark Horse Comics published two miniseries: a two-issue miniseries '' The Shadow and Doc Savage: The Case of the Shrieking Skeletons'' and four-issue miniseries ''Doc Savage: Curse of the Fire God''. *In December 2013, Dynamite Entertainment began publishing the title ''Doc Savage: The Man of Bronze'', written by Chris Roberson, with art by Bilquis Evely and covers by
Alex Ross Nelson Alexander Ross (born January 22, 1970) is an American comic book creator, comic book writer and artist known primarily for his painted interiors, covers, and design work. He first became known with the 1994 miniseries ''Marvels'', on which ...
.


Film

With the Bantam Books reprints a success, media tie-ins for Doc Savage began immediately. A 1965 house ad for a poster, "The Arch-Enemy of Evil", announces, "Tougher than Tarzan, braver than Bond, Doc is America's newest rage - with teenagers, college students, and the 'in' groups all over the country. And there's a television series and feature motion picture in the future."


''The Thousand-Headed Man''

In 1967, a ''
TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media In mass communication, digital media is any media (communication), communication media that operates in conjunction with various encoded machine-readable data formats. Digital content can be created, vi ...
'' article reported talks were underway to have Chuck Connors play Doc Savage in a movie adaptation of ''The Thousand-Headed Man''. Complications with rights killed the project.


''Doc Savage: The Man of Bronze''

In 1975, producer and director George Pal produced the
action film The action film is a film genre that predominantly features chase sequences, fights, shootouts, explosions, and stunt work. The specifics of what constitutes an action film has been in scholarly debate since the 1980s. While some scholars such as D ...
'' Doc Savage: The Man of Bronze'', starring
Ron Ely Ronald Pierce Ely (June 21, 1938 – September 29, 2024) was an American actor and novelist, best known for portraying Tarzan in the 1966–1968 NBC series ''Tarzan (1966 TV series), Tarzan'' and playing the lead role in the film ''Doc Savage: ...
as Doc Savage. The movie was a critical failure and did poorly at the box office. Several articles and a later interview with Pal suggest the movie's failure had much to do with its loss of funding during filming when the studio changed heads and Pal was forced to cut costs. Nevertheless, Pal, as producer, is generally blamed for using the "high camp" approach in the style of the ''
Batman Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...
'' television series. An original soundtrack for the film was also commissioned, but when Pal lost his funding, he resorted to a patriotic march from John Philip Sousa, which was in the
public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work to which no Exclusive exclusive intellectual property rights apply. Those rights may have expired, been forfeited, expressly Waiver, waived, or may be inapplicable. Because no one holds ...
. Science-fiction writer
Philip José Farmer Philip José Farmer (January 26, 1918 – February 25, 2009) was an American author known for his science fiction and fantasy fiction, fantasy novels and short story, short stories. Obituary. Farmer is best known for two sequences of novels, t ...
tried to get another movie made (there is a notation at the end of the original film that a sequel adapted from the novel '' Death in Silver'' featuring the infamous Silver Death's-Heads was in the works, but nothing came of it, despite the drafting of a script for it).


''Doc Savage: The Arch Enemy of Evil''

According to the screenplay by Joe Morhaim that was posted on the Internet, as well as other archival and news accounts, ''Doc Savage: The Arch Enemy of Evil'' was based very loosely on the October 1934 pulp novel ''Death in Silver''. ''Doc Savage: The Arch Enemy of Evil'' would feature a deformed, German-speaking
supervillain A supervillain, supervillainess or supercriminal is a major antagonist and variant of the villainous stock character who possesses Superpower (ability), superpowers. The character type is sometimes found in comic books and is often the primary ...
, whose pet man-eating octopus was a nod to a similar plot element in the September 1937 pulp novel ''The Feathered Octopus''. In fact, this screenplay was originally intended to be filmed as the first Doc Savage movie. However, producer George Pal commissioned a second script based on the first Doc Savage pulp novel, ''The Man of Bronze'', because he felt the movie-going audience needed more background information about Doc and his origin.Doc Savage Bibliography – Movies
Contemporary news accounts indicated that ''Doc Savage: The Arch Enemy of Evil'' had been filmed in the
Lake Tahoe Lake Tahoe (; Washo language, Washo: ''dáʔaw'') is a Fresh water, freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada of the Western United States, straddling the border between California and Nevada. Lying at above sea level, Lake Tahoe is the largest a ...
area simultaneously with the principal photography for the first Doc Savage film. However, due to the poor reception of the first film, ''Doc Savage: The Arch Enemy of Evil'' was never completed or released. In an interview conducted in 2014, while he was filming the television movie '' Expecting Amish'', actor Ron Ely stated unequivocally that "no portion of ''The Arch Enemy of Evil'' was ''ever'' filmed, concurrently with ''The Man of Bronze'' or otherwise. That's a total myth." Finally, in anticipation of a proposed ''Doc Savage'' TV series, George Pal commissioned a two-part teleplay by Alvin Sapinsley based on the May 1935 pulp novel ''The Secret in the Sky''. The teleplay was completed in January 1975, but due to the poor reception of the first Doc Savage film, a pilot was never filmed.


Other film adaptations

Another screenplay was written by
Philip José Farmer Philip José Farmer (January 26, 1918 – February 25, 2009) was an American author known for his science fiction and fantasy fiction, fantasy novels and short story, short stories. Obituary. Farmer is best known for two sequences of novels, t ...
based on the January 1936 pulp novel ''Murder Mirage''. It included a potential Wold Newton Universe cross-over involving a meeting between Doc Savage and a retired
Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a Detective fiction, fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a "Private investigator, consulting detective" in his stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with obser ...
in 1936. In any case, this screenplay was never filmed. In 1966, the basic premise of Doc Savage's origin was an obvious influence on the Mexican lucha libre film character ''Mil Mascaras'' (1966), which was released at the height of the popularity of the Doc Savage paperback book series in the U.S. In 1999, there was an announcement that a possible remake featuring
Arnold Schwarzenegger Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger (born July30, 1947) is an Austrian and American actor, businessman, former politician, and former professional bodybuilder, known for his roles in high-profile action films. Governorship of Arnold Schwarzenegger, ...
was in the works, with the involvement of Frank Darabont and
Chuck Russell Charles Russell (born May 9, 1958) is an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. He is best known for directing the films ''A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors'' (1987), ''The Blob (1988 film), The Blob'' (1988), ''The Mask ...
, but it and several other Schwarzenegger projects ('' Sgt. Rock'' and an epic about
the Crusades The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and at times directed by the Papacy during the Middle Ages. The most prominent of these were the campaigns to the Holy Land aimed at reclaiming Jerusalem and its surrounding t ...
) were shelved when Schwarzenegger ran for and was elected
Governor of California The governor of California is the head of government of the U.S. state of California. The Governor (United States), governor is the commander-in-chief of the California National Guard and the California State Guard. Established in the Constit ...
. In late 2006, Sam Raimi was rumoured to be making a film involving several Street and Smith pulp heroes, including The Shadow, The Avenger, and Doc Savage. A screenplay was supposedly written by Siavash Farahani but since then, no other news surfaced with regards to this script.


''Original Film'' projects

Writer/director Shane Black was set to direct a film adaptation for Original Film and Sony Pictures. Black would also co-write the screenplay with Anthony Bagarozzi and Chuck Mondry. The film version will be set in the 1930s and will include the Fabulous Five. Neal H. Moritz will produce. In September 2013, talking about the difficulty in casting the character, Black commented, "He's the perfect physical specimen, people look at him and they are over-awed by the symmetry and perfection he exudes." In June 2014, it was revealed that he wanted Chris Hemsworth for the lead role but Hemsworth was never officially announced or attached to the project. On May 22, 2016, Black told
Thrillist ''Thrillist'' is an online media website covering travel. ''Thrillist'' was founded in 2004 by Ben Lerer and Adam Rich. In October 2016, Thrillist merged with internet brands ''The Dodo'', NowThis News, and Seeker to form the digital media ...
that he would like to make the movie with
Dwayne Johnson Dwayne Douglas Johnson (born May 2, 1972), also known by his ring name The Rock, is an American actor and professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on a part-time basis. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional w ...
, stating, "I made a decision that Dwayne is the guy. I would like to do Doc with Dwayne Johnson if we can make that work. It's on the back burner while he's busy." On May 30, 2016, Johnson confirmed on his
Instagram Instagram is an American photo sharing, photo and Short-form content, short-form video sharing social networking service owned by Meta Platforms. It allows users to upload media that can be edited with Social media camera filter, filters, be ...
account that he will be starring as Savage in the film, also hinting that the character is being dubbed the "World's First Superhero", mentioning that Savage's published appearance pre-dated that of
Superman Superman is a superhero created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, which first appeared in the comic book ''Action Comics'' Action Comics 1, #1, published in the United States on April 18, 1938.The copyright date of ''Action Comics ...
's (who debuted in 1938). Johnson also included the hashtag "#World'sFirstSuperhero". On April 11, 2018, Johnson said he and Black were still eager to do the project, but, "That project had a few issues, not creative issues but more so business affairs issues—where the project once was, who had rights to it, where we were trying to move it to. There was a lot of that, which we're still kind of working through." On February 19, 2020, it was announced Original Film would, instead, shift development to a television series. The project is a co-production with Sony Pictures Television and Condé Nast Entertainment.


References


Further reading

* Goodstone, Tony (1970). ''The Pulps: 50 Years of American Pop Culture''. Bonanza Books (Crown Publishers, Inc.). . * Goulart, Ron (1972). ''Cheap Thrills: An Informal History of the Pulp Magazine''. Arlington House. . * Gunnison, Locke and Ellis, Doug (2000). ''Adventure House Guide to the Pulps''. Adventure House. . * Hamilton, Frank and Hullar, Link (1988). ''Amazing Pulp Heroes''. Gryphon Books. . * Hutchison, Don (1995). ''The Great Pulp Heroes''. Mosaic Press. . * * * Robinson, Frank M. and Davidson, Lawrence (1998). ''Pulp Culture''. Collector's Press. .


External links


Doc Savage books
at Faded Page (Canada)
1987 article on Lester Dent

Doc Savage Organized

Doc Savage
at ThePulp.Net
Doc Savage - The Man Of Bronze
{{DEFAULTSORT:Savage, Doc Characters in pulp fiction DC Comics titles Doc Savage characters Comics characters with superhuman strength Fictional characters who can move at superhuman speeds Fictional physicians Fictional surgeons Fictional inventors Fictional amateur detectives Fictional characters with eidetic memory Comic martial artists Fictional scientists Fictional World War I veterans Superhero film characters Golden Age superheroes Gold Key Comics titles Marvel Comics titles Book series Street & Smith Doc Savage Doc Savage Doc Savage Literary characters introduced in 1933 1940 comics debuts Comics characters introduced in 1940 Comics adapted into radio series