''Star Spangled Comics'' is a

comics anthology A comics anthology collects works in the medium of comics, typically from multiple series, and compiles them into an anthology or magazine. The comics in these anthologies range from comic strips that are too short for standalone publication to co ...

published by

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 ...

which ran for 130 issues from October 1941 to July 1952. It was then retitled ''

Star Spangled War Stories ''Star Spangled War Stories'' is the title of a comics anthology published by DC Comics that featured war-themed characters and stories. Among the features published in this series were writer-editor Robert Kanigher and artist Jerry Grandenetti's ...

'' and lasted until issue #204 (February–March 1977).

Publication history

''Star Spangled Comics'' debuted with an October 1941

cover date The cover date of a periodical publication is the date displayed on the cover, which is not necessarily the true date of publication (the on-sale date or release date); later cover dates are common in magazine and comic book publishing. More unusu ...

. The series began as a

superhero A superhero or superheroine is a fictional character who typically possesses ''superpowers'' or abilities beyond those of ordinary people, is frequently costumed concealing their identity, and fits the role of the hero, typically using their ...

title featuring the adventures of the Star-Spangled Kid and

Stripesy Patrick "Pat" Dugan is a superhero in the DC Comics Universe. The former adult sidekick to teenage superhero Sylvester Pemberton, the Star-Spangled Kid, Dugan is a gifted mechanic known for inventions such as the Star Rocket Racer. Originally ca ...

who appeared until #86 (November 1948). This feature had the distinction of a teen hero with an older

sidekick A sidekick is a close companion or colleague who is, or is generally regarded as, subordinate to those whom they accompany. Origins The first recorded use of the term dates from 1896. It is believed to have originated in pickpocket slang of ...

(the reverse of the usual arrangement). With issue #7 (April 1942), the title starred the

Joe Simon Joseph Henry Simon (born Hymie Simon; October 11, 1913 – December 14, 2011) was an American comic book writer, artist, editor, and publisher. Simon created or co-created many important characters in the 1930s–1940s Golden Age of Comic Books ...

and

Jack Kirby Jack Kirby (; born Jacob Kurtzberg; August 28, 1917 – February 6, 1994) was an American comics artist, comic book artist, widely regarded as one of the medium's major innovators and one of its most prolific and influential creators. He grew ...

-created

Newsboy Legion The Newsboy Legion is a teenage vigilante group in the DC Comics Universe. Created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby, they appeared in their own self-titled feature which ran from '' Star-Spangled Comics'' #7 (April 1942) to #64 (January 1947). In 1970, ...

. A series of stories featuring Robin, the Boy Wonder began in issue #65 (February 1947) and continued through the end of the title with issue #130, and primarily featured Robin solo adventures, but also included some occasional cameos by

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 ...

. Comics historian Brian Cronin has noted that due to Robin's feature in ''Star Spangled Comics'', he made more appearances during the

Golden Age of Comics The Golden Age of Comic Books describes an era in the history of American comic books from 1938 to 1956. During this time, modern comic books were first published and rapidly increased in popularity. The superhero archetype was created and many ...

than Batman.

Tomahawk A tomahawk is a type of single-handed axe used by the many Native Americans in the United States, Indian peoples and nations of North America, traditionally resembles a hatchet with a straight shaft. Etymology The name comes from Powhatan langu ...

, a

western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

feature, was introduced in #69 (June 1947). Merry, Girl of 1,000 Gimmicks, first appeared in #81 (June 1948) in the "Star-Spangled Kid" feature. In the early 1950s, the title became dominated by horror features and by the end of its run the book switched to a

war War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...

format; at which point it was rebooted to become ''

''. A ''Star Spangled Comics''

one-shot One shot may refer to: Film and television * One-shot film, a feature film shot in one long take with no edits, or manufactured to look like so * ''One Shot'' (2005 film), a Sri Lankan action film directed by Ranjan Ramanayake * ''One Shot'', a ...

by writer

Geoff Johns Geoffrey Johns (born January 25, 1973) is an American comic book writer, screenwriter, and film and television producer. Johns's work on the DC Comics characters Green Lantern, Aquaman, Flash (comics), Flash, and Superman has drawn critical accl ...

and artist

Chris Weston Chris Weston (born 1969) is a British comics artist who has worked both in the US and UK comics industries. Biography Weston was born in January 1969 in Rinteln, Germany, and lived in various countries as a child. His career began when he w ...

was published in 1999 as part of the " Justice Society Returns" storyline.

Collected editions

* ''The Newsboy Legion'' Vol. 1 collects ''Star Spangled Comics'' #7–32, 360 pages, March 2010, * ''The Newsboy Legion'' Vol. 2 collects ''Star Spangled Comics'' #33–64, 368 pages, August 2017, * '' Robin Archives'' Vol. 1 collects Robin stories from ''Star Spangled Comics'' #65–85, 240 pages, October 2005, * ''Robin Archives'' Vol. 2 collects Robin stories from ''Star Spangled Comics'' #86–105, 256 pages, April 2010,

References

External links

*
''Star Spangled Comics''
at Cover Browser
''Star Spangled Comics''
an
''Star Spangled Comics'' one-shot
at Mike's Amazing World of Comics {{Jack Kirby, state=collapsed 1941 comics debuts 1952 comics endings Comics magazines published in the United States Golden Age comics titles Comics anthologies Comics by Jack Kirby DC Comics one-shots DC Comics titles Defunct American comics Horror comics Magazines disestablished in 1952 Magazines established in 1941 Superhero comics War comics