Click to viewToday , fans may concern to the first decade of the Man of Steel ’s existence as his Golden Age , but back in those day , editors at DC did n’t feel the same path . In fact , recently - released documents from that era show that they think that Superman seemed a little too gay for their liking . Oh , and Lois should have an miscarriage so that her white meat can go down a sizing or two , as well .
Going through the correspondence between DC ( then called Detective Comics , Inc. ) and Superman Maker Jerry Siegel from 1939 to 1947 – made public as part of the ongoing lawsuit between Siegel ’s heirs and DC over the ownership of the character – comic strip historiographer Jeff Trexler reveal some eye - opening remark from the editors in charge of the Man of Tomorrow :
As the papers reveal , early in the history of Superman , co - creator and creative person Joe Shuster was warned to tone down his depiction of Lois Lane by his editor program Whitney Ellsworth , and make her less sexy . It was a word of advice that the artist chose to ignore for months , plain , causing Oliver Ellsworth made an statement that seems shocking even almost seventy years later . Shuster ’s Lois was so “ unpleasantly sexy ” that her pulchritude made her seem a bit too heavy – a problem for which Ellsworth and Murray Boltinoff had an easy solution :
“ [ W]hy it is necessary to shade Lois ’ breasts and the underside of her stomach with vertical pen - lines we ca n’t understand . She looks fraught . Murray suggests that you arrange for her to have an abortion or the baby and get it over with so that her figure can return to something a little more like the tasty dish she is hypothesise to be . ”
Perhaps more surprising was their take on Superman himself :
Another allege problem with Shuster ’s artwork is that it made Superman seem mirthful – or in the period patois of Ellsworth ’s January 22 , 1940 , letter , “ lah - Delaware - dah ” with a “ nice avoirdupois bottom . ”
( The letter in question is deserving correspond out for yourself inTrexler ’s online archive of the written document ; Ellsworth does n’t just mention Superman ’s “ nice productive bottom , ” but make a point of saying that he likes it , even though the nontextual matter in general is n’t up to monetary standard . )
Whether the documents in reality prove either side ’s case in the ongoing ownership battle is unclear – certainly , the creators ’ bend to DC ’s legion editorial complaint show that the authorship of the characters as we ’ve come to know them was n’t solely Siegel and Shuster ’s – they definitely show a previously obscure story for one of the most famous fictitious characters in the world . And mayhap a more interesting one , as well .
Hidden History : Lois ’ ‘ Abortion ’ and Superman too Gay?[Newsarama ]
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