The Sandman (DC Comics Golden Age)
The Sandman is a comic book superhero in the DC Comics universe, best known for his "costume" consisting of a green business suit and gas mask, and for operating in the 1940s. He is a member of the Justice Society of America. He was created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Bert Christman and first appeared in World's Fair Comics #1 (1939).Following his debut, the Sandman appeared in Adventure Comics from issues #40 to #102. Wesley Dodds (his real name) was one of the earliest superheroes (then called "mystery men" for lack of a better term), though his status as such is debatable as he came rather from the detective tradition seen in the pulps of the 1930s.
In 1941, he was given a more superheroic yellow and purple costume by artist Chad Grothkopf, as well as a yellow-clad kid sidekick, Sandy the Golden Boy. It was this version of the character which was famously written and drawn by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby.
An updated version of the original Sandman appeared in a 1993 series intended for adult readers entitled Sandman Mystery Theatre. In this novel-like 70 issue series by writers Matt Wagner and Steven T. Seagle and artist Guy Davis, Wesley Dodds and his girlfriend Dian Belmont, daughter of the District Attorney, encountered several often grotesque foes in multi-issue storylines. (The team of Dodds and Belmont were a nod to Nick and Nora Charles of The Thin Man films.) This series dealt with mature themes such as abortion and anti-Semitism, as well as historical themes such as the rise of Nazism.
In 1999, a year after the end of the Sandman Mystery Theatre series, the original Sandman's still-youthful but now grown-up sidekick, Sandy the Golden Boy, became known simply as Sand and took his mentor's place as a member of the Justice Society of America. Like the Marvel Comics Sandman, Sand gained the power to turn into sand, though otherwise he was the true heir to the original, pulp fiction-inspired Sandman in all but name.
Related articles
