Editing Superman (section)

===Influences===
Siegel and Shuster read [[Pulp magazine|pulp science-fiction and adventure magazines]], and many stories featured characters with fantastical abilities such as telepathy, clairvoyance, and superhuman strength. One character in particular was [[John Carter of Mars]] from the novels by [[Edgar Rice Burroughs]]. John Carter is a human who is transported to Mars, where the lower gravity makes him stronger than the natives and allows him to leap great distances.<ref>{{harvp|Andrae|1983}}: "...when I did the version in 1934, (which years later, in 1938, was published, in revised form, in Action Comics #1) the John Carter stories did influence me. Carter was able to leap great distances because the planet Mars was smaller that [sic] the planet Earth; and he had great strength. I visualized the planet Krypton as a huge planet, much larger than Earth; so whoever came to Earth from that planet would be able to leap great distances and lift great weights."</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://gizmodo.com/the-history-behind-supermans-ever-changing-superpowers-1684736603|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20170326231729/http://io9.gizmodo.com/the-history-behind-supermans-ever-changing-superpowers-1684736603|url-status=dead|title=The History Behind Superman's Ever-Changing Superpowers|archivedate=March 26, 2017|website=Gizmodo}}</ref> Another influence was [[Philip Wylie]]'s 1930 novel ''[[Gladiator (novel)|Gladiator]]'', featuring a protagonist named [[Hugo Danner]] who had similar powers.<ref>Jerry Siegel. ''Creation of a Superhero'' (unpublished memoir, written c.1978;Scans available from [https://www.dropbox.com/s/k3rb8by5oupsjhz/Creation%20of%20a%20Superhero%20by%20Jerry%20Siegel.pdf?dl=0 Dropbox] and [https://www.scribd.com/document/382800890/Creation-of-a-Superhero-by-Jerry-Siegel Scribd]{{Dead link|date=March 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}).: <br />"I had read and enjoyed Philip Wylie's book "The Gladiator". It influenced me, too."</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last =Feeley |first =Gregory |date=March 2005 |title =When World-views Collide: Philip Wylie in the Twenty-first Century |journal =Science Fiction Studies |volume =32 |issue =95 |issn=0091-7729 |url =http://www.depauw.edu/sfs/review_essays/feeley95.htm |access-date =December 6, 2006 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130403153230/http://www.depauw.edu/sfs/review_essays/feeley95.htm |archive-date=April 3, 2013|url-status=live}}</ref>

Superman's stance and devil-may-care attitude were influenced by the characters of [[Douglas Fairbanks]], who starred in adventure films such as ''[[The Mark of Zorro (1920 film)|The Mark of Zorro]]'' and ''[[Robin Hood (1922 film)|Robin Hood]]''.<ref>{{harvp|Andrae|1983}}: "... I was inspired by the movies.  In the silent films, my hero was Douglas Fairbanks Senior, who was very agile and athletic.  So I think he might have been an inspiration to us, even in his attitude.  He had a stance which I often used in drawing Superman. You'll see in many of his roles—including Robin Hood—that he always stood with his hands on his hips and his feet spread apart, laughing—taking nothing seriously."</ref> The name of Superman's home city, Metropolis, was taken from the [[Metropolis (1927 film)|1927 film of the same name]].<ref name=Andrae1983>{{harvp|Andrae|1983}}</ref> [[Popeye]] cartoons were also an influence.<ref name="Andrae1983"/>

{{multiple image
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 |footer = [[Douglas Fairbanks]] and [[Harold Lloyd]] influenced the look of Superman and Clark Kent, respectively.
 |image1 = Douglas Fairbanks Three Musketeers character promo.jpg
 |image2 = Harold Lloyd - A Pictorial History of the Silent Screen.jpg
 }}
Clark Kent's harmless facade and dual identity were inspired by the protagonists of such movies as Don Diego de la Vega in ''[[The Mark of Zorro (1920 film)|The Mark of Zorro]]'' and Sir Percy Blakeney in ''[[The Scarlet Pimpernel]]''. Siegel thought this would make for interesting dramatic contrast and good humor.<ref>Jerry Siegel, quoted in {{harvp|Andrae|1983}}: "I loved ''The Mark of Zorro'', and I'm sure that had some influence on me.  I did also see ''The Scarlet Pimpernel'' but didn't care much for it."</ref><ref>Jerry Siegel. ''Creation of a Superhero'' (unpublished memoir, written c.1978; Scans available from [https://www.dropbox.com/s/k3rb8by5oupsjhz/Creation%20of%20a%20Superhero%20by%20Jerry%20Siegel.pdf?dl=0 Dropbox] and [https://www.scribd.com/document/382800890/Creation-of-a-Superhero-by-Jerry-Siegel Scribd]{{Dead link|date=March 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}).: <br />"In movies, I had seen "The Scarlet Pimpernel", "The Mark of Zorro" and Rudolph Valentino in "The Eagle", and I thought that a mighty hero, who in another identity pretended to be an ineffectual weakling, made for great dramatic contrast. In addition, it would, in a comic strip, permit some humorous characterization."</ref> Another inspiration was slapstick comedian [[Harold Lloyd]]. The archetypal Lloyd character was a mild-mannered man who finds himself abused by bullies but later in the story snaps and fights back furiously.<ref>Siegel: "We especially loved some of those movies in which Harold Lloyd would start off as a sort of momma's boy being pushed around, kicked around, thrown around, and then suddenly would turn into a fighting whirlwind." <br />Shuster: "I was kind of mild-mannered and wore glasses so I really identified with it" <br />{{Cite AV media|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTUrFYU2e_I |title=Superman – The Comic Strip Hero |publisher=BBC |people=Anthony Wall |medium=Television production |date=1981 |time=00:04:50 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151228030413/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTUrFYU2e_I |archive-date=December 28, 2015 }}</ref>

Kent is a journalist because Siegel often imagined himself becoming one after leaving school. The love triangle between [[Lois Lane]], Clark, and Superman was inspired by Siegel's own awkwardness with girls.<ref>{{harvp|Andrae|1983}}: Siegel: "As a high school student, I thought that someday I might become a reporter, and I had crushes on several attractive girls who either didn't know I existed or didn't care I existed. [...] It occurred to me: What if I was real terrific? What if I had something special going for me, like jumping over buildings or throwing cars around or something like that? Then maybe they would notice me."</ref>

The pair collected comic strips in their youth, with a favorite being [[Winsor McCay]]'s fantastical ''[[Little Nemo]]''.<ref name=Andrae1983/> Shuster remarked on the artists who played an important part in the development of his own style: "[[Alex Raymond]] and [[Burne Hogarth]] were my idols&nbsp;– also [[Milt Caniff]], [[Hal Foster]], and [[Roy Crane]]."<ref name=Andrae1983/> Shuster taught himself to draw by tracing over the art in the strips and magazines they collected.<ref name=Ricca2014/>

As a boy, Shuster was interested in fitness culture<ref>Shuster in {{harvp|Andrae|1983}} "I tried to build up my body. I was so skinny; I went in for weight-lifting and athletics. I used to get all the body-building magazines from the second-hand stores — and read them...."</ref> and a fan of [[Strongman (strength athlete)|strongmen]] such as [[Siegmund Breitbart]] and [[Joseph Greenstein]]. He collected fitness magazines and manuals and used their photographs as visual references for his art.<ref name=Ricca2014/>

The visual design of Superman came from multiple influences. The tight-fitting suit and shorts were inspired by the costumes of wrestlers, boxers, and [[Strongman (strength athlete)|strongmen]]. In early concept art, Shuster gave Superman laced sandals like those of strongmen and classical heroes, but these were eventually changed to red boots.<ref name=Andrae1983_boots/> The costumes of Douglas Fairbanks were also an influence.<ref>{{harvp|Andrae|1983}}: "It was inspired by the costume pictures that Fairbanks did: they greatly influenced us."</ref> The emblem on his chest was inspired by [[Crest (heraldry)|heraldic crests]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Of Supermen and kids with dreams |url=https://www.dropbox.com/s/0s3lbpbsetmqe5v/Siegel%20and%20Shuster%20interview%20with%20Andrae%20%28in%20Nemo%20%232%2C%201983%29.pdf?dl=0}}</ref> Many pulp action heroes such as swashbucklers wore capes. Superman's face was based on [[Johnny Weissmuller]] with touches derived from the comic-strip character [[Dick Tracy]] and from the work of cartoonist Roy Crane.<ref name=Ricca2014p124>{{harvp|Ricca|2014}}. ''Super Boys'', p. 124: "The overall physical look of Superman himself is from Johnny Weissmuller, whose face Joe swiped from movie magazines and news articles. ... Joe just squinted the eyes like his idol Roy Crane [did with his characters] and added a Dick Tracy smile." Ricca cites {{cite news|author-link=Robert Beerbohm|last=Beerbohm|first= Robert L.|title=The Big Bang Theory of Comic Book History|work=Comic Book Marketplace|volume= 2|issue= 50|location= Coronado, California|publisher=[[Gemstone Publishing]]|date=August 1997}}</ref>

The word "superman" was commonly used in the 1920s and 1930s to describe men of great ability, most often athletes and politicians.<ref>{{harvp|Ricca|2014}}. ''Super Boys'', p. 129: "What the boys did read were the magazines and papers where "superman" was a common word. Its usage was almost always preceded by "a". Most times the word was used to refer to an athlete or a politician."</ref> It occasionally appeared in pulp fiction stories as well, such as "The Superman of Dr. Jukes".<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Flagg |first=Francis |date=November 11, 1931 |title=The Superman of Dr. Jukes |magazine=Wonder Stories |publisher=Gernsback}}</ref> It is unclear whether Siegel and Shuster were influenced by [[Friedrich Nietzsche]]'s concept of the ''[[Übermensch]]''; they never acknowledged as much.<ref>{{cite news |first=Howard |last=Jacobson |page=5 |title=Up, Up and Oy Vey! |date=March 5, 2005 |work=[[The Times]] |url=http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/arts/article2396955.ece |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150516071809/http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/arts/article2396955.ece |url-status=dead |archive-date=May 16, 2015 |location=UK }}: "If Siegel and Shuster knew of Nietzsche's Ubermensch, they didn't say..."</ref>
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