Steamboat | |
---|---|
Publication information | |
Publisher | Fawcett Comics |
First appearance | America’s Greatest Comics #2, 1942 [1] |
In-story information | |
Full name | Steamboat Bill |
Team affiliations | Marvel Family |
Supporting character of | Captain Marvel |
Steamboat Bill, most commonly as Steamboat, was a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Fawcett Comics, most commonly in association with the superhero Captain Marvel. [2] The character played the role of valet to both Captain Marvel and his teenaged alter-ego, Billy Batson, and was intended by Captain Marvel co-creator C. C. Beck to appeal to African-American readers. [3] [4] However, protests from African-Americans and other readers concerning Steamboat's racial stereotyping led to the character's disuse after 1945. [5]
Steamboat was an African-American food truck owner who helped Captain Marvel catch a gang of criminals in a park. By doing this, Steamboat's truck was destroyed. As a gesture of gratitude, Billy Batson gave Steamboat a job at WHIZ Radio in 1942.
Steamboat appeared frequently as Billy Batson and Captain Marvel's sidekick between 1942 and 1945 in the Fawcett publications Whiz Comics,Captain Marvel Adventures, and America's Greatest Comics. [3] His appearances include a handful of chapters of the classic Captain Marvel serialized "The Monster Society of Evil" story arc in Captain Marvel Adventures #22–46. [6] The character received a mostly negative reaction from African-American readers and civil rights groups. [5] Steamboat was criticized for propagating offensive stereotypes of African-Americans, as he was depicted as being of low intelligence and speaking with a stereotypical Negro dialect. [2] [3] [7]
In 1945, an integrated group of junior high school students associated with the Youth Builders program met with Fawcett Comics' executive editor, Will Lieberman, and argued successfully for Steamboat's removal from the Captain Marvel comics stories. Following Captain Marvel Adventures #48 (Aug-Sept. 1945), [8] Steamboat made no further appearances in Captain Marvel stories. [5] The website Screen Rant rated Steamboat the fourth-worst superhero sidekick of all time. [9]
Charles Clarence Beck was an American cartoonist and comic book artist, best known for his work on Captain Marvel at Fawcett Comics and DC Comics.
Captain Marvel, also known as Shazam and the Captain, is a superhero in American comic books originally published by Fawcett Comics and currently published by DC Comics. Artist C. C. Beck and writer Bill Parker created the character in 1939. Captain Marvel first appeared in Whiz Comics #2, published by Fawcett Comics. He is the alter ego of Billy Batson, a boy who, by speaking the magic word "SHAZAM!", is transformed into a costumed adult with the powers of superhuman strength, speed, flight, and other abilities. The character battles an extensive rogues' gallery, most of them working in tandem as the Monster Society of Evil, including primary archenemies Black Adam, Doctor Sivana and Mister Mind. Billy often shares his powers with other children, primarily his sister Mary Batson and their best friend/foster brother Freddy Freeman, who also transform into superheroes and fight crime with Billy as members of the Marvel Family, also known as the Shazam Family.
Mary Marvel is a fictional character and superheroine originally published by Fawcett Comics and now owned by DC Comics. Created by Otto Binder and Marc Swayze, she first appeared in Captain Marvel Adventures #18. The character is a member of the Marvel / Shazam Family of heroes associated with the superhero Shazam / Captain Marvel and is one of the first female spin-offs of a major male superhero, and predates the introduction of Supergirl by more than a decade.
Fawcett Comics, a division of Fawcett Publications, was one of several successful comic book publishers during the Golden Age of Comic Books in the 1940s. Its most popular character was Captain Marvel, the alter ego of radio reporter Billy Batson, who transformed into the hero whenever he said the magic word "Shazam!".
The Marvel Family, also known as the Shazam Family, are a group of superheroes who originally appeared in books published by Fawcett Comics and were later acquired by DC Comics. Created in 1942 by writer Otto Binder and artist Marc Swayze, the team was created as an extension of Fawcett's Captain Marvel franchise, and included Marvel's sister Mary Marvel, their friend Captain Marvel Jr., and, at various times, a number of other characters as well.
The Power of Shazam! is a 1994 hardcover graphic novel, written and painted by Jerry Ordway for DC Comics. The 96-page story, depicting the revamped origins of former Fawcett Comics superhero Captain Marvel, was followed by an ongoing series, also titled The Power of Shazam!, which ran from 1995 to 1999.
Thaddeus Bodog Sivana is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Bill Parker and C. C. Beck, the character is a recurring enemy of the superhero Captain Marvel, who first appeared in Whiz Comics #2 by Fawcett Comics. A mad scientist and inventor bent on world domination, Sivana was soon established as Captain Marvel's main archenemy during the Golden Age, appearing in over half of the Fawcett Captain Marvel stories published between 1939 and 1953.
Adventures of Captain Marvel is a 1941 American 12-chapter black-and-white movie serial from Republic Pictures, produced by Hiram S. Brown, Jr., directed by John English and William Witney, that stars Tom Tyler in the title role of Captain Marvel and Frank Coghlan, Jr. as his alter ego, Billy Batson. The serial was adapted from the popular Captain Marvel comic book character, then appearing in the Fawcett Comics publications Whiz Comics and Captain Marvel Adventures. The character is now owned by DC Comics and is known as Shazam.
Captain Marvel Adventures is a long running comic book anthology series that was publised by Fawcett Comics, starring Captain Marvel during the Golden Age of Comic Books.
Whiz Comics is an anthology comic book series that was published by former American comic book publishing company, Fawcett Publications between February 1940 until June 1953. It is widely known for being the comic run in which hugely popular superhero character Captain Marvel (Shazam) made his debut.
The Lieutenant Marvels are fictional characters, a team of superheroes in the Fawcett Comics and DC Comics universes. They first appeared in Whiz Comics #21 in 1941. The physical appearance of the three characters was based on three real-life members of the Fawcett Comics staff: Paul Peck, Ed Hamilton, and Frank Taggart.
William Lee Parker was an American comic book writer and editor. He is best known for creating the Fawcett Comics character, Captain Marvel, in 1939, along with artist C. C. Beck.
Pete Costanza was an American comic book artist and illustrator. He is best known for his work on Fawcett Comics' Captain Marvel and the Marvel Family during the World War II era fans and historians call the Golden Age of Comic Books, and served as one of Captain Marvel's longest-tenured artists.
Shazam! is an American superhero television series that was produced for Saturday Mornings by Filmation, based on the superhero Captain Marvel, now known as Shazam, of Fawcett Comics' comic book series Whiz Comics. The program starred Michael Gray as Billy Batson, a teenage boy who can transform into the superhero Captain Marvel, originally played by Jackson Bostwick and later by John Davey, by speaking the magic word "Shazam!" With his guardian "Mentor", Billy travels the country in a 1973 Dodge Open Road motorhome, looking for injustices to resolve.
National Comics Publications v. Fawcett Publications, 191 F.2d 594. was a decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in a twelve-year legal battle between National Comics and the Fawcett Comics division of Fawcett Publications, concerning Fawcett's Captain Marvel character being an infringement on the copyright of National's Superman comic book character. The litigation is notable as one of the longest-running legal battles in comic book publication history.
The Monster Society of Evil is a supervillain team created by Otto Binder and C. C. Beck for Fawcett Comics. It is led by Mister Mind against their mutual enemy Captain Marvel. The team is significant as one of the first supervillain teams in comics to contain villains that a superhero had fought previously; prior to this, supervillain teams were composed of villains created just for that storyline. In fact, the Monster Society consists of every major enemy Captain Marvel had ever faced.
Captain Marvel Jr., also known as Shazam Jr., is a superhero appearing in American comic books formerly published by Fawcett Comics and currently published by DC Comics. A member of the Marvel/Shazam Family team of superheroes associated with Captain Marvel/Shazam, he was created by Ed Herron, C.C. Beck, and Mac Raboy, and first appeared in Whiz Comics #25 in December 1941.
Tawky Tawny is a fictional character, an anthropomorphic tiger who appears as a supporting character of Captain Marvel and the Marvel Family in superhero/talking animal comic book stories published by Fawcett Comics and later DC Comics.
King Kull is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published originally by Fawcett Comics and currently by DC Comics. Created by Otto Binder and C. C. Beck, he originally first appeared in Fawcett Comics’ Captain Marvel Adventures in October 1951, and appeared from then until 1953 when the company ceased publishing its superhero titles. DC later acquired Fawcett's properties, and revived the character in the 1970s.
The Whizzer is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He first appeared during the period called the Golden Age of Comic Books.