Episode 30: Shazam, Captain Marvel, and the Rise of a Wartime Hero

Simon Carver

The static, uh... er, the static is coming in like a heavy Atlantic gale tonight, friends, but if the shortwave connection holds, we are live on the air. It is Monday, September 8th, 1941, and I am looking out of a completely pitch-black London window. The air-raid wardens just went down the lane. There is a deep, quiet dread here tonight, folks, as the newsboys are crying about the German army finally cutting off Leningrad, starting what looks to be a long, terrible siege on the Eastern Front. Just last week, President Roosevelt gave that Labor Day address warning us that American labor now bears a tremendous responsibility in the winning of this brutal war, and that we must build weapons of unprecedented power to maintain democracy. It is a sobering moment for the world. But back home in America, the lights are still burning, and on the newsstands, a different kind of power has taken the country by storm. Welcome to the thirtieth episode of Distinguished Comics Radio. I am Simon Carver, broadcasting from our temporary transmitter here in the United Kingdom, and joining us from the KDCR studio in Chicago is my partner, Robert Reed. Robert, how is the weather and the mood in the Windy City? I imagine the Cubs are keeping your spirits up even as the world headlines grow darker by the hour.

Robert Reed

Thanks, Simon! The air here in Chicago is crisp, the Cubs... are at least not last, and the folks on the streets are talking about the President's speech and that grease-monkey determination to out-produce any dictator on Earth. You can feel the gears of American industry turning everywhere you walk. It’s exactly that clash between the machine age and human grit that makes tonight's subject so darn fascinating. We are officially stepping outside the bounds of National Comics for the very first time on DCR, because we are diving into a brand-new publishing powerhouse: Fawcett Comics! And what a debut they made. We are talking about the World's Mightiest Man, the red-and-gold lightning bolt himself, Captain Marvel! Simon, when you look at the cover of Whiz Comics number two, with that big crimson-suited hero hurlin' a car right at a brick wall, it just screams American energy. But we've got to clear up some real screwball history first, because trying to figure out these early Whiz Comics issue numbers is like trying to count home runs after too many bottles of near-beer! The listeners are probably pulling out their hair trying to find Whiz Comics number one in their local shops, and I don't blame 'em one bit!

Simon Carver

It-it is an absolute typographic circus, Robert. If a listener goes to a collector's shop looking for Whiz Comics number one, they will find themselves on a wild goose chase. In late 1939, Fawcett Publications wanted to secure the trademarks for their new characters as fast as possible. So, they produced these ultra-rare, black-and-white "ashcan" editions to show the copyright office. The first mock-up was called Flash Comics number one, and the second was called Thrill Comics number one. But as fate would have it, other publishers had already laid claim to those names! Fawcett had to pivot on a dime, finally settling on Whiz Comics. But because those first two ashcan attempts had already been logged behind the scenes, they decided to start the officially published, color newsstand run with Whiz Comics number two in February of 1940! To make matters even more confusing, the printers had a major mix-up later in the year, resulting in two entirely different issues being labeled as number three! It’s a real headache for historians, but once you crack open that actual first issue—Whiz Comics number two—the confusion melts away. The storytelling inside is pure magic, laid down by writer Bill Parker and artist Clarence Charles Beck, whom everyone calls C.C. Beck. Let's talk about them for a second, Robert, because they are very much alive and kicking, and their partnership is rewriting the rules of the medium. Bill Parker graduated from Princeton in 1933 with a degree in English Literature, and you can feel that classical education in the way he structures his myths, while C.C. Beck brings a clean, cartoony style that is a far cry from the gritty realism we see elsewhere.

Robert Reed

That classical touch is exactly what makes it work! Let’s do a real, deep panel-by-panel dive into that legendary origin story in Whiz Comics number two. It starts on a cold, blustery night in the city. We see a young, homeless orphan boy named Billy Batson. He's only about twelve years old, shivering in the drafty entrance of a subway station, trying to sell newspapers just to get a nickel for a sandwich. He’s got no family, no home, and he sleeps on the cold subway platform because it's the only place with a bit of warmth. He is a truly sympathetic kid. Suddenly, out of the shadows steps a tall, mysterious stranger wearing a long trench coat and a wide-brimmed hat that completely covers his face. The stranger points a gloved finger and says, "Follow me!" Billy, who’s a brave kid, follows him down the concrete stairs, deeper and deeper into the subway tunnels where the regular trains don't go. And then, a bizarre, futuristic train car—shining with headlights that gleam like a dragon's eyes—roars up to the platform. There’s no driver, Simon! It’s completely empty, but the doors slide open on their own. The stranger tells Billy to have no fear, and they climb aboard. The car takes off at a terrifying speed, hurtling through the pitch-black subterranean darkness. It's like a ride at the World's Fair, but a whole lot spookier!

Simon Carver

It’s an incredibly evocative sequence, Robert. Beck’s clean lines and heavy inks make that subway tunnel feel like a descent into another world. The train finally screeches to a halt at a platform that resembles the mouth of a weird, ancient cavern carved out of solid rock. Billy and his silent guide step out, and they walk into a massive, torch-lit stone hall. And along the walls, Billy sees these seven hideous, carved stone statues. These are the Seven Deadly Enemies of Man: Pride, Envy, Greed, Hatred, Selfishness, Laziness, and Injustice. They look like ancient, menacing idols, designed to warn humanity of its worst impulses. At the far end of this gloomy hall, sitting on a majestic marble throne, is an ancient, bearded wizard with long white hair that flows down to his robes. He welcomes Billy by name, and Billy is stunned—how could this ancient being know a friendless newsboy's name? The wizard reveals that his name is Shazam, and that he has used his magic for three thousand years to battle the forces of evil. But now, his time has run out. Directly above the wizard's head hangs a colossal, multi-ton block of granite, suspended by a single, frayed thread that is almost completely worn through. He tells Billy that he has been chosen to be the next champion of justice because his heart is pure and true. He instructs the boy to speak his name: Shazam!

Robert Reed

So Billy takes a deep breath, stands tall, and shouts: "SHAZAM!" Instantly, a massive lightning bolt flashes out of nowhere, accompanied by a deafening clap of thunder—BLAM! In a split second, the skinny, ragged little newsboy is gone. In his place stands a tall, muscular adult hero dressed in a brilliant red uniform, with a golden sash, golden wristbands, a white-and-gold Hessian cape, and a massive yellow lightning bolt emblazoned right across his chest. He has become Captain Marvel! Through that blinding flash, the fraying thread snaps, and the massive granite block falls, crushing the ancient wizard to powder. But the wizard's spirit remains as a glowing, spectral figure on the wall, telling Captain Marvel that whenever he needs to change back to Billy, or become the Captain again, he must speak the magic word. The letters of SHAZAM represent the six mythological figures who grant him their legendary traits: the wisdom of Solomon, the strength of Hercules, the stamina of Atlas, the power of Zeus, the courage of Achilles, and the speed of Mercury. It is an absolutely brilliant concept, Simon. Unlike Superman, who is an alien born with his powers, Billy Batson is a regular American kid who gets his powers through pure magic and moral worthiness. It’s the ultimate dream for every kid reading these books. You’re small, you’re poor, but you say one word, and you are the strongest, most heroic man on Earth! It’s like magic is real and it's on your side.

Simon Carver

It really is the gold standard of wish-fulfillment, Robert. And C.C. Beck’s art style is the perfect vehicle for it. It is simple, clean, and cartoony, avoiding the hyper-detailed, muscular anatomy that Shuster was using on Superman. Beck’s style makes the world feel like a vibrant, welcoming fable, even when the threats get incredibly modern and intense. And speaking of threats, in that very first story, we are introduced to Captain Marvel's ultimate arch-nemesis: the brilliant, bald, and utterly ruthless Doctor Thaddeus Bodog Sivana! Sivana doesn't rely on magic; he is the "Mad Scientist of Destruction." He starts his campaign by threatening the entire United States radio system, demanding fifty million dollars or he will shut down every broadcast in the country using his diabolical "radio-silencer." Billy, now working as an ace radio reporter for Amalgamated Broadcasting after using his Captain Marvel powers to secure a scoop, tracks the source of the silencer to a swanky penthouse in the Skytower Apartments. He transforms into Captain Marvel, crashes through the penthouse window, and smashes Sivana’s machine to smithereens. Sivana escapes in his secret rocket ship, vowing that they will meet again. It sets up an incredible dynamic: the ancient magic of Shazam versus the futuristic, industrial science of Sivana. It’s the battle of the century, and the fans are absolutely hooked!

Robert Reed

And the action only escalates from there! Let's take a look at Whiz Comics number three. Sivana is back, and he is determined to rule the country. He has built a lonely mountain fortress and assembled a massive, high-tech private army of super-soldiers, streamlined tanks, combat cars, and giant bombers. He actually sends a note to the President of the United States declaring war! When his bombers attack, Billy is in a news plane broadcasting the battle. When the enemy tanks open a massive hole in the American lines, Billy knows it's a job for Captain Marvel. He shouts the magic word, leaps into action, and starts dismantling Sivana's military machines with his bare hands! He literally lifts a tank and smashes it into another, and then chases Sivana's retreating soldiers. Billy sneaks into the enemy general's tent and discovers Sivana is communicating via a futuristic television screen. Though he gets captured by Sivana's guards and bound in heavy chains, Captain Marvel easily bursts the steel links and leaps out the window just as Sivana's mountain fortress explodes. It is a spectacular display of heroism, and it really solidifies the Captain as a patriotic protector of the American way. He’s standing up for our democracy, Simon, and he’s doing it with a smile!

Simon Carver

It is a masterclass in pacing, Robert. In Whiz Comics number four, the story takes a very interesting, almost romantic turn. We are introduced to Beautia, the hauntingly beautiful daughter of Doctor Sivana. Sivana brings Beautia from Venus to Earth, using her extraordinary beauty—which affects every man who sees her like a powerful drug—to run for President of the United States! It’s a brilliant, cynical plot. If Beautia is elected, Sivana will be the real power behind the throne, planning to steal all the gold from the U.S. Treasury, destroy the White House, and establish a brutal dictatorship. Billy is the only person who knows the truth, but when he tries to investigate, Sivana’s thugs capture him and put him under the "Memory Mangler," a diabolical machine that paralyzes the human memory. Billy escapes, but he wanders the dark caverns beneath the lab in a daze, completely forgetting his magic word! He stumbles upon the Seven Deadly Enemies of Man, reads the inscription on the wall explaining the letters of Shazam, and—CRASH! He remembers his name, transforms, and rescues Beautia and Sivana from an exploding powder keg. What’s fascinating is that while Beautia is Sivana's daughter, she is actually a good person who is deeply attracted to Captain Marvel, creating a wonderful, recurring emotional tension in the series. She’s caught between her loyalty to her father and her love for the hero.

Robert Reed

I love that dynamic, Simon! It adds a real layer of heart to the adventure. Now, let’s move on to Whiz Comics number five, which actually had two different versions, commonly referred to as 5a and 5b, due to those printing schedule mix-ups we talked about. In the first part of this run, Billy interviews the FBI chief in Washington about a massive crime wave sweeping the nation. He notices a dazed, hypnotized young boy named Joe who is listening at the keyhole. Billy befriends him and follows him to a dingy basement cellar, where he discovers a gang of young boys operating a massive robbery ring under the control of a brutal gangster named Mr. Scar. Billy pretends to join the gang, but Scar puts Billy under a powerful hypnotizing machine, ordering him to steal a ten-thousand-dollar diamond bracelet from Levy’s Jewelry Store. While Billy is in the store, a rival gang of robbers busts in for a daylight stick-up. The shock of the situation breaks Billy out of his hypnotic trance, he shouts "Shazam!" and Captain Marvel completely takes charge. He literally rips the steel body of the gangsters' getaway car clean off its chassis! He turns Scar over to the police, smashes the hypnotizing machine, and tracks the mastermind behind the whole Fagin-style operation: the sinister Dr. Aloysius Lake! He travels to Chicago and San Francisco, dismantling Lake's hypnotized boy-thief rings across the country in a whirlwind of heroic action. It’s a great, globe-trotting adventure!

Simon Carver

It is an incredibly busy and exciting run of stories, Robert. And the whimsical, bizarre imagination of Parker and Beck really shines in Whiz Comics number six, "The Circus of Death." Sivana returns, importing six giant rocket ships filled with prehistoric, Venusian monsters to Earth, planning to use them to conquer the country and make himself the most powerful man alive. He disguises the monsters as a traveling circus called "Monsters on Parade," featuring giant "crocosaurs," prehistoric elephants with armor-like hide, and ferocious saber-toothed tigers that have been extinct on Earth for fifty thousand years. Billy is in the press box broadcasting the show when a beautiful tightrope walker named Lovelia has her high-wire sabotaged by Clarence, a powerful, ape-like "Maniac Man" who is obsessed with her. Lovelia falls toward the tiger cage, and Billy instantly speaks the magic word. Captain Marvel swoops down, catches Lovelia in mid-air, and then has to battle the escaped, ravenous saber-toothed tigers! In a wonderful display of strength, when a tiger tries to bite Marvel’s back, its razor-sharp teeth completely break off into fragments against his skin. Marvel gathers the entire circus tent in his hands like a giant bag, traps all the Venusian beasts inside, and drops them safely into the ocean, while Sivana escapes back to Venus. It is pure comic-book gold! It shows how the strip can combine intense peril with lighthearted, fable-like resolution.

Robert Reed

Pure gold is right! Now, let’s talk about a major milestone for the character: Special Edition Comics number one, which came out in August of 1940. This was a massive, sixty-four-page giant entirely dedicated to the new adventures of Captain Marvel. The first story inside, Special Edition 1a, features a heavyweight boxing match between the champion and a mysterious, gigantic challenger named Slaughter Slade. Slade knocks out the champion with a single, devastating blow to the chin. Billy tries to interview the new champ, but Slade's manager, Butch, slams the dressing room door in his face. Billy senses something fishy, so he sneaks after Slade's car. He discovers Slade's secret hideout in a solid rock wall, but gets captured. Billy is thrown into a steel-barred dungeon, but he transforms into Captain Marvel and escapes. He eavesdrops on Slade and discovers that Slade has captured a brilliant scientist, Dr. Allirog, and is using a psychic device to control a giant, intelligent gorilla to help him seize control of the U.S. government! It culminates in a wild battle in the Senate chamber in Washington, where the gorilla tries to kidnap the President of the United States. Captain Marvel crashes through the skylight, knocks out the gorilla, and crowns Slaughter Slade in a spectacular subterranean subway chase. It is a fantastic, action-packed opening for the special edition! The sheer scale of it is just incredible.

Simon Carver

It really is. But now, let’s do a very thorough, page-by-page deep dive into the second story of that giant issue, Special Edition 1b: "Capt. Marvel and the Gamblers of Death." Thanks to our friends in the future, we actually have the original pages of this masterpiece right here in front of us, and it is a fascinating study in golden age comic craftsmanship. The splash page on page thirty-seven features a striking silhouette of Captain Marvel flexin' his muscles, while Billy Batson stands in his classic orange sweater with the "B" emblem, declaring that this is one of the toughest jobs they’ve ever tackled. The caption explains that Billy is investigating a phantom gambling ring that uses men’s lives as chips in a game of murder for money. In the first panel, we see a thrilling sports broadcast. Two sleek racing cars are thundering down the home stretch of a fifty-thousand-dollar sweepstakes race. Billy is broadcasting the event live over a coast-to-coast network. But high atop the grandstand, a sinister marksman aims a high-powered rifle and fires! The bullet strikes the tire of Car number thirteen at a hundred and fifty miles an hour. The tire blows, the driver loses control, and the car crashes through the guard rail in a massive cloud of smoke and fire. It is an incredibly dramatic, cinematic opening! The visual pacing is just superb.

Robert Reed

Oh, it’s a nail-biter, Simon! On the next page, Car number seven flashes across the finish line as an easy winner. Billy, acting as America’s ace radio reporter, rushes down to the track as the injured driver is being lifted out. The driver mutters that his tire was in perfect shape, and that it was impossible for it to blow out. Billy realizes this was no accident—it was cold-blooded sabotage! He takes his microphone up to the betting ring to get some sideline comments, where we see "Long Shot" Louis Lupo, a big-time gambler with a fat cigar, collecting ten thousand dollars he won by betting on the long-shot underdog, Car number seven. Billy asks Lupo for a statement, but Lupo just snarls, "Gwan, brat! Scram! I ain't int'rested in publicity, see?" Billy’s reporter instincts kick in. That night, he returns to the deserted, moonlit racetrack on a strange quest. He spends an hour searching the dirt until his flashlight beams illuminate a shiny object. He picks it up—it's a lead bullet! He realizes the driver was telling the truth: the car was wrecked deliberately, and now he knows who did it. A few days later, Billy is reading a newspaper gossip column that mentions "Long Shot" Louis Lupo has wagered a massive fifty-to-one bet on a specific plane, the Red Thunderbolt, to win the upcoming International Air Races. Billy knows he has to keep a close eye on that race! It’s classic detective work, Simon, just the kind of mystery I love.

Simon Carver

The plot thickens beautifully on page forty, Robert. We are at the international air races, a five-hundred-mile contest for the world’s flying championship. Lupo is talking to the pilot of the Red Thunderbolt, telling him he’s got a massive bet on him. The pilot points out that the other planes are twice as fast, but Lupo is smugly confident. Sure enough, as the starter's flag drops, only two planes take off. The third plane's motor mysteriously goes dead on the runway, disqualifying it. Ninety minutes later, the remaining two planes are roaring back toward the finish line, with the Red Thunderbolt lagging far behind. But just before the leading plane can cross the line, that high-powered rifle barks from the grandstand again! The plane is shot, staggers like a wounded bird, and plunges toward the earth in flames. Billy, watching from the crowd, knows he has to act fast. He snaps off his radio transmitter and speaks the magic word—SHAZAM! A giant thunderbolt shatters the air, and Captain Marvel zooms upward like a lightning flash. In a spectacular double-arm rescue, he pulls the unconscious pilot from the burning cockpit just in time, depositing him safely on the ground. And right there in the dirt near the wreckage, Marvel's eagle-sharp eyes detect a small, shiny object—another lead bullet! It is exactly identical to the one that wrecked the racing car. It’s an incredible sequence of action and deduction.

Robert Reed

Talk about a smoking gun! On page forty-two, a few days later, the newspapers are hailing the "Mile of the Century" footrace, with U.S. champion Jack Scott predicted to win. But in the dressing room before the race, we see "Long Shot" Louis Lupo threatening the frightened runner, warning him that he’s betting a massive amount on his rival, Jose Angelo, and that Scott has to lose the race, or else! Billy tries to reassure the terrified athlete, but Scott is paralyzed with fear. The runners line up, the starter's pistol fires, and Scott lags far behind, barely even trying to win. Lupo is grinning in the stands, thinking he’s about to make an easy five hundred grand. But suddenly, at the starting line, a tall, muffled figure in a heavy red cloak whips off his disguise—and it's Captain Marvel! He leaps onto the track, declaring, "A mile in thirty seconds... I wonder if I can do it?" He takes off like an express train! At breakneck, superhuman speed, the World's Mightiest Man passes the other runners once, twice, three times around the track, running the entire mile in an unbelievable twenty-nine seconds! Enraged at losing his fortune, Lupo raises his silenced rifle to shoot Marvel at the finish tape, but Marvel just catches the deadly bullet right in his bare hand! He dives after the fleeing sniper and Lupo, grabs them both, and carries them straight to the local courthouse where they confess to their crimes. It is a spectacular, fast-paced, and deeply satisfying adventure! What a story. And then we have Special Edition 1c, "Sivana the Weather Wizard," which takes us completely off the Earth and into the cosmos!

Simon Carver

Yes, "Sivana the Weather Wizard" is a phenomenal cosmic adventure, Robert. Billy learns that American insurance companies have lost three hundred million dollars due to an unprecedented wave of storms. He discovers that most of the destroyed properties were owned by the World Realty Company, of which Sivana is secretly the president! Billy investigates, but gets thrown out of their offices. He sneaks behind the building at night and discovers a giant rocket ship! He climbs aboard as a stowaway, and within hours, the ship blasts off and lands on the planet Venus. Billy is immediately attacked by a giant, winged flying crocodile! He transforms into Captain Marvel, grabs the beast, rolls it into a hoop, and rolls it right over a cliff! He then encounters a deadly tentacle tree, which he rips apart with his mighty muscles. He tracks Sivana to a magnificent Venusian palace, where Sivana has built a weather-making machine that can create cyclones on Earth from thirty million miles away to pull off a massive insurance fraud. It is an absolutely breathtaking, cinematic sci-fi adventure! And the Venusian craziness doesn't stop there. Sivana and his henchman, Herman, capture Billy, gag him so he can't speak his magic word, and stuff him into the cyclone machine, sending him riding the twister back to Earth as a helpless passenger. But as the cyclone descends on New York City, causing massive panic, the sheer force of the wind rips the gag right out of Billy's mouth! He shouts "Shazam!" and Captain Marvel is born. In a spectacular display of power, Marvel compresses the entire spinning force of the cyclone into a solid ball of energy and drops it deep into the ocean. He flies back to Venus, where Sivana sics a "colossal locust, grandfather of those which attacked the Nebraska cornfields," on him. Marvel just bops the grandfather locust on the nose, sending it crashing into the weather machine and destroying it completely. He recovers all the swindled insurance money, exiles Sivana and Beautia on Venus, and flies back to Earth. This is followed by Special Edition 1d, which features other wonderful short stories and puzzles, making the entire sixty-four-page giant an absolute landmark in Golden Age publishing. It showed that Captain Marvel could easily carry a massive, solo anthology and outsell almost every other hero on the newsstands!

Robert Reed

It is a phenomenal success story, Simon. And as we look at the rest of the first year of Whiz Comics, the creative momentum of Parker and Beck just keeps building issue by issue. In Whiz Comics number seven, Rodney Stark, a wealthy sportsman, finances a scientific expedition to the North Pole. Billy sneaks aboard his freighter, the Red Star, but Stark bodily throws him off. Six months later, Billy is sent to Greenland to investigate after six army planes are mysteriously stolen. He discovers that Stark has built an ingenious defrosting ray that slowly melts ancient glaciers, bringing a tribe of frozen, primitive Pleistocene savages back to life! These cavemen possess super-brains due to their intense cold hibernation, and Stark plans to use them and a fleet of duplicate planes to conquer the world! Billy gets captured and thrown into a sub-zero dungeon, but Captain Marvel breaks out, destroys Stark's planes, and Stark plunges to his death in an icy crevice. It’s a spectacular, high-stakes adventure that perfectly blends modern military fears with pulp-fantasy tropes. And how about Whiz Comics number eight, Simon? That one features "Captain Death," a sinister, hook-handed pirate who is operating a massive yacht called the Skull. He is working with a fake spiritualist, Professor Skull, to stage a series of mysterious drowning tragedies along the Eastern Seaboard. They target wealthy widows and millionaires, using a powerful underwater suction pump to drag swimmers into the yacht, making everyone think they drowned. Then, they use a clever, high-tech television screen disguised as a crystal ball to make the widows believe their husbands are speaking from the spirit world, swindling them out of millions of dollars in "stiff fees." Billy investigates, gets sucked into the yacht, and is pushed into a dungeon with the other captives. But he transforms into Captain Marvel, bursts his chains, crashes through the steel deck, and literally bites off the time fuse of a three-inch gun shell fired at his chest! He lifts the entire massive yacht clear out of the water, flies shoreward with it, and drops the criminals into a giant smokestack cage at a football stadium. It is an incredibly creative, fun, and fast-moving story!

Simon Carver

It really is, Robert. In Whiz Comics number nine, we see Billy investigating the theft of the fabulous Elban Crown Jewels. He visits a local toy store and tracks the theft to Dr. Roy Durgan, a brilliant but mad scientist who has perfected a three-dimensional camera ray that can shrink people to six inches tall! Durgan has shrunk his chauffeur, Pete, to use him as a tiny, miniature thief to slide through ventilators and steal bank bonds. Durgan captures Billy, binds him to a chair, and prepares to shrink him to the size of a peanut! But Billy manages to free his hands, speaks the magic word, and Captain Marvel makes a flying leap. In a wonderful, whimsical sequence, Marvel uses Durgan’s own camera ray to shrink the mad scientist, trapping him under a flower vase! He smashes through a steel safe door with his bare fist to retrieve the jewels, and chases Pete’s getaway plane, pouring the contents of a passing freight milk-tank car onto a fire to rescue them.

Robert Reed

It is an absolute delight of a story, showing how the strip could swing from cosmic dread to lighthearted, miniature slapstick in a single issue. And that lighthearted spirit is exactly what makes the character so beloved, Simon. In Whiz Comics number ten, Billy is in Hollywood visiting the Ace Films studio lot, where he discovers that the star of their new newsreel, "Flirting with Death," is actually Beautia, who has escaped from Venus! Sivana is secretly using the newsreel studio to film U.S. Navy maneuvers, copying their revolutionary "aerial torpedo" weapon to build a private fleet and destroy the entire American Pacific Fleet. Billy gets captured and tied to a cauldron of molten steel, but a glob of the white-hot metal luckily severs his gag, allowing him to shout "Shazam!" Captain Marvel bursts his bonds, intercepts the flying torpedoes in mid-air, and smashes Sivana's battleship to a useless tangle of metal, saving the fleet and Beautia once again. Finally, in Whiz Comics number eleven, Billy is sent to Marvel College to investigate Coach Slug Samson, who is running a crooked betting ring and doping the water pails to make the team lose! To get close to the coach, Billy has to enroll as a freshman and pass a tough entrance exam, which Captain Marvel secretly helps him cheat on! He joins the football team, but when the coach dopes the pails, the entire varsity squad is incapacitated. Captain Marvel has to play the entire game against State University by himself, carrying the ball, blocking, kicking the conversion, and winning the game single-handed! It’s just pure, unadulterated fun, Simon. It really shows how Captain Marvel compares and contrasts with Superman. While Superman is a grand, daylight crusader representing the alien trying to protect humanity, Captain Marvel is a magical fairy tale of childhood empowerment, bringing a lighthearted, whimsical, and deeply human heart to the Golden Age.

Simon Carver

It is indeed, Robert. The first year of Fawcett's Captain Marvel run established a completely new, vibrant, and incredibly successful lane in comic book history. It proved that heroism didn't have to be grim, muscle-bound, or gray; it could be a warm, storybook fable filled with magic, heart, and a healthy dose of humor. And we are not done with our shortwave broadcasts, friends! For our next program, we are going to explore the thrilling history of Fox Comics and their legendary hero, the Blue Beetle, covering Mystery Men number one through seventeen, Blue Beetle one through five, and Big Three number one. You’ll see that while his first appearance was actually back in 1939, his first truly distinguished, iconic adventures didn't hit the newsstands until this year. And for our next standard DCR broadcast, we will return to the Man of Steel with our third installment on Superman in 1940. If you have any questions, favorite panels, or thoughts on whether Billy Batson’s magic is a distraction from our grim world, or a mirror to it, write to us at distinguishedcomicsradio@gmail.com. That is distinguishedcomicsradio@gmail.com. From a dark, silent London, where the night wind whistles and we keep our courage high, I'm Simon Carver.

Robert Reed

And from Chicago, where the lights of the KDCR studio are burning bright, I'm Robert Reed. Keep your courage high, keep your eyes on the funny pages, and good night, folks. . Good night, America.