Episode 21: Al Pratt’s Origin: The Mighty Atom Debuts

Simon Carver

Welcome to the show everybody! I am Simon Carver, broadcasting to you once again from a damp, cold, and thoroughly blacked-out London. It is Saturday, May 3rd, 1941. If you listen closely, you can hear the low, metallic hum of our transmitter competing with the distant, uneasy silence of a city waiting for the sirens to wail. But even with the blackout curtains pinned tight, we are keeping our minds bright tonight. Joining me from our warm, fully illuminated Chicago studio on KDCR is my partner, Robert Reed. How are things on the shores of Lake Michigan, Bob?

Robert Reed

Well, Simon, Chicago is absolutely sunny and beautiful, though we are keeping a close eye on the shortwave reports coming from your side of the pond. Just two days ago, on May 1st, Orson Welles's magnificent new picture, Citizen Kane, had its big worldwide premiere at the Palace Theatre right there in New York City! I tell you, a story like that about a giant of industry almost makes you forget that the rainy season just paused the fighting in western Ethiopia for six weeks, or that the Liverpool blitz is raging as we speak.

Simon Carver

Orson Welles certainly knows how to build a monument out of shadow and light, Robert. Much like our publishers do on the newsstands. When the real world is this heavy, people crave a different kind of myth. And that brings us directly to our second look at All-American Publications, operating out of their bustling headquarters at 225 Lafayette Street in lower Manhattan.

Robert Reed

Lafayette Street! Now that is a proper, bustling neighborhood, miles away from DC's uptown executive suites at 480 Lexington Avenue. But you know, even though they were physically separated, Max Gaines was still using that informal DC logo on the covers for distribution. It is a fascinating corporate setup, Simon. Harry Donenfeld, the big boss who holds the keys to both National Allied and Detective Comics, funded Gaines to start All-American in 1939. But Donenfeld is no fool. He agreed to the deal on one condition: Gaines had to take Jack Liebowitz on as his partner.

Simon Carver

Liebowitz was the watchdog! As the writer Gerard Jones noted, Liebowitz was put there specifically so he wouldn't let Gaines take off on his own or act against the interests of the other sister companies. He was a minority owner, but he held the corporate leash. It is a beautiful piece of corporate geometry—an independent, creative office downtown, yet tethered firmly to the uptown money.

Robert Reed

And that tether is what allowed them to build such a stable. While the country is tuning its shortwaves to hear about the Royal Navy capturing German submarines like the U-110 to crack those Enigma code books, the kids on the street corner are putting down their dimes to buy a completely different kind of code. Tonight, we are talking about a character who doesn't have an alien lineage or a magic ring. He is just a kid from college who got tired of being pushed around. We are talking about the first-ever appearance of Al Pratt, the Mighty Atom, debuting in All-American Comics number nineteen, cover-dated October 1940!

Simon Carver

The Mighty Atom! He almost didn't make the cut for our program, Robert, except for his inclusion in a very grand group that we will cover in an issue just a few broadcasts from now. But before we get to his heavy lifting, I must ask: did you ever find that local public library award I won back in my New York days, or is it still serving as a paperweight in your Chicago garage?

Robert Reed

Now, Simon, you know that little local plaque is safely polished right next to my Chicago Cubs pennants! But let us leave your high-society accolades to the history books and open up the dusty, ink-stained pages of All-American Comics number nineteen.

Robert Reed

Let let us look at page two of All-American number nineteen. The story is credited to writer Bill O'Connor and artist Ben Flinton, and it starts right on the campus of Calvin College. We are introduced to Al Pratt, and the caption doesn't mince words: "An atom is absolutely the smallest thing on Earth—so we find our little friend Al Pratt." He is five-foot-one, a 98-pound weakling, and his classmates are giving him the absolute business.

Simon Carver

In panel two, we see these big, broad-shouldered college fellas in their varsity sweaters crowding around him. One thug in a green suit leans down and says, "Hello little man, say 'Atom,' are you standing in a hole or what?" Another one yells, "Stand up when you speak to us!" It is a miserable, public humiliation. Al is walking away with his hands in his pockets, gritting his teeth, saying, "Gee! How can I help being small—I'll show them yet!"

Robert Reed

And then comes the real kicker, Simon. The emotional blow. Al sees Mary James, the girl of his dreams, walking down the sidewalk. He gathers up his courage, straightens his tie, and says, "H-H-Hello Mary, you're just the person I want to see... how about going to the prom Friday with me?" But before she can even answer, a stick-up kid in a yellow trench coat and a slouch hat jumps out of the shrubbery! He brandishes a knife and barks, "Hey! What's up? It's a stick-up kid—hand over any dough ya got!"

Simon Carver

Mary is terrified! She screams, "Oh Al! Do something—he'll take my ring and watch!" But poor Al, he is paralyzed. He is just too small. The mugger grabs Al by the collar, brandishes that knife, and sneers, "Don't move squirt or else I'll step on ya! Now hand over da dough an' joolry!" Al can only stammer, "Y-yes..." while the crook makes clean away with their belongings.

Robert Reed

And Mary is absolutely disgusted, Robert. In the next panel, she turns her back on him completely, her face contorted with anger. She yells, "Why didn't you do something, you spineless little amoeba? Oh, why couldn't I have been with a man at a time like this? Now I won't go to that dance with you—in fact, I don't want to see you again! Good-bye!" And Al is left standing there by a red car, clutching his head, sobbing, "B-but Mary!"

Simon Carver

A spineless little amoeba! That is a harsh, biting phrase. Al walks the streets in a daze, wondering, "Why do I have to be so small? Now I've even lost my girl... what can I do?" He broods for days. Then, one afternoon, a ragged, older fella in a battered hat stops him on the street and asks, "Say bud, could you spare a dime?" Al looks at him, pulls out a dollar bill—which is real money in 1940—and says, "Hey pal! This is a buck."

Robert Reed

A whole dollar! The old-timer's eyes go wide. He says, "Well, what of it? I don't care about anything—say, you do look hungry, come on, I'll buy you a dinner." They head into a local diner, and over a couple of steaming plates of beef stew, Al confesses his troubles. He tells the old fella how everything is going against him because of his size, how he is determined to do something about it, but he just doesn't know what.

Simon Carver

And that is when the old-timer reveals his true identity. He sits up straight, his face suddenly looking sharp and powerful, and says, "Well pal, my name is Joe Morgan. I'm on the bum now... but once I was a pretty good fight trainer." Al leaps out of his booth! He cries, "You Joe Morgan? Why, I've heard of you!" Joe looks at Al's small frame, clenches his fist, and says, "Sure you did. Lotsa people did—once! Why, I've built up bodies worse'n yours—an' made champs out of 'em. I could make a little Superman out of you in less'n a year!"

Robert Reed

A little Superman! Now that is a bold, direct nod to their sister company's star athlete. Al tells Joe about an old, abandoned farm his late uncle left him in the country, along with a little pocket money. So, the very next morning, they leave college behind and head up to the old place. It is a run-down, messy shack, but Al is determined. The next morning at six-thirty, Joe bangs on the door: "Come on Al—up 'n at 'em—six thirty! We'll only run four miles this mornin'!"

Simon Carver

And then we get this spectacular, kinetic montage by Ben Flinton at the bottom of page three. We see Al running through the fields, lifting heavy dumbbells, skipping rope, shadowboxing with Joe, leaping over hurdles, and wrestling under the hot sun. The caption tells us that for a year, Al rigidly applies himself to the rules set by Joe. Slowly, his body develops.

Robert Reed

A whole year of sweat and tears! Then, one morning, Al is standing by an outdoor pump, completely transformed. He has got shoulders like a Chicago bricklayer! Joe looks at him and says, "Well Al, I guess this finishes it—I can't do nothin' more for you—the rest is up to yourself." Al flexes his new chest and grins, "And I feel marvelous, Joe! This doesn't finish us, though—you and I are sticking together!"

Simon Carver

They buy train tickets to return to the city. But while they are waiting on the platform, a big, pompous fella in a yellow suit and a fedora shoves right past Al at the ticket window. He barks, "One side youngster! Let your elders be served!" Al politely says, "Say! I was here first." The big guy grabs Al by the arm and snarls, "Go on, little boy—I'm in a hurry—"

Robert Reed

Oh, but Al has had enough of being shoved! He grabs the big fella by his lapels, grunts, "Yeah—you can't shove me around just because I'm small!" and with a massive, effortless hoist, he hurls the grown man right over his head! The guy goes flying through the air, landing flat on his backside on the wooden platform! A local station agent in a blue cap stands there with his mouth open, and Joe Morgan just chuckles.

Simon Carver

Al is astonished by his own strength! He looks at his hands and says, "I can't get over it, Joe! Am I that strong? It must have been a mistake!" Joe picks up their bags and smiles, "I dunno, Al. Maybe you'll have to watch yourself from now on." They return to the city and take a room in a modest hotel near Calvin College. That night, Al decides to go for a walk to see if he can find Mary James—the girl who gave him the air a year ago.

Robert Reed

But as he tries to leave the hotel room, the door is stuck tight. Al reaches out, gives a firm tug, and with a loud rrr-rip, he pulls the entire wooden doorknob and the lock assembly right out of the frame! He stands there scratching his head, saying, "Gee! Look what I did, Joe—the door was stuck and I only meant to pull it open!" Joe watches from his armchair, thinking, "Wow! I never thought I'd train him that good—the size of him, with the strength of a giant!"

Simon Carver

A giant in a small package! Al walks toward Mary's house under the streetlights, but as he approaches, a long, black touring car screeches to a halt outside her gate. Two thugs in trench coats grab Mary right off her walkway! She screams, and Al springs into action. He runs after the speeding car, leaps onto the rear bumper, and clings to the spare tire as the vehicle hurtles into the night!

Robert Reed

Talk about a high-speed commute, Simon! The car pulls up to a secluded, dark mansion, and Al slips off the back. He creeps up to a window and looks inside. The gang leader, a slick fella in a green suit, is holding a ransom note and laughing: "Nice work boys! That ransom note by now... and he'll kick in with the twenty grand too—he won't want his pretty daughter hurt!" Al clenches his fists outside, thinking, "So—it is a kidnapping! Those big stiffs can't hurt Mary—I'm going in there!"

Simon Carver

He crashes right through the window like a thunderbolt! He lands right on the back of one gunman, grunting, "Bring down the curtain boys—your show is closing!" The other thugs open fire, but Al moves like a streak of lightning. In a spectacular double-page spread of action, he ducks under their punches, swings his fists like small iron mallets, and knocks all three kidnappers completely unconscious!

Robert Reed

He absolutely flattens them, Simon! Mary stands there, her eyes wide with awe, but before she can thank her mysterious rescuer, Al slips out into the darkness, leaving only a small, rectangular card on the floor. A few minutes later, the police chief and Mary's father burst into the room. The chief looks at the groggy kidnappers on the floor, scratches his head, and says, "Well... someone sure did a fine job here! I wonder who it could have been?"

Simon Carver

Mary's father spots the card on the floor, picks it up, and reads it. It has got a bold, jagged border with one word printed in the center: "The ATOM!" The police chief looks puzzled: "This is a new one on me... who is this Atom? Did you see him, Miss James?" Mary looks starry-eyed and says, "No... I would have been blindfolded all the while—but I surely would like to meet him—he must be wonderful!"

Robert Reed

Oh, the irony, Simon! She called him a spineless little amoeba, and now she is swooning over his secret card! It is a beautifully paced debut, showing how O'Connor and Flinton wanted to anchor this character in a very relatable, human struggle of self-improvement.

Simon Carver

It really is. But things take a very sudden, theatrical turn in the next few issues. By All-American Comics number twenty, cover-dated November 1940, Al Pratt decides he needs a proper uniform to carry on his dual role. He crafts a costume that is... well, it is certainly unique, Robert. He wears a bright yellow sleeveless shirt, brown trunks with a wide belt, red boots, and a full, blue cowl that completely covers his head with two tiny eyeholes cut out.

Robert Reed

That cowl looks like a grain sack with eyeholes, Simon! It is a far cry from the sleek masks we see on Batman or the Green Lantern. In issue twenty, Al actually looks at himself in the mirror and says, "I feel like a character out of a comic book in this costume—but at least I'll get some fun out of this party!" He debuts this new look at the Calvin College Diamond Ball, where a gang of high-society thieves tries to steal the famous Kador Necklace, valued at twenty-five thousand dollars, from Mary James's neck.

Simon Carver

The Diamond Ball! The thieves, led by a slick boss, slip into the ballroom and order everyone to put their jewelry in a pile. Al, playing the coward once again, runs out onto the balcony, slips into his Atom duds, and swings from a decorative vine right into the middle of the dance floor! He shouts, "Doug Fairbanks did this in a movie once—it should be good one more time!" and kicks the thugs flat.

Robert Reed

A Hollywood entrance! He disarms the thugs, grabs the leader, and carries Mary James out to safety on his shoulder. But the leader manages to snatch the necklace before fleeing. Al pursues him onto the high, narrow ledge of the balcony, corners him, and punches him so hard the guy falls right into the decorative stone fountain below! Al retrieves the necklace, leaves his signature "Atom" card with the police, and slips back into his tux just in time to hear Mary say the Atom is "strong and brave—not at all like some people I know!"

Simon Carver

The poor kid just can't win with her in his civilian clothes! Now, in issue twenty-one, cover-dated December 1940, the stakes get much weirder. The Calvin College sophomore class is heading out for their annual picnic when they are ambushed by a band of half-naked, muscular "monsters" who lead them into an old, abandoned copper mine. It turns out to be the secret laboratory of a crazed, white-bearded mad scientist!

Robert Reed

A mad scientist in a copper mine! He has got a giant, throne-like chair and an army of mind-controlled slaves. He boasts that he has discovered a way to transmit his will into any person's body to make them his slaves, and he intends to sweep the United States and become the "Emperor of America!" Al slips away, changes into his yellow-and-blue Atom suit, and leaps into the chamber, shouting, "Okay teacher, here comes your pupil!"

Simon Carver

He takes on the entire army of muscular slaves, Robert! But during the struggle, the mad scientist grabs a beaker of his "powerful acid" and tries to throw it at Al. Al ducks, and the acid splashes against a heavy wooden support pillar holding up the mine roof. The acid eats right through the timber with a loud creee-ak, and the entire ceiling begins to collapse in a massive landslide of rock!

Robert Reed

The roof is falling! Al uses his incredible strength to carry the star football player, Truck Tarbell, and the other students out of the cave just before a massive avalanche completely blocks the entrance. Outside, the students find another "Atom" card left in the car, and Mary realizes the mysterious hero must still be alive. It is high-octane, sensational melodrama, Simon!

Simon Carver

And the collegiate drama continues in issue twenty-two, from January 1941. This story is all about protecting the home team. Truck Tarbell's father runs the Tarbell Transportation Company, but a ruthless racketeer named Lefty Lou Albano is running a protection racket, sabotaging their trucks with dynamite and high-powered rifles to force them out of business. If Mr. Tarbell goes bankrupt, young Truck will have to drop out of Calvin College, destroying their chances at the conference football championship!

Robert Reed

We can't let them ruin the football season! Al Pratt goes to Joe Morgan and says, "Joe, if Truck leaves college, Calvin will lose the best fullback it has had in years!" Joe says, "So what?" but Al is already on the case. He tracks down Lefty Lou Albano's office, slips through the window in his Atom suit, and finds Albano's thugs waiting to collect twenty thousand dollars from Mr. Tarbell.

Simon Carver

Al slides down the grand bannister of the Tarbell home to confront them! He shouts, "I haven't slid down a bannister since I was a little fellow—guess I'll give it a try!" He disarms the thugs, beats them with their own weapons, and then forces them to drive him straight to Albano's headquarters. When they arrive, Al punches the door open, flattens Albano's guards, and corners the boss himself.

Robert Reed

Albano tries to pull his gun, but Al punches him so hard the boss cries, "Stop it! Stop it! I can't stand any more... I'm a sick man!" Al then uses his bare hands to rip the heavy steel door clean off Albano's office safe to gather all the racketeering evidence! He wraps the papers in a bundle, drops the entire gang off at the police station with a nice bow, and returns to campus just in time to hear Truck say, "This Atom must be some guy... don't you wish you could be like him, Al?"

Simon Carver

It is a marvelous, ironic pattern. But you know, Robert, looking at these first four issues, it raises a very fundamental question: is Al Pratt actually a "superhero" in the way we think of Superman, or is he something else? In late 1940 and early 1941, he has no metahuman abilities. No atomic punches, no radiation resistance. He is just a very short college sophomore who spent a year doing calisthenics on a farm.

Robert Reed

That is exactly right, Simon. He is a classic "mystery man." He relies entirely on raw physical training, boxing skills, and a theatrical costume to scare the daylights out of crooks. He doesn't have a cape that lets him fly—he is swinging from vines and sliding down bannisters! He is much closer to the pulp heroes of the old days, like Doc Savage or the Shadow, who trained their bodies to the absolute peak of human perfection.

Simon Carver

And that makes his choice of costume even more fascinating. Why the full, faceless blue cowl? If you are just a strong college kid, why dress like an executioner or a medieval inquisitor? It is a very dark, almost sinister look for such a sunny, collegiate character. Compare him to the Green Lantern, who wears a bright, theatrical mask, or Batman, who has those iconic pointed ears. Al Pratt looks like he walked out of a secret society meeting.

Robert Reed

It is a very imposing silhouette, Bob! And you have to wonder about the minds behind it. Writer Bill O'Connor and artist Ben Flinton are incredibly mysterious figures in this golden age. We know so little about them, yet they managed to construct this beautifully tight, character-driven strip that perfectly captures the anxiety of the "98-pound weakling" which was so popular in those old Charles Atlas body-building ads in the back of the pulp magazines.

Simon Carver

The Charles Atlas connection is spot on, Robert! It is the ultimate fantasy of the era—the boy who gets sand kicked in his face, goes away to train, and returns to throw the bully over his head. It is a simple, democratic sort of power. You don't need to be born on Krypton or find a magic lantern; you just need a farm, a good trainer like Joe Morgan, and the willpower to run four miles at six-thirty in the morning.

Robert Reed

And that simplicity is exactly why he fits so well with the rest of the characters we've covered. He doesn't overshadow them; he complements them. He is the little guy who punches above his weight class. And as we teased earlier, his big break is coming up in just a few broadcasts, when he joins forces with the Flash, Green Lantern, and Hawkman to form the legendary Justice Society of America in All Star Comics number three! That is the real reason he made the cut for our show, Simon. He is a founding father of the team-up.

Simon Carver

The Justice Society! Now that is a gathering of giants that will completely reshape the newsstands. But before we get to that historic meeting, we have a lot of ground to cover. Our next standard broadcast will feature the historic, lightning-fast run of Flash Comics issues one through twelve, alongside the grand debut of All Star Comics numbers one and two!

Robert Reed

That is going to be a real barn-burner, Simon! Now, before we sign off, I have to mention a rather peculiar shortwave message we received this week from our technical producer, that mysterious "Mr. Moore" who claims to be broadcasting to us from the distant future of the twenty-first century. He keeps sending us these strange, typed notes about a "Patreon" and a "website" where listeners can support the show. I don't know what kind of vacuum tubes he is using to transmit those concepts, but he is certainly persistent!

Simon Carver

A time-traveling producer! Perhaps he is using some of that dimensional technology Al Pratt invents later in his career. But until we crack that code, we want to hear from you, our real-time listeners of 1941. Send your letters, your questions, or your favorite Atom panels to our shortwave address: distinguishedcomicsradio @gmail.com.

Robert Reed

That is distinguishedcomicsradio @gmail.com! Keep those letters coming, folks. We read every single one under the bright studio lights.

Simon Carver

Keep your shortwave dials tuned, keep your courage high in these dark times, and from a resolute, blacked-out London, this is Simon Carver saying good night.

Robert Reed

And from Chicago, where the lights are bright and the Cubs are ready for the summer, this is Robert Reed. Good night, folks, and keep the faith!