July 2020 – Comic Odyssey

Superman, the 1940’s: Lois Lane’s Hats Part 3

Posted on July 19, 2020July 19, 2020 by Familiar Purrson

Before I begin, I do want to make something clear: I’m not making fun of Lois herself in this trip down the hat-stand. As a character goes, once she hits her stride, the 1940’s Lois is a consistent, hard-headed, go-getter whom I find much more relatable than some of the other ‘leading ladies’ who are appearing in other superhero comics at the same time. Neither The Flash‘s Joan nor The Green Lantern‘s Irene or many others are as realized a character as Lois, although she will sadly lose some of this quality once Superman’s Girlfriend Lois Lane begins, when she becomes more romance-crazed and her adventures more silly, at least until the 1970’s. Only The Hawkman‘s Shiera Sanders shows hints of the relatively more ‘modern’ woman she will come to be as Hawkgirl (who will evolve considerably over a tangled web of multiple Earths, Crisis series, and retcons to the point where she is a hero on the animated Justice League (2001) and Hawkman does not seem to even exist). Consequently, at least apparently, of all those character and more, only Lois and Shiera have weathered time to become ‘stars’ in their own right instead of mere supporting cast.

But in the 1940’s, Lois is largely a woman working in a man’s career field, trying to use her ‘nose for news’ to break out of her ‘sob sister’ gig (for those unfamiliar with newspaper terms, one of Lois’ early duties is writing an ‘Advice to the Love-Lorn’ column) and into real, headline-making reporting. Yes, her reach often exceeds her grasp, but the fact that Lois would’ve been dead before the decade was out were there no Superman to rescue her doesn’t detract from this; it merely gives the stories an impetus they might otherwise have lacked.

Now, on to the hats!

Lois is actually looking pretty stylish in this ‘feminized fedora’ (I call it that because of the big bow on the back). It gives her a sort of intrepid woman-of-mystery air, something I at least am not used to seeing in Lois, who is about as in-your-face, what-you-see-is-what-you-get as possible most of the time. Even Margot Kidder (Superman: The Movie, Superman II; Kidder appeared in the other two films of that series, but those were not much more than cameos, so far as I know. If you know differently, let me know, as I can’t bear to watch them) got that right.

In the next issue, she’s equally stylish wearing a seashell.

Okay, no; that’s clearly a turban held on the side of Lois’s head by a ginormous hat-pin which she could’ve used as a weapon. Incidentally, this really was a story Joe Shuster penciled himself; Lee Nowak only did finishes and inked it. That tells me Shuster really did enjoy putting Lois in strange hats. Or perhaps they all really were fashionable, but I’m not sure the sort of hard-boiled reporter Lois is trying to be would’ve worn them.

Sigh. That, of course, suggests the sort of character undermining I mentioned happening later has already begun. But we’re here to have fun, or at least I am, so I’ll leave that for now and pretend that Shuster or someone else in the Shuster Shop was friends with a milliner and trying to do them a good turn.

Next up is one of those hats I’m beginning to think of as ‘orca-brims’ because, like a captive killer whale with a long dorsal fin, they stand up for part of their length, then flop over.

And no, she didn’t fall asleep; instead, Clark put Lois under with one of his slowly-growing list of super-abilities. Oh, Siegel doesn’t call it ‘super-hypnotism,’ but those writers who succeed him will.

In the next issue, Lois has another bonnet (I’m guessing again) perched on the back of her head.

*Superman* (1939) #14 “Concerts of Doom”

I at first thought that the hat was bending in the wind in that second panel. Perhaps that is indeed what Nowak intended, but I think it’s simply shading. I also love how Lois’s hair is done up in a ‘sausage roll’ at the base of the hat. How long does it take her to get it to do that? And I assume that every time she puts the hat on, Lois has to re-do her hair, as she doesn’t wear the hat indoors, and when it’s off, her hair isn’t so tightly rolled.

See?

I don’t know what this next hat is, but it’s odd-looking. This panel also does a good job of depicting those ‘newshound instincts’ of Lois’ that I talked about earlier; her first thought is what a headline the scene will make.

*Superman* (1939) #14 “The Invention Thief”

In the last story of that issue, Lois wears what looks like a beret:

*Superman* (1939) #14 “The Lightning Master”

But I’ve reversed the order of these panels so you can next see it from the front:

She’s wearing it bonnet-style, complete with that red ribbon to give it a ‘Little Bo Peep’ effect. Oh, Joe, oh Leo, whichever of you drew this, what were you thinking?

Next comes another of those creations I simply cannot describe. I will say that it’s so strange the artist himself doesn’t quite know how to depict it. First he does it this way:

*Superman* (1939) #15 “The Cop Who Was Ruined”

Then he changes it with in his more detailed drawings:

And a side view:

What exactly that’s supposed to be, I have no idea. Once again, if you do, by all means let me know. I’m afraid all I can offer is a No-Prize, plus mentioning your name/handle if you like and where you can be found on the Internet. Still, I know how people go for those No-Prizes, so I expect to hear from you.

For mystery of “The Evolution King,” Lois wears a dip serving dish:

*Superman* (1939) #15 “The Evolution King”

Not convinced? Have a closer look:

Dip goes in the center, and there’s space in the outer bowl for chips and crackers. What else can it be?

She tops that one in the same story, though, with this… something:

A sack? Her Flash Gordon Mongo warrior helmet? Your guess is probably better than mine.

At least I can name what Lois is wearing in the next issue. It’s a green Valentine!

*Superman* (1939) #16 “The World’s Meanest Man”

What she’s celebrating, on the other hand… there you have me.

And then there’s this:

The problem with this hat is that the artist (either Novak or Shuster) can’t decide which way that ever-loving upper brim curls. In the panel above it curls down, but in the next one, it’s… up?

And then it’s down again.

Perhaps it’s a mood hat. I know that sort of headgear showed up in Japan a few years back in the form of cat ears, but I had no idea they went back to 1942.

After that. I’m almost relieved to see a bottle cork hat again. Not the same one, of course; this hat is green and sports a nifty fur brim, but I can recognize our old friend from Part 2. Can’t you?

When Lois gets to be lead reporter in place of Clark while he mans her desk as ‘sob sister,’ she matches her elevation with a power hat… I think.

*Superman* (1939) #19 “The Canine and the Crooks”

It sports a feather (I believe that’s what that is), a back strap, and ribbons. What more could you want?

For a story that’s a little silly—Lois and Clark are watching a film (one of the Fleischer Superman Cartoons; I presume the point of this story was to drum up attendance for them) based on a comic by some guys called Seigel and Shuster—Lois wears an equally silly hat:

*Superman* (1939) #19 “Superman, Matinee Idol”

That’s right; she’s wearing a flower pot. At least it’s not orange like the dip-server and the whatsis sack.

And finally, yes, finally! I know this has been a long one, but bear with me: this will have been worth the wait. I’ve said before that Lois rarely exactly repeats herself. This time, however, she seems to be out to prove me wrong.

*Superman* (1939) #21 “The Four Gangleaders”

Why, it’s the return of the blue folded bow-thingy from Superman #15! She must’ve finally run out of space. That’s okay, Lois, we under…

Whoops! How wrong I was!

That’s right, folks; Lois is wearing a cat-hat. In blue. And no, don’t ‘feather’ me: those are cat ears and a tail, they are.

And that’s the end of our survey of the Many Hats of Lois Lane. Or what this entry would’ve been called in the late fifties, with Lois having to wear a new hat every day to save Superman’s life or charm him into marrying her or something. And then Mister Mxyzptlk or the Prankster tricks her into wearing the same hat…

…in short, it’s awful.

I do not claim ownership of any of the partial image representations posted here.

Superman, the 1940’s: Lois Lane’s Hats Part 2

Posted on July 10, 2020July 12, 2020 by Familiar Purrson

As we continue to follow Lois’ exploits in millinery, one question comes to mind, or at least to my mind. Does she really get paid well enough to afford all of these hats? I can’t recall the story at present, but it involves designer clothing rip-offs. In it, Lois lays out $150 (close to a cool $2,300 in today’s money) for an original creation. Then there’s this exchange:

*Superman* (1939) #23 “Fashions in Crime!”

(which makes Lois seeing the same dress on sale for $7.50 two panels later all the more fun), so perhaps Lois does have the money.

As an aside, Clark’s reaction make me wonder how much he lays out on all those identical suits of his. Eight bucks each? Ten? Clark, you spendthrift, you!

But back to Lois. So she has the money, maybe, but does she have the space? Sure, some of these creations look collapsable, but still, if Lois wears a new hat every week, where does she put them all? It looks as though they’d crowd her out of hat and home! (‘Dad joke.’ Sorry.)

Finally, a note: in Part One of this series, I used sources to help me identify the types of hats Lois was wearing to the best of my poor, fashion-ignorant ability. But from Superman #9 onward, the artists often drift so far afield from those that I simply can’t. I leave it to you, if you wish, to try it yourself. If you do so, be certain to let me know so I can include the info. If you like, I’ll be happy to also include your name or non de web and where to see what you do on the wild ‘n wooly web.

Now on to the hats.

In Superman #9 Lois decides to wear a cushion affixed to a skullcap. Or maybe it’s a flower like the one Peter Gabriel used to wear on stage. (Yes, I know hats like that have a real name—I think it’s another fascinator—but look at that thing, be honest, and tell me it doesn’t resemble a cushion)

*Superman* (1939) #9 “The Phony Pacifists”

Also, for some reason, Superman is playing hide and seek with her. Oh, sure, the story supplies a reason, but I’m sure that somewhere in its archives Superdickery has a more amusing one. If not, Mike Miksch is getting slow.

In the same issue, while investigating the “Mystery in Swasey Swamp,” Lois sports a serious feather in her cap. Two of them in fact. Don’t get too close, fella! She’ll tickle your nose!

*Superman* (1939) #9 “Mystery in Swasey Swamp”

(I suspect the odd angle of the feathers in that second panel is just a perspective error on penciller Paul Cassidy‘s part, but still… Also, for some interesting information on Cassidy and the working of the Shuster Shop, look here)

This next hat comes from “Jackson’s Murder Ring.”

*Superman* (1939) #9 “Jackson’s Murder Ring”

But she does have a heart, Clark! A purple one! Can’t your fancy super-vision see it perched on her head? Because I certainly can.

This isn’t a hat, but I simply have to include it. Lois is undercover, and she’s chosen an utterly impenetrable disguise:

So if you ever wondered why it took Lois so long to work out Superman’s secret identity, now you know.

(If ever. I don’t really know—yet—when or, to be more accurate, when or if in this continuity Lois learns that Clark is Superman, or Superman is Clark, depending on how the writer at the moment is handling the character. Since these older comics technically occur on Earth 2 until the first Crisis—a whole ‘nother ball of wax that I intend to get to eventually—took place, I’m not sure this Lois ever does. I do know the ever-rebooting DC eventually decided to let the Post (first) Crisis Lois know that Clark is Superman [I think it happened in 1997 to coincide with Lois learning Clark’s other identity in the TV show Lois and Clark: the New Adventures of Superman], but, as I said, I’m not sure that Lois is the same as the Lois in the 1940’s continuity, of the ‘New 52’ whatsis, or even the Lois of the current one. I hope so, as in a collection I recently read they are married and have a child, but you never know what corporate heads will decide to do. Look at what happened to poor Peter Parker because of all Marvel’s Civil War hoopla. Anyway, in either case, I’m not sure about the Lois of Earth 2, although I think perhaps she and Clark married there, too. At least I know there was a teenaged Superman Jr. or some equivalent zipping around for a while in World’s Finest in the 70’s, a character I fully intend to cover later, because what I recall of him is truly strange. Ah, the twisted web continuity shifts weave!)

In Superman #10, Lois sports this perky number. I wish I could show you all the panels showing that feather tickling the sky, but I don’t want to go overboard.

*Superman* (1939) #10 “The Talent Agency Fraud”

In the next story, Lois finally goes Full Robin Hood, green dress and all.

*Superman* (1939) #10 “The Spy Ring of Righab Bey”

Is the takeaway never go Full Robin Hood in the DC Universe unless you’re Green Arrow (who I’m fairly sure hadn’t been created yet)? Possibly, but if so, the main reason not to do it is because without a bow, you look a trifle odd.

If you were leering at the receptionist there, hold on to your capes, because Lois is the next woman to use that outfit.

Although Wayne Boring never draws Lois quite as slinky as he does the previous girls, who were criminals, after all. Still, I wonder if this is where the writers of the aforementioned Lois and Clark series got the idea to dress Teri Hatcher in a similar outfit (look at about 0:40).

In “The Dukalia Spy Ring” Lois wears, well, this:

*Superman* (1939) #10 “The Dukalia Spy Ring”

I’d call it a baseball cap, but it’s… not.

For the Superman #11 tale “Zimba’s Gold Badge Terrorists,” Lois chooses lime green and, yet again, what I can only refer to as ‘this.’ Back view:

*Superman* (1939) #11 “Zimba’s Gold Badge Terrorists”

Front view:

I think that the artist—Leo Nowak—got a little confused, but then again, later views of both back and front look pretty much the same. Maybe it’s the wind of Clark vanishing and showing up again.

Lois keeps wearing this hat for a really long time in this story, so we get more looks again, both back:

And front:

But I’m honestly not sure they help any. It’s an enigma wrapped in a mystery perched upon Lois’ head.

Moving on, in “The Corinthville Caper,” Lois sticks to green, but wears a different hat. Again, Leo Nowak is kind enough to provide us with a rear view:

*Superman* (1939) #11 “The Corinthville Caper”

And front:

I don’t know what to say about this creation except that perhaps something has been snacking upon it. Also, Lois, please! Clark is not cowardly; he’s mild-mannered. We’re told so. Often.

For the next story, ‘The Yellow Plague,” Lois proudly dons a bottle cork.

*Superman* (1939) #11 “The Yellow Plague”

Which soon begins to slip off her head.

I suppose that’s better than, ah, popping.

Had enough? I hope not, because I haven’! Stay tuned, because next time the hats get truly strange. And yes, I’m looking right at the bottle cork hat as I write this. Unless you’ve read these oldies, too, you have no idea…

…but you will.

I do not claim ownership of any of the partial image representations posted here.

Superman, the 1930’s-40’s: Lois Lane’s Hats Part 1

Posted on July 1, 2020July 1, 2020 by Familiar Purrson

Ah, the forties. The War Years (or the New War Years, I suppose, as opposed to the Great War Years, no one as yet anticipating the subsequent wars the United States would be involved in —or involve herself in—one after another). In such changing times, when the nation’s women went to work with a will, what was a fashion-conscious ‘girl reporter’ supposed to wear? Great heavens! What should she place upon her head?

Most of the period I’m going to cover is technically pre-war for the U.S., although towards the end of this run Superman will begin beating the drums, so to speak, and at the very end begin to give whole-hearted support to the U.S. effort. I think it gives an interesting insight, to those who notice such things, into the fashion of the era. While I myself am not especially a fan of style, I do find myself capable of being amused by it, and, as I watch the parade of headgear Lois dons and often loses, I can’t help but chuckle and wonder, too.

One reason for my merriment is that this is all, so far as I know, Joe Shuster’s work. Even after the Shuster Shop was up and running, Shuster himself did the pencil and ink work on Superman’s, Clark’s, and Lois’s heads (if this is incorrect, please let me know) in the early years of both the Action Comics stories and Superman, so I’m guessing that Lois’ headgear was his work, and if not, at the very least met with his approval.

Clearly Joe enjoyed variety.

Not that we got much of that at first. The stories that appear in Action for the first few years aren’t exactly devoid of Lois, bus neither does she have the costarring role she soon takes on in Superman. Her hats, I suppose, reflect this.

First up: a rather ordinary brim slouch.

*Action Comics* (1938) #1 “The Coming of Superman”

Next, either a very plain turban or else, heaven help us, a snood. Oh, Lois! Did you leave in that much of a hurry?

*Action Comics* (1938) #2 “Revolution in San Monte”

Lois next dons a rather subdued if stylish picture hat:

*Action Comics* (1938) #5 “Superman and the Dam”

And then some sort of day hat:

*Action Comics* (1938) #7 “Superman Joins the Circus”

The first issue of Superman featured reprints from Action, and it took over half a year (Superman was at first a quarterly magazine) to get its legs under it. But by the end of the magazine’s first year, Lois was ready with, ah, this:

*Superman* (1939) #4 “Luthor’s Undersea City”

I think that’s a pillbox hat of some sort, but frankly, it looks like a jar lid, knurls and all.

Two issues later, perhaps to celebrate Superman going bi-monthly, Lois would get a little more stylish with a tan fascinator:

*Superman* (1939) #6 “The Rulers of Gateston”

And a smart green skimmer as well:

*Superman* (1939) #6 “The Construction Scam”

In the next issue, Lois sports either a red small saucer hat or a beret—I suspect the former—with a sporty bow on top:

*Superman* (1939) #7 “The Three Kingpins of Crime”

And in the next story that issue, “The Gay City Plague” (No, it’s some sort of gas turning people into glass. Really. Hush), she wears the same hat, but in green:

*Superman* (1939) #7 “The Gay City Plague”

Bored? Lois has the cure! Again, I’m not sure what this thing is, although my guess is some sort of ‘Robin Hood’ Tyrolean hat.

*Superman* (1939) #7 “Bert Runyan’s Campaign”

(Incidentally, for those artist enthusiasts among you, these stories in Superman #7 were mostly penciled and inked by Wayne Boring as Joe Shuster began to find himself incapable of carrying the ever-increasing art load.)

And for election night in that story, Lois spruces up in, well…

Look, online research can only get you so far, folks. All I know is that if it’s the same hat, Lois has fed it too much and it has now grown and is ready to reproduce, tribble-style.

(If any fashion-literate person recognizes this thing perched on Lois’ noggin, please let me know.)

Now and then Lois does repeat, of course. In “The Giants of Professor Zee,” she seems to have donned the same green saucer hat she wore in “The Gay City Plague.”

*Superman* (1939) #8 “The Giants of Professor Zee”

Then again, sooner or later she has to, right? Plus, Lois is about to pull one of her crazier stunts (details at another time, I hope), so she probably isn’t thinking much about her appearance.

Later that issue, Lois wears either some sort of flop beret or more likely a turban. It’s strange, either way.

In the next story, our intrepid ‘girl reporter’ sticks with red, but returns to saucers. Not one of the earlier hats, though. No, indeed! This one has a skullcap.

*Superman* (1939) #8 “The Carnival Crooks”

Bored? Just wait! As the series gets more popular and the relationship between the ‘triangle’ (or perhaps helix) of Clark, Lois and Superman gets more intense, Lois’ hats become much more extreme. Clark has some definite feelings about that, by the way:

*Action Comics* (1938) #9 “Wanted: Superman”

Oh, he says it’s about her infatuation with Superman, but I think Clark is laughing about Lois’ hats.

As for me. I’m not done with them yet. We’ve only begun to plumb Lois’ collection, and I know you’re as eager to see more as I am.

You see, we need the laughs, too.

Note: If you’re interested in the hat terms I use, here are my sources: Vintage Dancer’s “Women’s 30s Hat History” and “1940s Hats History,” and the Art Deco Society of California’s Deco Life page “The Mad Cap.” I wouldn’t have known where to begin without them other than ‘Hee-hee, lookit that!’ so they are all much appreciated.

I do not claim ownership of any of the partial image representations posted here.