CRIVENS! COMICS & STUFF!: SO TELL ME, CRIVS... DID YOU EVER WONDER ABOUT SUPERMAN'S "U"?

Monday, 25 October 2010

SO TELL ME, CRIVS... DID YOU EVER WONDER ABOUT SUPERMAN'S "U"?

Superman #233, featuring Ira Schnapp's logo.
(Art by Neal Adams)

SUPERMAN's logo is as iconic as that of COCA COLA and is recognized the world over, but it took a little while before it was standardized by NATIONAL PUBLICATIONS' ace designer and calligrapher IRA SCHNAPP (on the cover of issue #6), based on JOE SHUSTER's original design. Did you ever wonder, however, why it had that peculiar shaped angular "U" which didn't match any of the other letters?

Superman Ashcan edition. (Art by Joe Shuster)

I thought I had solved the mystery when I first saw the cover of the Ashcan Edition of Superman (SUPERMAN COMICS), and noticed that the "C" of "Comics" cuts into the lower part of the "U" of "Superman". Closer examination shows that the "U" had almost the same squarish curve (if that's not a contradiction in terms) as the "P" and the "R". Was it simply a case of this rough logo being relettered for issue #1 with the word "Comics" omitted, and someone taking the easy way out by angling-off the letter to complete the bottom line of the "U"?

Superman #6. 1st appearance of Ira's logo.
(Art by Joe Shuster)

It would be easy to assume so, going by the cover (and centre pages) of the actual first issue (which, legend has it, was originally intended as a one-off - hence the un-numbered cover). It therefore didn't seem unreasonable to suppose that, when Ira Schnapp came to letter the definitive version, he was provided with a printed copy of the then-relatively recent SUPERMAN #1 for reference. It certainly couldn't have been issues 2-5, as each cover logo featured a curved "U". (For the cover of issue #1, see previous post.) So - mystery solved?

Well, no. Despite my fine speculations, after a bit more digging I found that JOE SHUSTER had occasionally rendered the "U" in that way from as early as ACTION COMICS #2 - which predates the Ashcan and the first issue by quite a margin. (As that story was actually reprinted in SUPERMAN #1, I could have saved myself needless hypothesizing by simply reading the comic.) It seems entirely possible, therefore, that Ira Schnapp was provided with a copy of the angular lettered logo for reference instead of the curved one merely on a whim of fate. (Though I have to concede that, with it's distinctive "U", maybe the editor - or Ira himself - just preferred that version.) But just think - comics history could so easily have been different.

Ira's logo lasted for over 40 years, until 1983, when it was relettered by MARSHALL ARISMAN to more closely resemble the earliest regular incarnations of the title. I actually think it's excellent, though I have reservations about the top curve of the "S" overlapping the top of the "U". Maybe one day I'll have a go at doing it.

(Note: An "Ashcan Edition" is an in-house, non-distributed publication used for the purpose of securing copyright on a title.)

Now, be honest - did you ever wonder.....?

Superman #386, 1st appearance of Marshall
Arisman's logo. (Art by Gil Kane)

2 comments:

Dez Skinn said...: Fascinating calligraphical (?) stuff. On the design front, it's interesting to see from the ashcan that it was going to follow the house style of Detective Comics, World's Finest et al, with the strong horizontal rules around the title and the company's standard
COMICS logo below.

Great stuff! Some of us care about these details...; 27 October 2010 at 15:39
Kid said...: I think so too, Dez. The very first version of the logo (from ACTION COMICS #1) had a curved "U", but subsequent issues were never consistent. The logo was relettered for each individual story - most of the time the "U" was curved, occasionally it was edged, and sometimes it resembled typeset - with the curve blending into the righthand vertical stroke of the letter. (In fact, some of the curved versions look as if they've been altered from the latter version, but - given Shuster's "roughness" - one can't be dogmatic on the subject.)

Interestingly, even after Ira Schnapp's version appeared on the cover of issue #6, it wasn't used in the interiors with any consistency until issue #11 - and subsequent issues still contained an occasional hand-lettered one.; 27 October 2010 at 17:06

About the artist:

From 1985 to 2000 A.D. (little joke there), I contributed to a variety of high profile comics and magazines for various companies.

For IPC/FLEETWAY/EGMONT, I freelanced as a lettering and logo artist on various weekly comics and monthly magazines, and also as a resize comic artist and spot illustrator on pocket books, summer specials and annuals.

For MARVEL U.K., BLACK LIBRARY, REDAN and USBORNE BOOKS, I again freelanced as a lettering artist, also working as a restoration artist for MARVEL U.S., restoring and re-creating certain pages of JACK KIRBY art for their MARVEL MASTERWORKS editions.

I also lettered the MARVELMAN sample pages submitted to MARVEL U.S. when they were considering acquiring the character, which - as we all now know - they DID.

Supplied comic strips, cartoons and illustrated advertisements for local business campaigns and newspaper publication on a professional basis since the age of 16. Did my first paid art job for publication at 14 or 15 for Lanarkshire Education Board.

Have also made TV appearances as a collector of memorabilia.

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Just some of the titles I worked on are:

2000 A.D. * JUDGE DREDD MEGAZINE * DICEMAN * SONIC The COMIC * JUDGE DREDD, LAWMAN Of The FUTURE * CRISIS * REVOLVER * EAGLE * TIGER * BATTLE ACTION-FORCE * BUSTER * WHIZZER & CHIPS * WHOOPEE * NIPPER * SCHOOL FUN * ACE VENTURA, PET DETECTIVE * The REAL GHOSTBUSTERS * DOCTOR WHO MAGAZINE * COUNT DUCKULA * RUGRATS * The TRANSFORMERS * DEATH'S HEAD * THUNDERCATS * GALAXY RANGERS * DRAGON'S CLAWS * SINDY * MARVEL MASTERWORKS * The TROLLS * LOADED * INFERNO * WARHAMMER * ROSE BLACK.

Copyright Notice:

Images remain the property of their respective copyright owners and are used here only for the purpose of review, promotion, and nostalgia.

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In the case of images culled from my own collection where copyright of an item isn't mine, I impose no copying restrictions on fellow bloggers.

(Although, if you don't allow copying on your own site, then you really shouldn't be copying from others, should you?)

And while you can credit this blog if you like, it's not mandatory. Who has time to make notes of every casually visited site during an idle browse of the internet?

In the case of anyone copying images of my own artwork and calligraphy, I affirm my right to be identified as the creator, and any such copying should not be for the purpose of monetary or material gain. (Unless it's mine.)

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