Captain America theme by Julian
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| Steve Rogers Captain America | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics[a] |
| First appearance | Captain America Comics #1 (December 20, 1940)[b] |
| Created by | Joe Simon Jack Kirby |
| In-story information | |
| Full name | Steven Rogers |
| Place of origin | New York City |
| Team affiliations | |
| Partnerships | |
| Notable aliases | Nomad, The Captain |
| Abilities |
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Captain America is a superhero created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby who appears in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Captain America Comics #1, published on December 20, 1940, by Timely Comics, a corporate predecessor to Marvel. Captain America's civilian identity is Steve Rogers, a frail man enhanced to the peak of human physical perfection by an experimental "super-soldier serum" after joining the United States Army to aid the country's efforts in World War II. Equipped with an American flag–inspired costume and a virtually indestructible shield, Captain America and his sidekick Bucky Barnes clashed frequently with the villainous Red Skull and other members of the Axis powers. In the final days of the war, an accident left Captain America frozen in a state of suspended animation until he was revived in modern times. He resumes his exploits as a costumed hero and becomes leader of the superhero team the Avengers, but frequently struggles as a "man out of time" to adjust to the new era.
The character quickly emerged as Timely's most popular and commercially successful wartime creation upon his original publication, though the popularity of superheroes declined in the post-war period and Captain America Comics was discontinued in 1950. The character saw a short-lived revival in 1953 before returning to comics in 1964, and has since remained in continuous publication. Captain America's creation as an explicitly anti-Nazi figure was a deliberately political undertaking: Simon and Kirby were stridently opposed to the actions of Nazi Germany and supporters of U.S. intervention in World War II, with Simon conceiving of the character specifically in response to the American non-interventionism movement. Political messages have subsequently remained a defining feature of Captain America stories, with writers regularly using the character to comment on the state of American society and government.
Having appeared in more than ten thousand stories in more than five thousand media formats, Captain America is one of the most popular and recognized Marvel Comics characters, and has been described as an icon of American popular culture. Though Captain America was not the first United States–themed superhero, he would become the most popular and enduring of the many patriotic American superheroes created during World War II. Captain America was the first Marvel character to appear in a medium outside of comic books, in the 1944 serial film Captain America; the character has subsequently appeared in a variety of films and other media, including the Marvel Cinematic Universe, where he was portrayed by actor Chris Evans from the character's first appearance in Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) to his final appearance in Avengers: Endgame (2019).
Publication history[edit]
Creation and development[edit]
"It was a time of deep passion. Hitler was grabbing all of Europe, we had Nazis in America, Nazis holding mass meetings in Madison Square Garden. [...] Captain America was created in that atmosphere, he was a natural outgrowth of the passionate mood of the country."
In 1940, Timely Comics publisher Martin Goodman responded to the growing popularity of superhero comics – particularly Superman at rival publisher National Comics Publications, the corporate predecessor to DC Comics – by hiring freelancer Joe Simon to create a new superhero for the company.[2] Simon began to develop the character by determining who their nemesis could be, noting that the most successful superheroes were defined by their relationship with a compelling villain, and eventually settled on Adolf Hitler.[3][4] He rationalized that Hitler was the "best villain of them all" as he was "hated by everyone in the free world",[4] and that it would be a unique approach for a superhero to face a real-life adversary rather than a fictional one.[3][c]
This approach was also intentionally political. Simon was stridently opposed to the actions of Nazi Germany and supported U.S. intervention in World War II, and intended the hero to be a response to the American non-interventionism movement.[5] Simon initially considered "Super American" for the hero's name, but felt there were already multiple comic book characters with "super" in their names.[6] He worked out the details of the character, who was eventually named "Captain America", after he completed sketches in consultation with Goodman.[2] The hero's civilian name "Steve Rogers" was derived from the telegraphy term "roger", meaning "message received".[2]
Goodman elected to launch Captain America with his own self-titled comic book, making him the first Timely character to debut with his own ongoing series without having first appeared in an anthology.[4] Simon sought to have Jack Kirby be the primary artist on the series: the two developed a working relationship and friendship in the late 1930s after working together at Fox Feature Syndicate, and had previously developed characters for Timely together.[7][8] Kirby also shared Simon's pro-intervention views, and was particularly drawn to the character in this regard.[4] Goodman, conversely, wanted a team of artists on the series. It was ultimately determined that Kirby would serve as penciller, with Al Avison and Al Gabriele assisting as inkers;[4] Simon additionally negotiated for himself and Kirby to receive 25 percent of the profits from the comic.[9] Simon regards Kirby as a co-creator of Captain America, stating that "if Kirby hadn't drawn it, it might not have been much of anything."[4]
Debut and early success (early 1940s)[edit]
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Captain America Comics #1 was published on December 20, 1940,[10] with a cover date of March 1941.[11] While the front cover of the issue featured Captain America punching Hitler, the comic itself established the Red Skull as Captain America's primary adversary, and also introduced Bucky Barnes as Captain America's teenaged sidekick.[12] Simon stated that he personally regarded Captain America's origin story, in which the frail Steve Rogers becomes a supersoldier after receiving an experimental serum, as "the weakest part of the character", and that he and Kirby "didn't put too much thought into the origin. We just wanted to get to the action."[4] Kirby designed the series' action scenes with an emphasis on a sense of continuity across panels, saying that he "choreographed" the sequences as one would a ballet, with a focus on exaggerated character movement. Kirby's layouts in Captain America Comics are characterized by their distorted perspectives, irregularly shaped panels, and the heavy use of speed lines.[13]
The first issue of Captain America Comics sold out in a matter of days, and the second issue's print run was set at over one million copies.[14][15] Captain America quickly became Timely's most popular character, with the publisher creating an official Captain America fan club called the "Sentinels of Liberty".[5][d] Circulation figures remained close to a million copies per month after the debut issue, which outstripped even the circulation of news magazines such as Time during the same period.[17] Captain America Comics was additionally one of 189 periodicals that the US Department of War deemed appropriate to distribute to its soldiers without prior screening.[18] The character would also make appearances in several of Timely's other comic titles, including All Winners Comics, Marvel Mystery Comics, U.S.A. Comics, and All Select Comics.[19]
Though Captain America was not the first United States-themed superhero – a distinction that belongs to The Shield at MLJ Comics[20] – he would become the most popular patriotic American superhero of those created during World War II.[21] Captain America's popularity drew a complaint from MLJ that the character's triangular heater shield too closely resembled the chest symbol of The Shield. This prompted Goodman to direct Simon and Kirby to change the design beginning with Captain America Comics #2. The revised round shield went on to become an iconic element of the character;[20] its use as a discus-like throwing weapon originated in a short prose story in Captain America Comics #3, written by Stan Lee in his professional debut as a writer.[22][23] Timely's publication of Captain America Comics led the company to be targeted with threatening letters and phone calls from the German American Bund, an American Nazi organization. When members began loitering on the streets outside the company's office, police protection was posted and New York mayor Fiorello La Guardia personally contacted Simon and Kirby to guarantee the safety of the publisher's employees.[24]
Simon wrote the first two issues of Captain America Comics before becoming the editor for the series; they were the only Captain America stories he would ever directly write.[25] While Captain America generated acclaim and industry fame for Simon and Kirby, the pair believed that Goodman was withholding the promised percentage of profits for the series, prompting Simon to seek employment for himself and Kirby at National Comics Publications.[9] When Goodman learned of Simon and Kirby's intentions, he effectively fired them from Timely Comics, telling them they were to leave the company after they completed work on Captain America Comics #10.[26] The authorship of Captain America Comics was subsequently assumed by a variety of individuals, including Otto Binder, Bill Finger, and Manly Wade Wellman as writers, and Al Avison, Vince Alascia, and Syd Shores as pencilers.[16]
Decline in popularity (mid-1940s and 1950s)[edit]
Superhero comics began to decline in popularity in the post-war period.[27] This prompted a variety of attempts to reposition Captain America, including having the character fight gangsters rather than wartime enemies in Captain America Comics #42 (October 1944), appearing as a high school teacher in Captain America Comics #59 (August 1946), and joining Timely's first superhero team, the All-Winners Squad, in All Winners Comics #19 (Fall 1946).[16] The series nevertheless continued to face dwindling sales, and Captain America Comics ended with its 75th issue in February 1950.[16] Horror comics were ascendant as a popular comic genre during this period; in keeping with the trend, the final two issues of Captain America Comics were published under the title Captain America's Weird Tales.[16]
Timely's corporate successor Atlas Comics relaunched the character in 1953 in Young Men #24, where Captain America appears alongside the wartime heroes Human Torch and Toro, which was followed by a revival of Captain America Comics in 1954 written by Stan Lee and drawn by John Romita.[28] In the spirit of the Cold War and McCarthyism, the character was billed as "Captain America, Commie Smasher" and faced enemies associated with the Soviet Union.[29] The series was a commercial failure, and was cancelled after just three issues.[29] Romita attributed the series' failure to the changing political climate, particularly the public opposition to the Korean War; the character subsequently fell out of active publication for nearly a decade, with Romita noting that "for a while, 'Captain America' was a dirty word".[30]
Return to comics (1960s)[edit]
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Captain America made his ostensible return in the anthology Strange Tales #114 (November 1963), published by Atlas' corporate successor Marvel Comics. In an 18-page story written by Lee and illustrated by Kirby,[e] Captain America reemerges following years of apparent retirement, though he is revealed as an impostor who is defeated by Johnny Storm of the Fantastic Four. A caption in the final panel indicates that the story was a "test" to gauge interest in a potential return for Captain America;[32] the reader response to the story was enthusiastic,[33] and the character was formally reintroduced in The Avengers #4 (March 1964).[34]
The Avengers #4 retroactively established that Captain America had fallen into the Atlantic Ocean in the final days of World War II, where he spent decades frozen in ice in a state of suspended animation before being found and recovered.[34][f] Captain America solo stories written by Lee with Kirby as the primary penciller were published in the anthology Tales of Suspense alongside solo stories focused on fellow Avengers member Iron Man beginning in November 1964; the character also appeared in Lee and Kirby's World War II-set Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos beginning in December same year. These runs introduced and retroactively established several new companions of Captain America, including Nick Fury, Peggy Carter, and Sharon Carter.[36]
In 1966, Joe Simon sued Marvel Comics, asserting that he was legally entitled to renew the copyright on the character upon the expiration of the original 28-year term. The two parties settled out of court, with Simon agreeing to a statement that the character had been created under terms of employment by the publisher, and was therefore work for hire owned by the company.[37] Captain America's self-titled ongoing series was relaunched in April 1968, with Lee as writer and Kirby as penciller; Kirby later departed the series, and was replaced by Gene Colan.[38] In 1969, writer and artist Jim Steranko authored a three-issue run of Captain America. Despite the brevity of Steranko's time on the series, his contributions significantly influenced how Captain America was represented in post-war comics, reestablishing the character's secret identity and introducing a more experimental art style to the series.[39][40]
Political shifts (1970s)[edit]
"This was the '70s – prime anti-war years – and here was a guy with a flag on his chest who was supposed to represent what most people distrusted. No one knew what to do with him."
In contrast to the character's enthusiastic participation in World War II, comics featuring Captain America rarely broached the topic of the Vietnam War,[42] though the subject of Captain America's potential participation was frequently debated by readers in the letters to the editor section in Captain America.[43] Marvel maintained a position of neutrality on Vietnam; in 1971, Stan Lee wrote in an editorial that a poll indicated that a majority of readers did not want Captain America to be involved in Vietnam, adding that he believed the character "simply doesn't lend himself to the John Wayne-type character he once was" and that he could not "see any of our characters taking on a role of super-patriotism in the world as it is today".[43]
Captain America stories in the 1970s began to increasingly focus on domestic American political issues, such as poverty, racism, pollution, and political corruption.[44][g] Captain America #117 (September 1969) introduced The Falcon as the first African-American superhero in mainstream comic books[46] and who would become Captain America's partner; the series was cover titled as Captain America and the Falcon beginning February 1971, which it would maintain for the next seven and a half years.[47] These political shifts were significantly shaped by comics created by writer Steve Englehart and artist Sal Buscema, who joined the series in 1972.[48][41] In a 1974 storyline written by Englehart directly inspired by the Watergate scandal, Captain America is framed for murder by the fascistic Secret Empire, whose leader is ultimately revealed to be the president of the United States.[49] The incident causes a disillusioned Steve Rogers to briefly drop the moniker of Captain America to become "Nomad, the man without a country", though he later vowed to "reclaim the ideals of America, which its leaders have trampled upon" and again assumed the role of Captain America.[44] Englehart and Buscema's run was highly acclaimed, bringing Captain America from one of Marvel's lowest-selling titles to its top-selling comic,[48][41] and the conflict between America as it idealizes itself to be and America in reality would recur frequently as a theme in Captain America comics in the subsequent decades.[50]
In 1975, Roy Thomas created the comic book series The Invaders. Set during World War II, the comic focuses on a superhero team composed of Timely's wartime-era superheroes, with Captain America as its leader; Thomas, a fan of stories from the Golden Age of Comic Books, drew inspiration for the series from Timely's All-Winners Squad.[51] Jack Kirby wrote and illustrated run on Captain America and the Falcon from 1975 to 1977.[52] This was followed by issues authored by a number of writers and artists, including Roy Thomas, Donald F. Glut, Roger McKenzie, and Sal Buscema; the series was also re-titled Captain America beginning with issue 223 in 1978.[53]
Post-Vietnam and "Heroes Reborn" (1980s and 1990s)[edit]
Owing to the series' lack of a regular writer, Captain America editor Roger Stern and artist John Byrne authored the series from 1980 to 1981. Their run that saw a storyline in which Captain America declines an offer to run for president of the United States.[54][55] Following Stern and Byrne, Captain America was authored by writer J.M. Dematteis and artist Mike Zeck from 1981 to 1984.[56] Their run featured a year-long storyline in which Captain America faced a crisis of confidence in the face of what Dematteis described as "Reagan Cold War rhetoric".[56] The story was originally planned culminate in Captain America #300 with Captain America renunciating violence to become a pacifist; when that ending was rejected by Marvel editor-in-chief Jim Shooter, Dematteis resigned from Captain America in protest.[57]
Writer Mark Gruenwald, editor of Captain America from 1982 to 1985, served as writer on the series from 1985 to 1995. Various artists illustrated the series over the course of Gruenwald's decade-long run, including Paul Neary from 1985 to 1987, and Kieron Dwyer from 1988 to 1990.[56] In contrast to DeMatteis, Gruenwald placed less emphasis on Steve Rogers' life as a civilian, wishing to show "that Steve Rogers is Captain America first [...] he has no greater needs than being Captain America."[58] Among the most significant storylines appearing in Gruenwald's run was "The Choice" in 1987, in which Steve Rogers renounces the identity of Captain America to briefly become simply "The Captain" after the United States government orders him to continue his superheroic activities directly under their control.[59]
After Gruenwald departed the series, writer Mark Waid and artist Ron Garney began to author Captain America in 1995. Despite early acclaim, including the reintroduction of Captain America's love interest Sharon Carter, their run was terminated after ten issues as a result of Marvel's "Heroes Reborn" rebranding in 1996.[60] The rebrand saw artists Jim Lee and Rob Liefeld, who had left the company in the early 1990s to establish Image Comics, return to Marvel to re-imagine several of the company's characters.[61] Marvel faced various financial difficulties in the 1990s, culminating in the company filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 1996,[62] and "Heroes Reborn" was introduced as part of an effort to increase sales.[63] As part of the rebrand, Liefeld illustrated and co-wrote with Jeph Loeb a run on Captain America that was ultimately cancelled after six issues.[63] Marvel stated that the series was cancelled due to low sales,[63] though Liefeld has contended that he was fired after he refused to take a lower pay rate amid Marvel's bankruptcy proceedings.[64] Waid would return to Captain America in 1998, initially with Garney as arist and later with Andy Kubert.[60]
In 1999, Joe Simon filed to claim the copyright to Captain America under a provision of the Copyright Act of 1976 that allows the original creators of works that have been sold to corporations to reclaim them after the original 56-year copyright term has expired. Marvel challenged the claim, arguing that Simon's 1966 settlement made the character ineligible for copyright transfer. Simon and Marvel settled out of court in 2003, in a deal that paid Simon royalties for merchandising and licensing of the character.
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2 Replies to “Captain America”
Captain America Is Awesome and this theme looks good because of that.
Captain America is awesome, this is one of the best themes i have seen yet, of course i am bias, cuz i love the comics!