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This film, television, or video-related list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.
The following is a list of the first known appearances of various superhero fictional characters and teams.
Contents |
1900-1909
Play
| Character / Team / Series | Year Debuted | Creator/s | First Appearance |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Scarlet Pimpernel | 1903 | Baroness Emmuska Orczy | The Scarlet Pimpernel |
The Scarlet Pimpernel is often cited as perhaps the earliest superhero akin to those to become popularized through American comic books.[1][2][3][4]
1910s
Magazine
| Character / Team / Series | Year Debuted | Creator/s | First Appearance |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Night Wind | 1913 | Varick Vanardy[5] | Alias the Night Wind |
| The Scarecrow | 1915 | Russell Thorndike | Doctor Syn: A Tale of the Romney Marsh |
| Zorro | 1919 | Johnston McCulley | "The Curse of Capistrano"
All Weekly Story |
1930s
Radio
| Character / Team / Series | Year Debuted | Creator/s | First Appearance |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Shadow
(as announcer voice) |
1930 (July 31) | Maxwell Grant | Detective Stories |
| The Lone Ranger | 1933 (January 30) | George W. Trendle | The Lone Ranger |
| Tonto | 1933 (February 25) | Fran Striker | The Lone Ranger |
| The Green Hornet and Kato | 1936 (January 31) | George W. Trendle and Fran Striker | The Green Hornet |
Pulp fiction
| Character / Team / Series | Year Debuted | Creator/s | First Appearance |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Shadow
(as character) |
1931 (April 1) | Maxwell Grant
(Walter B. Gibson) |
"The Living Shadow"
The Shadow Magazine #1 |
| Doc Savage | 1933 (March) | Kenneth Robeson (Lester Dent) | The Man of Bronze |
| The Avenger | 1939 (September 1) | Kenneth Robeson (Paul Ernst) | "Justice, Inc."
The Avenger Magazine #1 |
Newspaper comics
| Character / Team / Series | Year Debuted | Creator/s | Series |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mandrake the Magician | 1934 (June 11) | Lee Falk | Mandrake the Magician |
| The Phantom Magician[6] | 1935 (April 15) | Mel Graff | The Adventures of Patsy[7] |
| The Phantom | 1936 (February 17) | Lee Falk | The Phantom |
Comic book
| Character / Team | Year Debuted | Creator/s | First Appearance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Doctor Occult (Doctor Mystic) | 1935 (October) | Jerry Siegel, Joe Shuster | New Fun Comics #6 |
| The Clock | 1936 (November) | George Brenner | Funny Pages #6 or
Funny Picture Stories #1 |
| Sheena, Queen of the Jungle | 1937 | Will Eisner and S.M. "Jerry" Iger | Wags #1 |
| Superman | 1938 (June) | Jerry Siegel, Joe Shuster | Action Comics #1 |
| Zatara | 1938 (June) | Fred Guardineer | Action Comics #1 |
| Arrow | 1938 (September) | Fred Guardineer | Funny Pages vol. 2 #10 (or #21) |
| Crimson Avenger | 1938 (October) | Jim Chambers | Detective Comics #20 |
| Namor the Sub-Mariner | 1939 (April) | Bill Everett | Motion Picture Funnies Weekly #1 |
| Batman | 1939 (May) | Bob Kane, Bill Finger | Detective Comics #27 |
| Wonder Man (Fox) | 1939 (May) | Will Eisner | Wonder Comics #1 |
| The Flame (Gary Preston) | 1939 (June) | Will Eisner | Wonderworld Comics #3 |
| The Sandman | 1939 (July) | Gardner Fox, Bert Christman | World's Fair Comics #1 |
| Blue Beetle (Dan Garret) | 1939 (August) | Charles Nicholas | Mystery Men Comics #1 |
| Bozo the Iron Man | 1939 (August) | George Brenner | Smash Comics #1 |
| The Angel | 1939 (October) | Paul Gustavson | Marvel Comics #1 |
| The Human Torch (original) | 1939 (October) | Carl Burgos | Marvel Comics #1 |
| Shock Gibson | 1939 (October) | Maurice Scott | Speed Comics #1 |
| Doll Man | 1939 (December) | Will Eisner | Feature Comics #27 |
Other media
| Character / Team | Year Debuted | Creator/s | Media |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ôgon Batto (the Golden Bat) | 1930 | Takeo Nagamatsu | Kamishibai (Japanese scroll show) |
1940s
Newspaper comics
| Character / Team / Series | Year Debuted | Creator/s | Series |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Spirit | 1940 (June 2) | Will Eisner | The Spirit |
| Invisible Scarlet O'Neil | 1940 (June 3) | Russell Stamm | Invisible Scarlet O'Neil |
Comic book
| Character / Team / Series | Year Debuted | Creator/s | First Appearance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flash | 1940 (January) | Gardner Fox, Harry Lampert | Flash Comics #1 |
| Hawkman | 1940 (January) | Gardner Fox | Flash Comics #1 |
| Johnny Thunder | 1940 (January) | John W. Wentworth, Stan Asch | Flash Comics #1 |
| The Shield (Archie) | 1940 (January) | Harry Shorten, Irv Novick | Pep Comics #1 |
| Captain Marvel (DC Comics) | 1940 (February) | C. C. Beck, Bill Parker | Whiz Comics #2 |
| Electro (comics) | 1940 (February) | Steve Dahlman | Marvel Mystery #4 |
| The Spectre | 1940 (February) | Jerry Siegel | More Fun Comics #52 |
| Hourman | 1940 (March) | Ken Fitch, Bernard Bailey | Adventure Comics #48 |
| Robin, the Boy Wonder | 1940 (April) | Bill Finger, Bob Kane | Detective Comics #38 |
| Bulletman and Bulletgirl | 1940 (May) | Bill Parker | Nickel Comics #1 |
| Doctor Fate | 1940 (May) | Gardner Fox, Howard Sherman | More Fun Comics #55 |
| Uncle Sam (Quality Comics) | 1940 (July) | Will Eisner | National Comics #1 |
| Green Lantern | 1940 (July) | Martin Nodell, Bill Finger | All-American Comics #16 |
| Red Tornado | 1940 (November) | Sheldon Mayer | All-American Comics #20 |
| Justice Society of America | 1940 (Winter) | Gardner Fox | All Star Comics #3 |
| Daredevil (Gleason Publications) | 1940 | Jack Binder | Silver Streak #6 |
| Quicksilver | 1940 | Jack Cole, Chuck Mazoujian | National Comics #5 |
| The Red Bee | 1940 | Toni Blum, Charles Nicholas | Hit Comics #1 |
| Scarlet Avenger | 1940 | Harry Shorten, Irv Novick | Zip Comics #1 |
| Doc Strange | 1940 | Richard E. Hughes, Alexander Kostuk | Thrilling Comics #1 |
| Sargon the Sorcerer | 1941 (May) | John B. Wentworth, Howard Purcell | All American Comics #26 |
| Mr. America
(Americommando) |
1941 (June) | Action Comics #33 | |
| 711 | 1941 (August) | George Brenner | Police Comics #1 |
| Aquaman | 1941 (November) | Mort Weisinger, Paul Norris | More Fun Comics #73 |
| The Atom | 1941 | Ben Flinton, Bill O'Conner | All-American Comics #19 |
| Blackhawk (comics) | 1941 | Will Eisner, Chuck Cuidera | Military Comics #1 |
| Black Terror | 1941 | Richard E. Hughes, Don Gabrielson | Exciting Comics #9 |
| Captain America | 1941 | Joe Simon, Jack Kirby | Captain America #1 |
| Captain Flag | 1941 | Joe Blair, Lin Streeter | Blue Ribbon Comics #16 |
| Captain Marvel, Jr. | 1941 | Ed Herron, Mac Raboy | Whiz Comics #25 |
| Catwoman | 1941 | Bill Finger, Bob Kane | Batman #1 |
| Green Arrow and Speedy | 1941 | Mort Weisinger, Greg Papp | More Fun Comics #73 |
| The Human Bomb | 1941 | Paul Gustavson | Police Comics #1 |
| Johnny Quick | 1941 | Mort Weisinger, Chad Grothkopf | More Fun Comics #71 |
| Miss America (DC Comics) | 1941 | Quality Comics | Military Comics #1 |
| Professor Supermind and Son | 1941 | Dell Comics | Popular Comics #60 |
| Nelvana of the Northern Lights | 1941 | Adrian Dingle | Triumph Comics #1 |
| Phantom Lady | 1941 | Arthur Peddy | Police Comics #1 |
| Plastic Man | 1941 | Jack Cole (artist) | Police Comics #1 |
| Sandy the Golden Boy | 1941 | Joe Simon and Jack Kirby | Adventure Comics #69 |
| Seven Soldiers of Victory | 1941 | Mort Weisinger | Leading Comics #1 |
| Starman (Ted Knight) | 1941 | Gardner Fox, Jack Burnley | Adventure Comics #61 |
| The Whizzer | 1941 | Writer unknown; Al Avison & Al Gabriele, artists | USA Comics #1 |
| American Crusader | 1941 (August) | Writer and artist unknown | Thrilling Comics #19 |
| Liberator (Nedor) | 1941 (December) | Writer and artist unknown | Exciting Comics #15 |
| Air Wave | 1942 (February) | Murray Boltinoff or Mort Weisinger, and Lee Harris | Detective Comics #60 |
| Johnny Canuck (as superhero) | 1942 (February) | Leo Bachle | Dime Comics #1 |
| Manhunter (Dan Richards) | 1942 (March) | Police Comics #8 | |
| Manhunter (Paul Kirk) | 1942 (April) | Jack Kirby, Joe Simon | Adventure Comics #73 |
| Yank | 1942 (July) | Wow Comics #6 | |
| Captain Commando [8] | 1942 (August) | S.M. "Jerry" Iger, Alex Blum | Pep Comics #30 |
| Kid Eternity | 1942 | Otto Binder, Sheldon Moldoff | Hit Comics #25 |
| Mister Terrific (comics)
(Terry Sloane) |
1942 | Chuck Reizenstein, Hal Sharp | Sensation Comics #1 |
| Mary Marvel | 1942 | Otto Binder, Marc Swayze | Captain Marvel Adventures #18 |
| Robotman | 1942 | Jerry Siegel, Leo Nowak | Star-Spangled Comics #7 |
| Superboy | 1942 | Don Cameron, Jerry Siegel, Joe Shuster | More Fun Comics #101 |
| Wildcat (comics) | 1942 | Bill Finger, Irwin Hasen | Sensation Comics #1 |
| Wonder Woman | 1942 | Charles Moulton | All Star Comics #8 / Sensation Comics #1 |
| Canada Jack | 1943 (March) | George Menendez Rae | Canadian Heroes Vol. 1, #5 [9] |
| Miss America (Marvel Comics) | 1943 (November) | Otto Binder, Al Gabriele | Marvel Mystery Comics #49 |
| Grim Reaper (Nedor) | 1944 (May) | Author unknown, artist Al Camy | Wonder Comics #1 |
| All-Winners Squad | 1946 (Fall) | Martin Goodman, Bill Finger | All Winners Comics #19 |
| Black Canary | 1947 (August) | Robert Kanigher, Carmine Infantino | Flash Comics #86 |
| Moon Girl | 1947 (Fall) | Gardner Fox, Sheldon Moldoff | The Happy Houligans #1 |
Other media
| Character / Team / Series | Year Debuted | Creator/s | First Appearance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maximo | 1940 | Victor Appleton | Maximo, the Amazing Superman
(Big Little Book) |
1950s
Comic book
| Character / Team | Year Debuted | Creator/s | First Appearance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marvelman (later Miracleman) | 1954 (February 3) | Mick Anglo | Marvelman #25 |
| Martian Manhunter | 1955 (November) | Joseph Samachson, Joe Certa | Detective Comics #225 |
| Flash (Barry Allen) | 1956 (October) | Robert Kanigher, Carmine Infantino | Showcase #4 |
| Challengers of the Unknown | 1957 (February) | Jack Kirby | Showcase #6 |
| Legion of Super-Heroes | 1958 (April) | Mort Weisinger, Otto Binder | Showcase #17 |
| Adam Strange | 1958 (November-December) | Gardner Fox, Mike Sekowsky | Adventure Comics #247 |
| Lady Blackhawk | 1959 (February) | Jack Schiff and Dick Dillin | Blackhawks #133 |
| Supergirl | 1959 (May) | Otto Binder, Al Plastino | Superman #123 |
| The Fly (Archie Comics) | 1959 (June) | Joe Simon, Jack Kirby | The Double Life of Private Strong #1 |
| Green Lantern (Hal Jordan) | 1959 (October) | Julius Schwartz, John Broome, Gil Kane | Showcase #22 |
Television
| Character / Team / Series | Year Debuted | Creator/s | First Appearance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Captain Video | 1955 (April 1) | Captain Video |
1960s
Comic book
Television
| Character / Team / Series | Year Debuted | Creator/s | First Appearance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Captain Nice | 1967 (January) | Buck Henry | Captain Nice |
| Mister Terrific
(Stanley Beamish) |
1967 (January) | Mr. Terrific |
1970s
Comic book
Television
| Character / Team / Series | Year Debuted | Creator/s | First Appearance |
|---|---|---|---|
| G-Force | 1972 | Kagaku ninja tai Gatchaman
(Battle of the Planets) |
|
| Six Million Dollar Man | 1973 (March 7) | Martin Caiden | The Six Million Dollar Man movie
(based on 1972 novel Cyborg) |
| The Bionic Woman | 1975 (March 16) | Kenneth Johnson | The Six Million Dollar Man
episode: "The Bionic Woman" |
1980s
Comic book
| Character / Team / Series | Year Debuted | Creator/s | First Appearance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dazzler | 1980 | Tom DeFalco, Louise Simonson, Roger Stern | Uncanny X-Men #130 |
| She-Hulk | 1980 | Stan Lee, John Buscema | Savage She-Hulk #1 |
| Omega Men | 1981 | Marv Wolfman | Green Lantern #136 |
| Alpha Flight | 1983 | Chris Claremont, John Byrne | Uncanny X-Men #120 |
| New Mutants | 1983 | Chris Claremont | The New Mutants
Marvel Graphic Novel #5 |
| Outsiders | 1983 | Mike Barr, Jim Aparo | The Brave and the Bold #200 |
| American Flagg | 1983 | Howard Chaykin | American Flagg #1 |
| Beowulf | 1984 | Jerry Bingham | |
| Femforce | 1984 | Bill Black, Stephanie Sanderson, Mark Heike | Femforce Special |
| Northguard | 1984 | Mark Shainblum, Gabriel Morrisette | New Triumph featuring Northguard #1 |
| West Coast Avengers | 1984 | Roger Stern, Bob Hall | West Coast Avengers (Vol. 1) #1 |
| Zot | 1984 | Scott McCloud | Zot! #1 |
| Fleur de Lys | 1985 | Mark Shainblum, Gabriel Morrisette | New Triumph featuring Northguard #5 |
| X-Factor | 1985 | Bob Layton, Jackson Guice, Josef Rubinstein | X-Factor #1 |
| Booster Gold | 1986 | Dan Jurgens | Booster Gold #1 |
| Watchmen | 1986 | Alan Moore, Dave Gibbons | Watchmen #1 |
| Excalibur (comics) | 1988 | Chris Claremont, Alan Davis | Excalibur: The Sword is Drawn |
| New Warriors | 1989 | Tom DeFalco, Ron Frenz | Thor #411 |
Television
| Character / Team / Series | Year Debuted | Creator/s | First Appearance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ralph Hinkley | 1981 (March) | The Greatest American Hero |
1990s
Comic book
| Character / Team / Series | Year Debuted | Creator/s | First Appearance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bishop (comics) | 1991 | Whilce Portacio | Uncanny X-Men #282 |
| Darkhawk | 1991 | Danny Fingeroth, Mike Manley | Darkhawk #1 |
| Next Men | 1991 | John Byrne | |
| X-Force | 1991 (April) | Rob Liefeld | The New Mutants #100 |
| Supreme | 1992 | Rob Liefeld | Youngblood #3 |
| Eternal Warrior | 1992 | Solar: Man of the Atom #10 | |
| Jesse Quick (daughter of Johnny Quick and Liberty Belle) | 1992 | Len Strazewski, Mike Parobeck | Justice Society of America
(vol. 2) #1 |
| Spawn | 1992 | Todd McFarlane | Spawn #1 |
| Hellboy | 1993 | Mike Mignola | Next Men #21 |
| Stormwatch | 1993 (March) | Jim Lee | Stormwatch #1 |
| Generation X | 1994 | Scott Lobdell, Chris Bachalo | Uncanny X-Men #318 |
| Static (superhero) | 1993 | Dwayne McDuffie, John Paul Leon | Static #1 |
| Starman (Jack Knight) | 1994 | James Robinson, Tony Harris | Starman #0 |
| X-Man | 1995 | Jeph Loeb, Steve Skroce | X-Man #1 |
| The Thunderbolts | 1997 | Kurt Busiek, Mark Bagley | The Incredible Hulk #449 |
| The Authority | 1999 | Warren Ellis, Bryan Hitch | The Authority vol. 1 #1 |
Movies
- The Rocketeer (1991)
- Meteor Man (1993)
2000 and beyond
Comic book
| Character / Team / Series | Year Debuted | Creator/s | First Appearance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ultimate Marvel characters | 2001 | various | Ultimate Spider-Man #1 |
| X-Statix | 2001 | Peter Milligan, Mike Allred | X-Force #116 |
| X-Treme X-Men | 2001 | Chris Claremont | X-Treme X-Men #1 |
| Runaways | 2002 | Brian K. Vaughan, Adrian Alphona | Runaways vol. 1 #1 |
| Invincible | 2002 | Robert Kirkman,Cory Walker | Noble Causes: Family Secrets #3 |
| Super Buddies | 2003 | Keith Giffen, J. M. DeMatteis, Kevin Maguire, Joe Rubinstein | Formerly Known as the Justice League #1 |
| Araña | 2004 | Fiona Avery, Mark Brooks | Amazing Fantasy (vol. 2) #1 |
| Young Avengers | 2005 | Allan Heinberg, Jim Cheung | Young Avengers #1 |
Movies
| Character / Team / Series | Year Debuted | Creator/s | First Appearance |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Incredibles, Frozone | 2004 | Brad Bird | The Incredibles |
| Sky High students and graduates | 2005 | Paul Hernandez, Robert Schooley, Mark McCorkle | Sky High |
Sources
Books
- Daniels, Les. The Golden Age of DC Comics: 365 Days. New York: H.N. Abrams, 2004.
