TOP 13 LISTS | 13th Dimension, Comics, Creators, Culture

Sep20

13 THINGS I Loved About Putting Together DETECTIVE COMICS #500, by PAUL LEVITZ

Posted by Dan Greenfield on Sep 20, 2026

13 THINGS I Loved About Putting Together DETECTIVE COMICS #500, by PAUL LEVITZ

With the Facsimile Edition coming in December, the beloved issue’s editor takes you inside… By PAUL LEVITZ 1980’s Detective Comics #500 — which will be re-released as a Facsimile Edition in December — was pretty much my farewell to comics editing, after eight years as an assistant editor and editor. I was about to shift to the business side of the company, and I really wanted to go out with a bang. I already had enough control over our publishing plans that I was able to schedule it for 80 pages — the largest original anniversary issue DC had ever celebrated (Superman Annual #7 was themed to the Man of Steel’s Silver Anniversary, but that was all reprint). And every page was going to be special… Here are 13 THINGS I LOVED ABOUT PUTTING TOGETHER DETECTIVE COMICS #500: — 1. It even had a spine! I loved comics with “perfect binding” spines, back to DC’s old 80-Page Giants that introduced me to so many classic stories, and the early Marvel annuals with their milestone stories like the wedding of Sue and Reed. — 2. The lead story was by Alan Brennert, an old friend and award-winning television writer and novelist. “To Kill A Legend,” with art by Dick Giordano, my about-to-be successor as editor of the title, became the most often reprinted and praised story in the issue. It also gave the Phantom Stranger a moment in the book — the first character whose series I got to write. — 3. It was always a pleasure to work with Len Wein, my old poker buddy. Reuniting him with Jim Aparo, his collaborator on a great run of Phantom Stranger issues that established Len’s reputation as an important comics writer, was an extra treat. And they jammed a squad of detectives who had filled the comic’s pages over the years into a 13-page mystery — everyone from Roy Raymond to Pow-Wow Smith. — 4. Speaking of Len, he borrowed from Snoopy (or Charles Schulz) for a sweet, swift two pager with Walt Simonson, whose reputation was made with is award-winning Manhunter run in Detective. — 5. Mike W. Barr contributed a tale of Edgar Allan Poe, considered to be the father of the detective story, and the Elongated Man, whose more than 50 appearances in Detective stretched through most of...

Sep19

The TOP 13 ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN Episodes – RANKED

Posted by Dan Greenfield on Sep 19, 2026

The TOP 13 ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN Episodes – RANKED

An anniversary celebration… — UPDATED 9/19/26: The Adventures of Superman debuted 74 years ago, on Sept. 19, 1952! Perfect time to reprint this piece, which first ran in January 2021 for George Reeves’ birthday. Dig it. — Dan — I’ve written before that I only fell in love with TV’s Adventures of Superman within the last year and a half or so. You can click here for the whys but upon embracing the show, I decided that this year on the late George Reeves’ birthday — he was born 107 years ago on Jan. 5, 1914 — I’d post the TOP 13 ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN EPISODES — RANKED. But then 13th Dimension buddy Anthony Desiato of the Digging for Kryptonite podcast offered to do the very same list and I so I yielded to his love of all things Man of Steel. So here’s Anthony and his pal Rich Roney with the TOP 13 ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN EPISODES — RANKED: — By ANTHONY DESIATO with RICH RONEY For years, I’ve longed for the Superman equivalent of Gotham Central: an ongoing detective story set squarely within the world of the Daily Planet, where Lois and Clark’s investigative reporting drives the action, the threats are more rooted in reality, and Superman appears sparingly but effectively. Turns out, my wish had already been granted — almost 70 years ago — with the classic television series Adventures of Superman starring George Reeves. Like any dutiful Superman fan, I knew about the show, of course. However, I had not explored it in a meaningful way until I decided to cover it over two episodes of my podcast Digging for Kryptonite (Part 1 is out now; Part 2 hits on Jan. 20). Like 13th Dimension’s very own Dan Greenfield, I caught a few episodes in reruns as a kid, but they didn’t move me to seek out more. Then, after my recent viewing project — during which I devoured all 52 black-and-white episodes and many of the color installments — I, too, got it. From the punchy, noirish crime drama of the first season, to the lighter, more heartfelt second season, the show made up for its limited budget and the technological constraints of the day by telling clever, grounded stories. Even the color years, long divorced from the show’s initial grittiness and aimed squarely...

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