Posted By Dan Greenfield on Jan 3, 2026 | 3 comments

An ANNIVERSARY SALUTE to an essential series…

By PETER BOSCH

Showcase #1 appeared on the newsstands 70 years ago, though historians differ on the release date — either January 3 or January 5, 1956. The title itself was a perfect description of DC’s publishing philosophy regarding the characters appearing in it… a showcase for them.

Showcase #1 (Mar.-Apr. 1956, DC). Cover art by John Prentice.

In the 22 years of Showcase’s 104-issue run, some of the most important DC heroes premiered within its pages, including one that transformed the future of comics. In Showcase #4, the Golden Age had come to an end and it was now the start of the Silver Age:

Showcase #4 (Mar.-Apr. 1956). Cover design by Robert Kanigher, with art by Carmine Infantino (pencils) and Joe Kubert (inks).

Future issues contained the debuts of the new Green Lantern, the new Atom, the Challengers of the Unknown, Adam Strange, Metal Men, and many, many more. (I covered 13 of them here. )

Over the history of the title’s run — from 1956 to 1978, including a seven-year gap in the ’70s — some characters were new and exceptional. Some were second stringers who had been around for awhile and DC was testing the waters to see if there was interest in graduating them to their own series. And, yes, there were some dogs along the way.

In honor of the book’s 70th anniversary, here are an additional 13 groovy features that deserved the spotlight given them in Showcase:

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1. Lois Lane. The most famous female reporter on the planet saw her introduction in Action Comics #1 (June 1938), but it took almost 20 years for DC to give her a tryout for her own title in Showcase #9 (July-Aug. 1957) and #10 (Sept.-Oct. 1957).

And it worked, for just a few months later Superman’s Girl Friend Lois Lane #1 (Mar.-Apr. 1958) hit the comic racks. The title ran through 16 years, with its final issue being #137 (Sept.-Oct. 1974).

Showcase #9 (July-Aug. 1957). Art by Al Plastino.

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2. Aquaman. Another character who had to wait years for his own title was Aquaman. He debuted in More Fun Comics #73 (November 1941), and appeared over the years as a backup feature in Adventure Comics from the Golden Age to the early years of the Silver Age.

He was a founding member of the Justice League of America in The Brave and the Bold #28 (Feb.-Mar. 1960), and finally got his shot in Showcase #30 (Mar.-Apr. 1961). DC tested him in the next three issues of Showcase, as well, and then, presto, Aquaman #1 (Jan.-Feb. 1962).

Showcase #30 (Mar.-Apr. 1961). Cover pencils: Dick Dillin. Inks: Sheldon Moldoff.

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3. Sgt. Rock. The Rock was an unusual choice for Showcase considering he was already the star of Our Army at War, but Showcase #45 (July-Aug. 1963) was an exceptional issue. The story, written by Robert Kanigher and drawn by Joe Kubert, revealed how Rock got his stripes and the one Nazi who haunted him.

Showcase #45 (July-Aug. 1963). Art by Russ Heath.

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4. The Justice Society of America. Following the revival of the JSA in The Flash #137 (June 1963), DC teamed up two of its members, Doctor Fate and Hourman, in Showcase #55 (Mar.-Apr. 1965, with a guest appearance by the golden age Green Lantern) and #56 (May-June 1965). The stories for both issues were written by Gardner Fox and drawn by Murphy Anderson.

Fox and Anderson were also teamed for three issues featuring the Spectre in Showcase #60 (Jan.-Feb. 1966), #61 (Mar.-Apr. 1966), and #64 (Sept.-Oct. 1966). (The early- to mid-1960s was a rich time for young readers to get a taste of the Golden Age. A few months prior to the Showcase issues, Fox and Anderson had Starman and Black Canary together for two issues of The Brave and the Bold.)

Showcase #55 (Mar.-Apr. 1965) and #60 (Jan.-Feb. 1966). Cover art for both by Murphy Anderson.

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5. Enemy Ace. Two years after Sgt. Rock’s appearance in Showcase #45, DC brought over its newest war comic character, Hans von Hammer — aka Enemy Ace.

Enemy Ace had made its debut as a backup feature in Our Army at War #151 (Feb. 1965) just a few months before. By appearing in Showcase #57 (July-Aug. 1965) and #58 (Sept.-Oct. 1965), it gave the antihero a much better chance to be seen by regular comic book fans who might have shied away from the richness of the war titles. Kanigher and Kubert, the World War I German ace’s original co-creators, were on hand for both issues. While Enemy Ace did not get its own title, it became the lead feature of Star Spangled War Stories beginning with #138 (Apr.-May 1968).

Showcase #57 (July-Aug. 1965). Art by Joe Kubert.

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6. B’wana Beast. In the same month that the Barbara Gordon Batgirl made her debut in Detective Comics #359 (Jan. 1967), which was a home run, B’wana Beast appeared for the first time in Showcase #66 (Jan-Feb. 1967) and grounded out to first. Co-creators Bob Haney and Mike Sekowsky’s ludicrous jungle hero only made one more standalone appearance, in Showcase #67 (Mar.-Apr. 1967).

Showcase #66 (Jan.-Feb. 1967). Cover art: Mike Sekowsky (pencils) and Joe Giella (inks).

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7. Dolphin. A complete change of pace for Showcase #79 (Dec. 1968), with a love story about a mermaid and a sailor. The cover by Dolphin creator/artist Jay Scott Pike shows a great romantic touch and stands alone in the history of Showcase, as does the story. The backup feature had a reprint of Aqualad’s origin from Adventure Comics #269 (Feb. 1960).

Showcase #79 (Dec. 1968). Art by Jay Scott Pike.

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8. Nightmaster. Showcase #82 (May 1969) introduced a new hero, Nightmaster, in a sword-and-sorcery tale that could best be described as a sort of “Doctor Strange gets high at DC” story. Written by Dennis O’Neil, the inside art for the first issue was pure psychedelic-type illustration by Jerry Grandenetti (inked by Dick Giordano).

The character continued for two more issues, Showcase #s 83 (June 1969) and 84 (Aug. 1969), but with much more steady fantasy art by a young Berni Wrightson.

Showcase #82 (May 1969). Cover art by Joe Kubert.

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9. Firehair. Following the nightmares of Nightmaster’s world, Showcase settled back into the Old West, with three issues of a new character called Firehair, a young white man raised as an Indian, but never fully accepted by either the white population or the Indians.

The creation of Firehair was the work of Carmine Infantino and Joe Kubert, with all three issues (Showcase #85, Sept. 1969, to #87, Dec. 1960) written and drawn (magnificently) by Kubert.

Showcase #85 (Sept. 1969), the first of three issues featuring Firehair. Cover by Kubert.

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10. Jason’s Quest. Jason, a young American, discovers his real father was someone other than the man who raised him and that he was murdered by a criminal gang after an invention he created. He also discovers he has a twin sister living in London, whom the gang is also after to use as a means of obtaining the invention.

For three issues, from Showcase #88 (Feb. 1970) to #90 (May 1970), Jason hops on a motorcycle and searches England and France for his sister, with the gang always in deadly pursuit. Mike Sekowsky was the creator, writer, and penciller of the short series. It was an attempt to appeal to a new generation of readers but it wasn’t a very good plotline, with little depth to the characters.

Showcase #88 (Feb. 1970). Art by Mike Sekowsky (pencils) and Dick Giordano (inks).

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11. The New Doom Patrol. The original members of the Doom Patrol met their end in The Doom Patrol #121 (Sept.-Oct. 1968)… or so everyone thought. Showcase #94 (Aug.-Sept, 1977) revealed that one survived, Robotman (aka Cliff Steele), whose human brain resided safely within his metal body. By sheer coincidence, the surviving parts of Robotman’s form just happened to wash up on shore in front of Doc Magnus, creator of the Metal Men.

Newly fixed up, Robotman returned to the team’s former headquarters to find a new Doom Patrol there! But where any Doom Patrol happens to be, you can bet that General Immortus, the man responsible for his friends’ death, will soon appear. The author of the revival was our pal Paul Kupperberg, with art by Joe Staton. (Issue #94 marked the series’ return from its lengthy hiatus.)

Showcase #94 (Aug.-Sept. 1977). Cover art by Jim Aparo.

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12. Power Girl. Expanding from the various JSA comics, Power Girl appeared in Showcase #97 (Feb. 1978) to #99 (Apr. 1978). It didn’t lead to a regular comic book title immediately, but she did get a 4-issue limited series in the ’80s — also by Paul Kupperberg. Power Girl finally received her own title in 2009.

Showcase #97 (Feb. 1978). Art by Joe Staton (pencils) and Joe Orlando (inks).

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13. O.S.S. The final issue of Showcase (#104, Sept. 1978) was based on the war series that first appeared as a backup feature in G.I. Combat #192 (July 1976), co-created by Murray Boltinoff and Robert Kanigher.

Showcase #104 (Sept. 1978). Art by Kubert.

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As a side note, a few issues during the Showcase run consisted of reprints, but were often bookended by a few new pages. Among these were Showcase #50 and #51 (the “I – – Spy!” issues with King Faraday reprints); #s 53 and 54 (under the title heading of “G.I. Joe,” DC reprinted several stories from their war comics); #70 (“Leave It to Binky”); #72 (“Top Gun” with Old West tales from All-American Western and All Star Western); and #81 (“Windy and Willy,” which were actually art-retouched reprints of “Dobie Gillis” stories).

The best of the lot, though, was Showcase #80 (Feb. 1969) with a Neal Adams cover highlighting the return of the Phantom Stranger and Doctor Thirteen, with a few new story pages framing reprints of the their tales from the Fifties.

DC had never intended for Showcase #104 to be the last issue of the series. As a matter of fact, they had the schedule planned through Issue #116. The last panel of the “O.S.S.” story in Showcase #104 announced, “Next issue: starring Deadman on sale 3rd week in July!” The rest of the schedule would have featured the Creeper; Paul Kupperberg’s World of Krypton — which ended up becoming comics’ first miniseries; the Huntress; a new character called “The Deserter”; and a new version of the Suicide Squad. However, what suddenly and unexpectedly happened was… the DC Implosion. To read more about that, click here.

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MORE

— 13 GREAT COMICS SERIES Launched by DC’s SHOWCASE. Click here.

— PAUL KUPPERBERG: My 13 Favorite Things About SHOWCASE #4. Click here.

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13th Dimension contributor-at-large PETER BOSCH’s first book, American TV Comic Books: 1940s-1980s – From the Small Screen to the Printed Page, was published by TwoMorrows. (You can buy it here.) A sequel, American Movie Comic Books: 1930s-1970s — From the Silver Screen to the Printed Page, is out now. (Buy it here.) Peter has written articles and conducted celebrity interviews for various magazines and newspapers. He lives in Hollywood.