So many people know about DC Comics but we are here to cover the top 10 Facts about D.C. that you may not know already. D.C. comics is a company that is currently owned by Warner Brothers, whose up to a few weeks ago parent company was AT&T. However, AT&T recently sold their media company, D.C. Comics included to Discovery Networks, but that is a story for another day AND another Nerd.

 

This list will comprise of 10 facts that most people will not readily know. Lets jump right to it!!!

 

Number 10:

What does D.C. stand for? Well the name is still current in some comics. D.C. stands for Detective Comics. You can say that the company originally started as National Allied Publications in 1934 by Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson they published an original comic called New Fun Comics also known as More Fun Comics and also New Fun: The Big Comic Magazine. New Fun featured the first of its kind, comics that were not reprints of comics that were published in the newspaper. Some notable alumni would be Doctor Occult, Doctor Fate, The Spectre, Aquaman, Green Arrow, Super Boy & Johnny Quick.

In 1937, Wheeler low on cash formed a partnership with Harry Donenfeld and Jack Liebowitz, with this new partnership they founded Detective Comics, the story doesn’t end there. Wheeler-Nicholson being broke was forced out of the country because he could not repay Donenfeld. As you know the following year DC Comic published Action Comics #1 the first appearance of Superman and some would say the DC Universe.

Through out the 40’s the company merged with several other companies and even the creation of a new company. Ultimately in 1969 it was purchased by Warner Brothers who to this day still own the comic book company. Throughout these years even though it was not the official name the company was known as DC Comics until 1977, where the comic book company was officially adopted the name DC Comics

 

 

Number 9:

The Font Comic Sans was inspired by DC, the font was inspired by the lettering work of two different DC Comic Books the first was Alan Moore’s Watchmen and the other being The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller. I don’t know about you but it’s a font that I enjoy using.

 

 

Number 8:

Cross-Overs… Yes Marvel is the rival equivalent to DC Comics, some may even claim Marvel is better than DC mostly because of the MCU. However, these two foes on several occasions joined forces to bring us epic cross over events. Their first cross over was in 1965, that cross over gave us battles like Thor vs Captain Marvel now known as Shazam. There was also Superman VS Hulk, and Batman VS Captain America. Marvel ultimately won.

There was also the Uncanny X-men & Teen Titans Cross Over Event, A Green Lantern/Silver Surfer crossover. But the one that I enjoyed the best was in 1996 when Marvel and DC decided to publish under one roof under the name of Amalgam Comics, meshing their characters together.

Their publications gave us character like Bruce Wayne: Agent of Shield, Dark Claw, Iron Lantern, and teams like Justice League X-men (JLX) and X-Patrol. This only lasted until 1997 but it was great… I think its time we get another… maybe a Heroes Reborn Crisis.

 

 

Number 7:

Wonder Woman’s inspiration and original name. In 1941 Diana Prince, Princess of Themyscira made her debut, however at that time the name she was given was Suprema, the Wonder Woman. Creator William Moulton Marston, famous for his invention of the polygraph machine, drew on the inspiration on two major women in his life the first his wife Elizabeth who suggested that his new comic character be a woman and  the second being Olivia Byrne who live with both William and Elizabeth in a polyamorous relationship, from her he took on the idea of Suprema’s bangles; similar to those that Olivia wore on her wrist.

 

Image Appears Courtesy of HeritageComics.com

 

 

 

Number 6:

Since we are already on the topic of Wonder Woman, lets delve into her love life a bit. We all know about her love affairs with both Superman and Batman, but at one point in the 1970’s there was a story drafted that put her in a relationship with Green Lantern Hal Jordan, however because a fan wrote into DC suggesting the same thing, the plan was scrapped. The publishers did not want to get into any legal battles over the idea. Maybe in the future we’ll get this pair to hook up.

 

 

Number 5:

Here kitty kitty,  so yeah DC has this cat that is out to kill you. Not many people know how and why. So by now we should all know that there is a lantern Corp that corresponds to you in the emotional spectrum. But there is this wonderful cat in my opinion that is misunderstood for the most part. Dex-Starr a member of the Red Lantern Corp, but why might this beautiful kitty be a member?

Well it turns out that Dex-Starr had a “F’d” up beginning. Dex-Starr the Death Cat as he/she is officially known had a rough beginning. His/Her owner killed and about to be thrown off a bridge… until approached by a Red Lantern of Rage ring.. That was the fate Dex-Starr was facing. Because of that ring, he/she was not thrown off that buyable bridge… and if you give us $50 bucks ENN will sell it to you, but the poor kitty looking to seek vengeance on the person that killed its owner AND about to be thrown off said bridge received the Red Lantern Ring of Rage.

Now that beautiful kitty will not stop until it redeems itself and finds the killer of its original owner. So the cat you always see with Atrocious leader of the Red Lanterns…. Well don’t piss it off if you don’t want to get scratched and f’d up by a…… kitty.

 

 

Number 4:

Superman… dear old Superman in his underroos, well it turns out that ole sups originally could not fly. Did I stutter no the man could not fly…

Hence in his intro “Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound” Well that line became popular because he indeed could not originally fly. It makes sense given the era he was created.

It was not until Fleischer Films, and Animations studio requested the retcon, with the simple reason that they were too lazy… sorry it was too difficult to hand-draw the man of steel leaping from one place to another. The requested DC (at the time Action Comics) to change one of his superpowers to flying. I wish it was that simple nowadays… retcon my creation; my birth, so I could take to the sky’s and fly. NEVER GONNA HAPPEN!!!

 

 

Number 3:

 

I like to keep things coupled together so the numbers assigned really don’t matter. Sooo SUPS it is again!!! This one I hear from my wife “The Manager” all the time. Why can’t people tell that Superman and Clark Kent are two different people “He’s Only Wearing Glasses”.

Well as it turns out those are not regular everyday glasses that Clark Kent is wearing. He’s wearing some good ole Ray Bans… lol just kidding.

The eye glasses he wears are made out of a special Kryptonian Plexiglas. This glass is from his ship that crashed when he arrived on Earth. The glasses not only conceal Clark Kent’s true identity but they have a power similar to hypnosis. Only those he wishes to know his identity can. One would assume that the same would go for the glasses worn by Kara Danvers aka Supergirl

 

 

Number 2:

 

 

Well now a days everything ends in a legal battle, and that doesn’t exempt DC and or Marvel. This one is ultimately about Karma. DC Comics had this golden age superhero by the name of Captain Marvel, well so did Marvel.  Solomon, Hercules, Atlas, Zeus, Achilles, & Mercury —– “SHAZAM!!!“ (fact within a fact). The phrase called out by Billy Batson (DC’s Captain Marvel). Captain Marvel created in 1939 by C.C. Beck and Bill Parker, made his first appearance in Whiz Comics #2 (Published by Fawcett Comics)

At one point Captain Marvel was even more popular than Superman. The Fawcett Comic Captain Marvel ran until 1953 – this was mostly due to a lawsuit for copyright infringement that DC Comics filed against Fawcett Comics claiming that Captain Marvel was a copy of Superman. They sued for $4 million dollars and eventually won. We fast forward to 1972, Fawcett licensed out Captain Marvel to DC… and by 1991 the acquired the rights to entire Captain Marvel Family. Since then DC has inserted Captain Marvel and the Marvel Family into the DC Universe and they’ve even attempted to relaunch the comic.

HOWEVER!!!!!, remember how they got the rights in 1972? Well they couldn’t use the name Captain Marvel because Marvel Comics had copyrighted the name for their own Captain Mar’vell/Captain Marvel so because of this, they called him Shazam, the call out Billy used to transform himself. Tsk Tsk DC should have been nicer to Fawcett Comics.

 

Number 1:

 

The DC Universe has a few characters with deep pockets,  Lex Luthor, Ozymandias, Green Arrow aka Oliver Queen, Ted Kord the OG Blue Beetle, Simon Stagg of Stagg Industries, Maxwell Lord, Ra’s Al Ghul, Vandal Savage and of course Mr. Bats himself Bruce Wayne. The thing is there is one person that is richer than all of them.

Yep that’s right good ole’ Bruce  is not the richest DC Comics character… yes he has all these cool toys, gadgets and vehicles, a big mansion with a lair underneath. Oh and a company as well. This one may surprise you all; the richest of them all is Mr. Arthur Curry… The Aquaman. Sure he can talk to fish and swim really fast. But he is the King of Atlantis and rules of 70% of the Earth’s surface. He can stake claim that if f0und in the ocean

Think of all those minerals, crystals, oil all his. Think on this too… a sunken ship with treasure HIS! So while we all laugh at him (pre Jason Mamoa), he really is no laughing matter at all, he’s the one doing all the laughter.

 

Well that’s it for this list. Be sure to check out all our other articles as well.