Scott D. Parker
Eighty-five years ago today, Doc Savage landed on
magazine shelves for the first time and, one might argue, helped change
popular culture all the way up to the present day.
The brainchild of Street and Smith publisher, Henry
Ralston and editor John Nanovic, Doc Savage was the brighter answer to
the magazine’s other runaway bestseller, The Shadow. But where the
Knight of Darkness fought crime at night and in
the, um, shadows, The Man of Bronze was a different type of hero. He
strove “every moment of my life to make myself better and better, to the
best of my ability, that all may profit by it. Let me think of the
right and lend all my assistance to those who need
it, with no regard for anything but justice. Let me take what comes
with a smile, without loss of courage. Let me be considerate of my
country, of my fellow citizens and my associates in everything I say and
do. Let me do right to all, and wrong no man.” He
was a paragon of virtue, the kind of person kids could look up to and
revere.
Clark Savage, Jr. appeared in 181 adventures from
1933 to 1949, mostly written by a single author, Lester Dent. In nearly
all of them, he was accompanied by his five stalwart brothers in arms:
Monk Mayfair, Ham Brooks, John Renwick, Long
Tom Roberts, and William Littlejohn. Each man of the Fabulous Five was
an expert in his chosen discipline, but Doc bested each. Doc had trained
his mind and body since birth to be a superman. He even had a Fortress
of Solitude where he would retire from time
to time to study. Invariably he would emerge from his seclusion with
some new invention, knowledge, or something else to benefit humankind.
His headquarters on the 86th Floor of the unnamed building in New York
(but we all knew was the Empire State Building)
was a palace of gadgets, technology, and books where Doc and his
comrades planned their adventures. And his villains were trying to take
over the world long before Lex Luther or Blofeld.
If you’ve read this far, I think you will recognize
some names and terms. The obvious descendant is Superman himself.
Extrapolate, if you will, what Superman wrought: Batman, DC Comics,
other superheroes, Marvel Comics, novels, toys, merchandise,
movie serials, major motion pictures with superheroes, and many other
things that shape large chunks of popular culture. In fact, the biggest
superhero movie to date, The Avengers: Infinity War, can trace its roots
all the way back to a pulp magazine character
that debuted eight-five years ago today.
I am woefully deficient in my Doc Savage reading,
but then just imagine reading one novel a month at the pace Lester Dent
and a handful of other co-writers drafted the books. You would finish in
2034! But these stories are fantastic to
dip into from time to time for the breathless sense of adventure and
wonder.
Generations of readers grew up on the original pulp
magazines while other generations were raised on the Bantam reprints of
the 1960s and 1970s, with Frank Bama's depiction of Doc with a widow's peak and a tattered shirt.
Nostalgia Ventures reprinted the entire run,
adding historical commentary. And Will Murray
has been using abandoned outlines from Dent’s personal papers to write
new adventures, including one in which Doc teams up with The Shadow,
bringing the entire saga full circle.
Now, in this 85th year of Doc Savage, I plan to read a few more adventures, including the black-and-white comics from the mid 70s as published by Marvel Comics. I'll be reviewing these yarns as I get to them, beginning with The Polar Treasure next week.
