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<HEAD><TITLE>Don Markstein's Toonopedia: The Flash </TITLE> <script language="JavaScript"></script> <META name = "author" content = "Donald D. Markstein"> <META name = "description" content = "Hypertext encyclopedia of comics and animation"> <META name = "subject" content = "Hypertext encyclopedia of comics and animation"> <META name = "keywords" content = "comic books animated cartoons animation comics comix syndicated comic strips"> <META name = "publisher" content = "Donald D. Markstein"> <META name = "format" content = "text/html"> <META name = "language" content = "EN"> </HEAD><BODY> <body onload="if (self!= top) top.location = self.location"></body> <BODY BGCOLOR="FFFFFF" TEXT="000000" LINK="0000EE" VLINK="551A8B"> <TABLE><TR><TD WIDTH=310 VALIGN="CENTER"><IMG GALLERYIMG="NO" ALIGN="LEFT" HEIGHT=415 WIDTH=300 ALT="The Flash: A 1940 comic book cover. Artist: Harry Lampert." SRC="flash1.jpg"> <TD VALIGN="CENTER"><H1>THE FLASH</H1><FONT SIZE=4> <B>Medium:</B> Comic books <BR><B>Published by:</B> DC Comics <BR><B>First Appeared:</B> 1939 <BR><B>Creator:</B> Gardner Fox<FONT SIZE=3> <! BEGIN DONATION CODE> <HR><FONT SIZE=2 COLOR="993366"><CENTER> If this site is enjoyable or useful to you, <BR>Please contribute to its necessary financial support. <BR><A HREF="http://s1.amazon.com/exec/varzea/pay/T1237L0BCY25QA" TARGET="_blank">Amazon.com</A> or <A HREF="https://www.paypal.com/xclick/business=don%40toonopedia.com&no_note=1&tax=0&currency_cod e=USD" TARGET="_blank">PayPal</A> </FONT></CENTER><HR> <! END DONATION CODE> <P><A NAME="cont"> The Flash sped onto the scene in the first issue of <A HREF="dc.htm">DC's</A> <I>Flash Comics,</I> dated January, 1940 — but because then, as now, comic books tended to go on sale two or three  <P ALIGN="RIGHT"><A HREF="#cont"><FONT SIZE=2><I>continued below</A></FONT> </TABLE> <CENTER><! BEGIN ADSENSE "LEADERBOARD" CODE> <script type="text/javascript"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js"> </script> <! END ADSENSE CODE></CENTER> <P><TABLE><TR><TD VALIGN="TOP"> months in advance of their cover dates, it's safe to say he made his first appearance in 1939. He shared this anthology title with <A HREF="hawkman1.htm">Hawkman,</A> <A HREF="jthundr1.htm">Johnny Thunder,</A> and several other debuting stars. <P> He was an early jumper onto the <A HREF="glossary.htm#superhero">superhero</A> bandwagon — <A HREF="superman.htm">Superman</A> himself had been around less than two years. And he became the progenitor of an entire genre of speedy superheroes, as, within months, his imitators started hitting the stands. They include <A HREF="whizzer.htm">The Whizzer,</A> from the company that would later be known as <A HREF="marvel.htm">Marvel;</A> <A HREF="maxmerc.htm">Quicksilver,</A> from <A href="quality.htm">Quality Comics</A> (not to be confused with <A HREF="quicksil.htm">the later Marvel character of that name</A> — this one, now known as "Max Mercury", eventually became a supporting character in DC's <I><A HREF="impulse.htm">Impulse</A></I>); and DC's own <A HREF="johnny-q.htm">Johnny Quick,</A> a back-up series in <I>More Fun</I> and <I>Adventure Comics</I> from 1941-54. There was even a <A HREF="glossary.htm#funnyanimal">funny animal</A> speedster — and <A HREF="mcsnurt.htm">The Terrific Whatzit</A> actually wore a duplicate of The Flash's own costume. <P> The Flash had a straightforward superhero origin, written by Gardner Fox (<A HREF="moongirl.htm">Moon Girl</A>) and drawn by Harry Lampert (<A HREF="theking.htm">The King</A>). Jay Garrick, college student, had an accident in a chem lab, inhaled fumes that would undoubtedly be deadly anywhere but in a superhero comic book, and fell unconscious. When he was rescued, he found he'd gained the ability to move at blinding speed. He thereupon made himself a costume and embarked on a crime-fighting career as The Flash. <P> He was among DC's early hits, and a year later, in <I>All Star Comics</I> #3, became a charter member of <A HREF="jsa.htm">The Justice Society of America.</A> In 1942, he joined <A HREF="lantern1.htm">Green Lantern</A> and <A HREF="wonderwo.htm">Wonder Woman</A> in headlining <I>Comic Cavalcade,</I> an extra-big comic reserved for extra-popular characters. When it came time to give him a comic of his own, there was a slight problem — the anthology he'd started in was already called <I>Flash.</I> The solution was to call his solo book <I>All-Flash.</I> That title ran from 1941-47. <P> The superhero trend eventually ran its course, and <I>Flash Comics</I> was retired with its 104th issue, dated Feb., 1949. By that time, <I>All-Flash</I> was long gone, and <I>Comic Cavalcade</I> had dropped the superheroes and begun featuring <A HREF="nutsy.htm">Nutsy Squirrel,</A> <A HREF="fox_crow.htm">The Fox & the Crow,</A> and other funny animal characters. The Justice Society continued, but in 1951, it, too, disappeared. <P> In 1956, DC tried reviving the superhero genre, starting with The Flash. Editor <A HREF="schwartz.htm">Julius Schwartz</A> took on the project with the stipulation that the character be re-built from the ground up. The <A HREF="flash2.htm">new Flash</A> also got his super speed in a chemical accident but, in a slight twist, was inspired to become a superhero by having read <I>Flash Comics</I> years earlier. Once he was established, superheroes began to regain their prominence in the comic book scene. <P> In 1961, writer Fox brought back the original, in a story called "Flash of Two Worlds", which is now considered a classic by superhero enthusiasts. He explained the fact that the original Flash was, in the context of the new version, merely a comic book character, by claiming the old stories had entered his subconscious in the form of vibrations from an alternate world, where the character's adventures were real. <P> This led to a wholesale revival of the Justice Society characters. Eventually, the two worlds were merged, to facilitate guest appearances in the modern characters' comics. Today, Jay Garrick is a patriarch among superheroes — aged, but still able to show those youngsters (who now include a <A HREF="flash3.htm">third Flash</A>) a thing or two about superheroing. And the way time flows in comic books, he'll probably be that way for a good while to come. <P ALIGN = "RIGHT">— DDM <P><A HREF="index.htm">BACK</A> to <I>Don Markstein's Toonopedia</I> Home Page <BR><A HREF="today.htm">Today in Toons:</A> Every day's an anniversary! <P><! BEGIN ADSENSE BANNER CODE><CENTER> <script type="text/javascript"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js"> </script> </CENTER><! END ADSENSE CODE> <TD WIDTH=10><TD WIDTH=180 VALIGN="TOP"> <! BEGIN ADLINKS CODE><script type="text/javascript"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js"> </script><! END ADLINKS CODE> <P><! 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