Price: 0.10 USD
Pages: 36
On-sale Date: 1958-08-28
Editing: Whitney Ellsworth (credited) (editor); Jack Schiff (managing editor); Mort Weisinger (assistant editor); George Kashdan (assistant editor)
Cover Thumbnail for Action Comics (DC, 1938 series) #245 Edit Cover
Cover Gallery 

The Shrinking Superman!
(Table of Contents)

Superman / cover / 1 page

Pencils:
Inks:
Colors:
?
Letters:
?
    Genre:superhero
Characters:
Superman; Lois Lane; Zak-Kul
Reprints (5)

Issue Data

Indexer Notes

On-sale date from copyright registration.

Toys! Tricks! Surprises! Galore
(Expand) / (Table of Contents: 1)

Honor House Products Novelties / advertisement / 1 page

The Shrinking Superman!
(Table of Contents: 2)

Superman / comic story / 12.67 pages

Script:
Pencils:
Inks:
Colors:
?
Letters:
?
    Genre:superhero
Characters:
Superman; Lois Lane; Zak-Kul (villain); policemen; pedestrians; Justice of the Peace; clerk
Synopsis:
Lois accidentally releases from Kandor the criminal Zak-Kul, who traps Superman in Kandor and takes over his life. Lois marries Zak-Kul thinking him Kal-El, but he tries to kill Lois because she keeps asking him Kal-El's secret id. Kal-El, trapped inside the "Krypton City," uses one of the three remaining specks of Illium-349 to shrink himself even smaller and slip between the atoms of Krypton City's jar, then uses the second speck to enlarge both himself and the third speck. Zak-Kul meanwhile futilely attempts to hide from Superman by disguising himself as a mild-mannered reporter.
Reprints (5)

Indexer Notes

Otto Binder script credit from Showcase Presents reprint. Story synopsis from Ken Rowand.

2nd appearance of Kandor; see Action #242 for debut. Kandor is referred to only as a "Kryptonian city." It is depicted as a very wide-necked bottle like the Swan-drawn newspaper strip version, not the Plastino narrow-necked comic magazine version.

[no title indexed]
(Expand) / (Table of Contents: 3)

Tootsie Roll / advertisement / 0.33 page

[no title indexed]
(Table of Contents: 4)

Little Pete / comic story / 0.5 page

Script:
Pencils:
Inks:
Colors:
?
Letters:
    Genre:humor; children
  • First Line of Dialogue or Text:There are so real giants!
Reprints (1)

[no title indexed]
(Expand) / (Table of Contents: 5)

Palisades Amusement Park Admission / advertisement / 0.5 page

Do You Know the Legend of Superman?
(Expand) / (Table of Contents: 6)

Adventure Comics / promo (ad from the publisher) / 1 page

Lost -- A Free Education!
(Table of Contents: 7)

Binky / public service announcement / 1 page

Script:
Pencils:
Inks:
Colors:
?
Letters:
?
    Genre:humor; advocacy; teen

The Interplanetary Scarecrow
(Table of Contents: 8)

Tommy Tomorrow / comic story / 5.67 pages

Script:
Pencils:
Inks:
Colors:
?
Letters:
?
    Genre:science fiction
Characters:
Tommy Tomorrow
Reprints (1)

[no title indexed]
(Expand) / (Table of Contents: 9)

Tootsie [all other candies] / advertisement / 0.33 page

[no title indexed]
(Table of Contents: 10)

Varsity Vic / comic story / 0.67 page

Script:
Pencils:
Inks:
Colors:
?
Letters:
    Genre:humor; teen
  • First Line of Dialogue or Text:Vic, pick me up at eight.
Reprints (1)

Wings and Winnie Winchester Bag a Thief
(Expand) / (Table of Contents: 11)

Winchester Roller Skates / comics-form advertising / 0.33 page

[no title indexed]
(Table of Contents: 12)

Metropolis Mailbag / letters page / 1 page

Script:
Pencils:
Inks:
Colors:
?
Letters:
typeset

Indexer Notes

The illustration at the top of the letter column is taken from the splash panel of the Superman story in Action Comics #241. This illustration appears at the top of the letter columns in Action Comics #245-271 and Superman #124-145.

[no title indexed]
(Table of Contents: 13)

Casey the Cop / comic story / 0.67 page

Script:
Pencils:
Inks:
Colors:
?
Letters:
    Genre:humor
  • First Line of Dialogue or Text:Casey, an emergency call just came through.
Reprints (1)

Superman's Secret Message
(Expand) / (Table of Contents: 14)

Supermen of America / promo (ad from the publisher) / 0.33 page

The Secret of the Super Animals
(Table of Contents: 15)

Congo Bill / comic story / 5.67 pages

Script:
Pencils:
Inks:
Colors:
?
Letters:
?
    Genre:jungle; adventure
Characters:
Congo Bill; Janu the Jungle Boy; Professor Peters

Indexer Notes

writer credit by Craig Delich

[no title indexed]
(Expand) / (Table of Contents: 16)

Tootsie Roll / advertisement / 0.33 page

[no title indexed]
(Expand) / (Table of Contents: 17)

Stephens Credit Sales Mottoes / advertisement / 1 page

[no title indexed]
(Expand) / (Table of Contents: 18)

Joe Weider Course and Products / advertisement / 1 page

[no title indexed]
(Expand) / (Table of Contents: 19)

7 Gigantic Dinosaurs / advertisement / 1 page

Editing
Download: (JSON)
Report Information
my.comics.org
Tracked in 16 collections.
Issue at my.comics.org
View Change History
Table of Contents ToC
    Table of Contents
  1. The Shrinking Superman!
    Superman
  2. Toys! Tricks! Surprises! Galore
    Honor House Products Novelties
  3. The Shrinking Superman!
    Superman
  4. [no title indexed]
    Tootsie Roll
  5. ["There are so real giants!"]
    Little Pete
  6. [no title indexed]
    Palisades Amusement Park Admission
  7. Do You Know the Legend of Superman?
    Adventure Comics
  8. Lost -- A Free Education!
    Binky
  9. The Interplanetary Scarecrow
    Tommy Tomorrow
  10. [no title indexed]
    Tootsie [all other candies]
  11. ["Vic, pick me up at eight."]
    Varsity Vic
  12. Wings and Winnie Winchester Bag a Thief
    Winchester Roller Skates
  13. [no title indexed]
    Metropolis Mailbag
  14. ["Casey, an emergency call just came through."]
    Casey the Cop
  15. Superman's Secret Message
    Supermen of America
  16. The Secret of the Super Animals
    Congo Bill
  17. [no title indexed]
    Tootsie Roll
  18. [no title indexed]
    Stephens Credit Sales Mottoes
  19. [no title indexed]
    Joe Weider Course and Products
  20. [no title indexed]
    7 Gigantic Dinosaurs
Related Links
Issue was modified by, among others
  • Katie
  • David Bromley
  • Peter Croome
  • Matthew Head
  • Bob Hughes
  • Donald Dale Milne
  • Mike Nielsen
  • John Pannozzi
  • Gene Reed (R.I.P.)
  • Allen Ross
  • Ramon Schenk
  • Jim Van Dore
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