Everybody knows Action Comics #1, the first appearance of Superman, Lois Lane (and also Pep Morgan). But what about Superman’s best pal, Jimmy Olsen? Well, it turns out that’s actually a matter of some debate. Your Major Spoilers Retro Review of Action Comics #6 awaits!
ACTION COMICS #6
Writer: Jerry Siegel
Penciler: Joe Shuster
Inker: Joe Shuster/Paul Lauretta
Colorist: Uncredited
Letterer: Paul Lauretta
Editor: Vin Sullivan
Publisher: Detective Comics, Inc. (DC Comics)
Cover Price: 10 Cents
Current Near-Mint Pricing:
Release Date: September 26, 1938
Previously in Action Comics: The building blocks of Superman’s extended universe didn’t happen all at once. Those of you who remember the first appearance of The Man of Steel will remember that Clark Kent worked for George Taylor, not Perry White, and their paper was The Daily Star rather than the better-known Daily Planet. The name Jor-L first appeared in 1939, with the Jor-El variant debuting in 1942, and the final evolution was cemented in 1945 with the first appearance of Superboy. (If you’re wondering, Kal-El didn’t learn his own Kryptonian name until 1957.) As for young James Olsen, his first chronological appearance was on The Adventures of Superman radio serial in 1940. But through the power of the retcon, we take you back to the fall of 1938!
The story begins when his editor calls Clark Kent into the office to introduce him to a new player in Metropolis: Superman’s personal manager!
As of October 2025, it is the official position of DC Comics that the unnamed “inquisitive office-boy” in panels seven and eight is James Bartholomew Olsen in his first (very blond) appearance.
Get it? Got it? Good!
Because he never appears again in the issue! However, since Clark Kent IS Superman, he’s absolutely sure that the Supermanager is a big faker and requests a meeting with the supposed Man of Tomorrow. Thanks to the loose lips of proto-Jimmy, Lois Lane also knows about the meeting with “Superman,” and totally wants in.
Watching Clark and Lois manipulate one another is really amusing to me, especially knowing that they got married only six decades later. That night, Mr. Kent breaks out his top hat and tails, while Lois puts on her prettiest dress, and they head out to a nightclub, where they find that even entertainment has been infiltrated by Supermania, as the chanteuse sings a love song about Big Blue.
It’s apparently the most beautiful thing Lois Lane has ever heard.
I’ve often wondered to myself why certain comic book properties stuck around while others languished, and in this story, it’s quite clear that the art of Joe Shuster is a big selling point. Even with the tiny panels, one can easily distinguish his false Superman from the real deal, something that is a lot harder than it might seem. As someone who has read a mountain of Golden Age stories, the clarity and life in Shuster’s work impress the heck out of me. Also, Lois drugged Clark’s drink, which I’m pretty certain was as illegal in 1938 as it is today.
While she meets Nick Williams, Clark sneaks out to put on his REAL Superman suit, arriving just in time to save Lois from certain death. Apparently, when confronting criminal fraudsters, telling them that you’re gonna bust them and ruin their lives is a recipe for getting thrown out a window. Williams and his ersatz Superman believe their ploy has worked, and they are getting away scot-free, but they forget the first rule of emergencies: Use the stairs and NOT the elevator!
Also worth noting: Joe’s rendition of Superman’s proverbial single bound actually looks cooler than some of the flying poses of modern comics, if you ask me. Superman makes his drop-off at the police station, and Lois is overcome by love for the big guy. As for Superman’s doppelganger, he has an entirely different, but equally powerful response.
That last panel is a weird, non-Shuster, off-model Superman, but it’s somehow incredibly compelling, and oddly classical-looking. All in all, Action Comics #6‘s lead story is a clever read with really well-done art and a premise that’s decades ahead of its time in its depiction of someone trying to profit from heroic deeds, earning 3.5 out of 5 stars overall. As for the two panels of a boy who is recognized as Jimmy, they are actually key moments that set the story in motion for Clark and Lois and their romantic tension. The first appearance of the name Jimmy takes place in Superman #13, in late 1941, with Olsen first seeing print in #15, but that, as they say, is another Retro Review or two.
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ACTION COMICS #6
The lead story, with the retconned-in first appearance of young Jimmy, is actually really good stuff, and even compared to the rest of the issue, is head-and-shoulders above in terms of art.
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Writing7
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Art8
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Coloring6
Once upon a time, there was a young nerd from the Midwest, who loved Matter-Eater Lad and the McKenzie Brothers... If pop culture were a maze, Matthew would be the Minotaur at its center. Were it a mall, he'd be the Food Court. Were it a parking lot, he’d be the distant Cart Corral where the weird kids gather to smoke, but that’s not important right now... Matthew enjoys body surfing (so long as the bodies are fresh), writing in the third person, and dark-eyed women. Amongst his weaponry are such diverse elements as: Fear! Surprise! Ruthless efficiency! An almost fanatical devotion to pop culture! And a nice red uniform.