Siegel Murder Propels Book Of Lies
Today’s USA Today features a story from David Colton detailing the background for Brad Meltzer’s forthcoming novel, The Book of Lies, which was inspired by the death of Jerry Siegel’s father, Mitchell. The article explores how this tragic event may have been the catalyst for Siegel to go on and create Superman.
The story discusses how the murder was largely kept under wraps until Gerard Jones covered it in his 2004 book Men of Tomorrow. "It had to have an effect," Jones said in the piece. "Superman’s invulnerability to bullets, loss of family, destruction of his homeland – all seem to overlap with Jerry’s personal experience. There’s a connection there: the loss of a dad as a source for Superman."
The actual events involved a robber who either shot the 60-year-old Siegel or the event triggered a fatal heart attack. Meltzer’s novel, on sale next Tuesday, uses the gun shot but in an afterward he explores the issue and admitted to Colton the truth was more likely a heart attack.
"In 50 years of interviews, Jerry Siegel never once mentioned that his father died in a robbery," Meltzer said in the piece. "But think about it," Meltzer says. "Your father dies in a robbery, and you invent a bulletproof man who becomes the world’s greatest hero. I’m sorry, but there’s a story there."
There’s an upcoming story in the Superman/Batman title that will involve our long-eared Dark Knight getting superhuman abilities (albeit, temporarily). Writers Michael Green and Mike Johnson have been doing great work on the title, so this promises to be an entertaining tale.
Apparently the end of August has been designated as catch up week, at least in the land of comics and DVDs. Over the next few days, you have the opportunity to jump into a number of critically acclaimed series, contained in trade collections or DVD sets . We lay them all out for you, plus:
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After rumors began swirling late last week, Publisher’s Weekly now confirms that Virgin Comics has closed. The SoHo offices have been shut down, the staff let go and principals Sharad Devarajan, Gotham Chopra and Lance Leiberman have not returned attempts by the media to get details.
Though you can’t go to a comics convention panel without hearing some fan decry crossovers, it’s readily obvious why they keep appearing and tying up comics series: Crossovers sell.
In today’s brand new episode of 
DC Comics got a lot of press last year when they signed up bestselling novelist Jodi Picoult to write their monthly [[[Wonder Woman]]] series – gallons of ink about her being the first female “regular writer” on the series, and about how this would finally catapult WW into the position DC keeps insisting she already has: a central, iconic figure whose comics people actually buy and read.
