Superman vs. Muhammad Ali
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| Superman vs. Muhammad Ali | |
 Front cover art for Superman vs. Muhammad Ali. Art by Neal Adams and Dick Giordano. |
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| Publication information | |
|---|---|
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| Format | One-shot |
| Genre | Superhero |
| Publication date | Fall 1978 |
| Number of issues | All-New Collectors' Edition vol. 7, no. C-58 |
| Creative team | |
| Penciller(s) | Neal Adams |
| Inker(s) | Dick Giordano, Terry Austin |
| Letterer(s) | Gaspar Saladino |
| Colorist(s) | Cory Adams |
| Editor(s) | Julius Schwartz |
Superman vs. Muhammad Ali is an oversize comic book published by DC Comics in 1978. It features Superman teaming up with the heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali to defeat an alien invasion of Earth. The 72-page All-New Collectors' Edition: Superman vs. Muhammad Ali retailed for $2.50.
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[edit] Publication history
Pairing the Man of Steel with real-life American icons was nothing new by the late 1970s. In fact, Superman had already been featured in print with the likes of Steve Allen, Bob Hope, Jerry Lewis, Allen Funt, Don Rickles, and John F. Kennedy. He had even gone up against a real-life athlete, the wrestler Antonino Rocca (Superman #155, August 1962). Yet in the 1970s, there was only one real Superman outside of the world of comic books: champion boxer Muhammad Ali. Ali was more than just an athlete and more than simply the best athlete of his time. Known for his nearly superhuman sparring ability, Ali was a colorful, larger-than-life hero to children and adults everywhere. So it was probably inevitable that the comic book world would give the public what they wanted, a battle between Ali and the Man of Steel.
"Black Superman (Muhammad Ali)", a 1975 Top 40 song by Johnny Wakelin, was alleged to have been the book's inspiration, although DC denied it.[1] Perhaps just as big an inspiration was the 1976 Academy Award-winning film Rocky, which added to the growing popularity of boxing. In addition, interplanetary battles were the rage in late '70s entertainment.
Supposedly, Ali only agreed to take part in the comic if his character is allowed to discover Superman's secret identity.[2] The book suffered numerous delays, going from a publication date of fall 1977, to spring 1978, before it finally arrived on the stands in the fall of 1978.[3] Ironically, at the time the oft-delayed book was finally published, Ali was no longer World Heavyweight Champion, having been dethroned by Leon Spinks. (Ali promptly won back the title in September 1978.)
The comic book has become a genuine collectors' item in recent years, partly because it can never be reprinted. Changes in intellectual property law have prohibited the use of celebrity faces in media or artwork they do not personally endorse.
Superman vs. Muhammad Ali was based on an original story by Dennis O'Neil which was adapted by Neal Adams, with pencils by Adams, and figure inks by Dick Giordano with background inks by Terry Austin.
[edit] Plot summary
At first glance, the premise of the book seemed preposterous. Ali was "The Greatest," but he was a mere mortal. How could a battle between Ali and Superman (with his exceptional powers and superiority to all earthlings everywhere) be anything near a fair match? Why would Superman want to fight Ali in the first place? O'Neill and Adams found answers to these questions by creating an alien race called The Scrubb.
Rat'Lar, the maniacal Scrubb leader, demands that Earth's greatest champion fight the greatest fighter of their world. If Earth refuses, the Scrubb and their huge armada of spaceships will destroy it. The two most obvious choices for Champion of Earth, Superman and Muhammad Ali, each come forward to volunteer. However, Ali argues that Superman is not really of Earth, and has an unfair advantage in his many superpowers. In typical Ali-style verbiage, he puts himself forward as the obvious choice.
Intrigued, Rat'Lar decides that Superman and Ali should fight one another to see who really is Earth's champion. To make the fight fair, he decrees that the match should take place on his home planet, Bodace, which is orbited by a red sun (which temporarily robs Superman of his powers). The winner would simply be the best boxer. To make the most of the battle, the match will be broadcast on intergalactic television to thousands of other worlds (with Superman's pal Jimmy Olsen acting as broadcaster). The two would-be champions decide that Ali will train Superman in the finer points of boxing. They journey to Superman's Fortress of Solitude to have his powers temporarily deactivated.
When the real match begins, it soon becomes apparent that in battling with more or less equal strength, Ali is the superior fighter. Superman takes a serious beating at the hands of The Greatest, but somehow refuses to drop; he stays on his feet all through the beating. Finally, Ali stops the fight, urging the referee to call for a technical knockout. Superman then falls face-first on the canvas, making the knockout more than technical.
Thus Ali is set to face the Scrubb's champion, the behemoth Hun'Ya. The alien leader, knowing all about Ali’s exploits on Earth, tells Ali to predict the round the fight will end. After some chiding, Ali predicts that he’ll knock the alien out in the eighth round. Once the match begins, however, Ali quickly starts to suffer from the fighting powers of Hun'Ya, who clearly is much more powerful than any human Ali has ever faced. Things don't look good.
Meanwhile, Superman's great recuperative powers have enabled him to make a speedy recovery. Disguising himself as Ali cornerman Bundini Brown, he steals into the Scrubb command ship and sabotages their space armada. In his brave showdown with the armada, however, Superman is again badly hurt, and is left drifting in space.
Miraculously, Ali gets a second wind. In the predicted eighth round, he not only knocks the alien champion out, but out of the ring as well. Yet after witnessing Superman's decimation of his invading forces, the Scrubb leader cries foul and decides to invade the now helpless Earth anyway. Just as Rat'Lar is about to give the go-ahead to his backup forces, his own champion Hun'Ya becomes enraged at Rat'Lar's dishonorable tactics and deposes him. There will be no invasion. Earth is saved.
Superman is rescued and once again revived. Hun-ya, the new Scrubb leader, makes peace with Ali, Superman, and all of Earth. The very end of the book shows Ali and Superman in a private moment. Ali reveals that he discovered Superman's secret identity as Clark Kent, but implicitly vows to keep it secret. The book ends with the two champions embracing and Ali proclaiming, "Superman, WE are the greatest!"
[edit] The cover
Superman vs. Muhammad Ali's wraparound cover took full advantage of Adams' mastery of likenesses, rendering a host of late 1970s celebrities, including Frank Sinatra, Lucille Ball, Tony Orlando, Ron Palillo, the cast of Welcome Back, Kotter, and The Jackson 5; sharing close-up seating with Wonder Woman, Batman, Green Lantern, and other DC superheroes; as well as Warner and DC employees.
Joe Kubert was originally asked to draw the cover, and his version (a black-and-white sketch of which still survives) didn't feature any celebrities, but just a "normal" raucous crowd of boxing fans. DC didn't approve of Kubert's likeness of Ali, however, nor the overall grim feeling of the piece, and asked Adams to draw the book instead.[3] Adams' original cover illustration (modeled very closely on Kubert's layout), included Mick Jagger in the front cover's lower left corner; he was replaced in the final version by fight promoter Don King.[4]
In 2000, Adams did a riff on this cover — featuring Ali fighting basketball star Michael Jordan — for a special issue of ESPN The Magazine.
[edit] People in the crowd (selected)
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[edit] Spider-Man rumor
It has long been rumored that Marvel Comics' Spider-Man was to have made a cameo in this book, but that disagreements between DC and Marvel prevented his inclusion. It is also rumored that this disagreement led to the publication of the second Superman-Spider-Man crossover book being delayed two years.[5]
In actuality, Marvel took the occasion of Ali no longer being world champion at the time of the book's release to make fun of DC. In Amazing Spider-Man #186 (Nov. 1978) — written by Marv Wolfman, with art by Keith Pollard and Mike Esposito — a female representative from a comic book publisher (possibly representing DC publisher Jenette Kahn) offers Spider-Man the chance to fight then-heavyweight champion Leon Spinks. Spidey refuses, saying that by the time the book hits the stands, "someone else could be champ."[4]
[edit] Critical response
Though still fondly remembered by collectors who grew up treasuring the book in the 1970s, and justifiably lauded for the strong art job by Adams, Giordano, and Austin, the book suffers from some major flaws. The story's unlikely premise seems more silly with the passage of time. Superman's disguising of himself as Bundini Brown is problematic given its associations with blackface. Also, Ali's dialogue now reads as a '70s parody rather than a true homage to his unique manner of speaking.
[edit] References
[edit] Sources consulted
- Kimball, Kirk. Dial B for Blog #315 (June).
- Cyriaque, Lamar. "The 5 Most Insane Celebrity Comic Book Cameos". Cracked.com. (March 19, 2008).
- "Superman vs. Muhammad Ali," Scoop: Did You Know (Feb. 25, 2006).
- "Superman vs. Muhammad Ali," SupermanTV.net.
- "They Are the Greatest," UGO: World of Superman: The Phantom Zone.
[edit] Endnotes
- ^ Superman's Greatest Opponent: Muhammad Ali
- ^ Fitch, Dan. "The 5 most ridiculous appearances by sports stars in a comic book," BetFair.com (January 8, 2009).
- ^ a b Kelly, Rob. TreasuryComics.com. Retrieved August 5, 2008.
- ^ a b Kimball, Kirk. Dial B for Blog #315 (June). Retrieved August 5, 2008.
- ^ "Superman vs. Muhammad Ali," SupermanTV.net. Retrieved August 5, 2008.
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