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Quick, what is the one thing that can do in Superman? It's not kryptonite. Try either time or an attorney.

Truth is always stranger than fiction, and there is a strange but true legal battle going on now between the owners of Superman and the creators of Superman - even though the actual creators are now deceased.


It's an all-American story that started out of Cleveland, Ohio. In 1933, two high school boys named Joseph Shuster and Jerome Siegel created a fictional "super hero". A few years later in 1938, those two boys were working for National Allied Publications, which later became Detective Comics. That year they somehow either made a very foolish decision, were misled, or were outright duped into selling the rights of their character to National for $130.00. They assert that a judge at the time considered money owed to them for their first Superman story (the $130.00) to be payment for the character. That's another story.

Even by modern standards, with adjustments for inflation, etc., this was not a big sale, and you'd think a judge would weigh that factor into a decision. Over time, Shuster and Siegel got a lot of "trust me" responses from their bosses and publishers. They were, in fact, kids trying to stand up to bully businessmen. That too is another story. Eventually they left the publication, sued, lost their claim to the character, but settled for $94,000.00.

Each court loss set the table for public sympathy in years to come. After all, the creators of Superman deserved more than $130.00 for a character which proved to be one of the most - if not the most - identifiable story character in modern history. Years wore on; neither man could match their accomplishment of Superman in future work, and once they sold the rights (which they questioned legally after) all work done was considered "work for hire." They fought on and years of legal battles left them bitter and broke. In 1967 when the copyright for Superman came due for renewal, Siegel waged another unsuccessful suit.

1975 was a better year for Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. Each at 61 years of age, they sued Time Warner (now owners of DC) and lost, but coupled with their own grass roots campaign supported by key industry artists and writers, Warner agreed to compensate the two men on the condition that they not take their case to the Supreme Court. Warner then agreed to give Joe Shuster and Jerry Siegel a yearly stipend that initially paid out $20,000.00 a year along with medical insurance. That figure grew over the years to upwards of $85,000.00, and at their deaths Reuters reported it at over six figures.

In addition, Warner/DC agreed to give both men the long-deserved credit for their creation through any and all media outlets. Legend has it that during this time Jerry's private letters between himself and Warner were so vexing he claimed he'd kill himself dressed as Superman.

The following year (1976), lawmakers took notice of cases like this, specifically Disney's potential loss of ownership over Mickey Mouse, and crafted The Copyright Act of 1976. That law included copyright extension and subsequently allowed owners to retroactively reclaim their portion of work. It went into effect in 1978. Shuster and Siegel would have to wait until 1994 to file a claim on extension.

Now it becomes very complicated so I will refrain from adding too many details. Jump ahead to the 1990's. The true creators Joe Shuster (1992) and Jerry Siegel (1996) have died. However, the law congress enacted in 1976 to protect creators such as Shuster and Siegel did provide the heirs of their estate an opportunity to continue a stake in the claim of ownership, which they have taken. In 1999 the heirs filed a motion as provided in The Copyright Act of 1976 on extending the renewal term of the copyright, specifically paragraphs C and D of Title 17 U.S.C in Chapter 3 (304). That same law is also why Marvel denies that Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko co-created anything in the 1960s (Lee was not freelance so the law doesn't apply to him).

Because both Shuster and Siegel co-created Superman, this also allowed two windows of opportunity to file against DC. Now Shuster's nephew and Siegel's wife and daughter have assumed the legal rights to battle for the Superman cash cow for the remainder of the copyright, which ends for Warner/DC in 2013.

Beyond all this, Superman will become public domain in 2033. At that time, anyone can use him in advertisements and use him in their own stories freely. Yes, at that time Superman can pal around in Marvel stories with Spider-Man - should the Siegel's broker such a deal with Marvel. Sadly, since trademark law is also in play it means that since Time Warner has trademarked things such as the Superman logo, it remains unclear if he may wear his S on his chest in advertising or stories without permission or compensation to Time Warner. The costume is considered part of what the Siegel's will own. If Warner owns the S, their ownership can go on indefinitely as long as Time Warner wants to defend its ownership of that trademarked possession.