Superman's Short-Lived Stand-Up Career!!

Vile gangsters have hired the Prankster to get Superman out of the way!

His plan? Public humiliation!

When a call goes out that a man is trapped in a bank vault...

Even Lois gets in on the laughter!

And when the mayor of Metropolis decides to honor Kal-El with an official portrait...

Well, not that funny, really.

But everyone mocks Superman now...even the Daily Planet!!

And Superman is not going to take it!!

Uh...Lois? Your byline was on that story we just saw!! You were fanning the flames ridicule!! You don't get to play Ms. Self-Righteous here!!

Now, I know what you're thinking--this is just some plot by Superman to draw out the Prankster, right?

Nope. That would have been a Silver Age story, and we're still in the Golden Age here! Superman really did have a pine cone up his butt over being mocked!

Well, Superman has always been a bit prickly when it comes to public humiliation. This wasn't the first time the Prankster would get his goat, and it certainly would me the last time.

But as you saw, Superman (finally) figured out is was the Prankster. And now he has a plan, as soon...

Prepare to meet--Professor Hi Laryus!!

Um...

Wow, people paid to see this??

Well, it was enough to draw Prankster's ire...

Those were actual stories!!

And finally, Prankster confesses to the "crimes"...

...which causes the crooks to try and shut him up...

And Superman saves him and arrests everyone.

I'm not sure why...what crimes were actually committed? I suppose you could do filing a false police report about the man in the vault. Maybe assault for the pie in the face? Defacing public property for the portrait? It's not like any of that is going to get you a significant stretch in Attica. Why worry about "silencing" Prankster? Now you're guilty of attempted murder, dummies!!!

Anyway, I hope someone in the audience had a camera, and Superman's short-live stand-up is now immortalized in the DC Universe's version of Youtube.

From Action Comics #95 (1946)

The Deadliest Prank!

We all love the Prankster, right? A mostly harmless goofy genius, who uses his talent for gags and practical jokes to befuddle and bewilder Superman (and make some coin for himself in the process)?

What everyone forgets, though, is that in his first appearance, Prankster was as bloodthirsty as the Joker!

The Prankster's boys have been pulling jobs all over Metropolis (and getting away with it thanks to Prankster's cleverly-planned escapes). He's trying to amass enough money to finance his "Big Job," but his underlings want to cash out now...

HOLY CRAP!!

After successfully pulling off the "big job"--and it really is quite a clever scheme--it's time to split the loot!

Well, Superman has disguised himself as one of the thugs, so he saves Lois and the rest.

But lethal gas!?!? Prankster is no fun doofus--he's a mass-murdering pyscopath!!

Things were rougher than we thought in the Golden Age, is all I'm saying.

From Action Comics #51 (1942)

Pennies From Hell

One of the greatest lying covers of all time:

That cover is the exact opposite of the story, because, well...

For reasons that you have to promise not to ask, the Prankster is traveling around the country, breaking silly obscure and archaic laws in harmless ways.

Why? Hey, you promised not to ask. Trust me--you really do NOT want to know.

But stuffy old Superman isn't having any of this nonsense!!


But the crowd is having none of Superman's establishment bad trip!

And then came the greatest "I'm Spartacus" moment ever:


Now, Silver/Bronze Age Kal-El may have been the toughest hombre of all time, but along from kryptonite and magic, he had one very exploitable weakness: fear of public ridicule!!



So, great Neal Adams cover, but it kind of got the story 100% wrong. There was a law against putting pennies in your ear, and Prankster knew it!! Heck, that was key to his plan!!

What plan...? Hey, you promised not to ask!!

From Superman Family #184 (1977)