There was another comic character called Dan Dare, created almost a decade before our own. This 'Dan' was an American 'private eye' who made his debut in a publication called Whiz Comics, produced by Fawcett in February 1940. Created by Bill Parker, Dan's adventures were produced by several artists and writers and appeared in thirteen issues of the monthly comic, although the strip was always a back up story. Detective Dan's first appearance was overshadowed by the first appearance of Captain Marvel, a popular superhero whose greatest battles were in court because D.C. Comics sued Fawcett for breach of copyright, claiming that the Captain was too similar to their own Superman. Fawcett resisted and once established, Captain Marvel's adventures began to outsell Superman's. The ongoing case was finally settled out of court in 1953, when Fawcett also ceased publication of their superhero titles as a result of falling sales.
The name Captain Marvel was later used by Marvel Comics for a character of their own, who first appeared in 1967, but in 1972 D.C. revived Fawcett's original character! However they were forced to use the name Shazam! for their comic because Marvel had established their rights to the name, suggesting that our Dan Dare is safe from a legal challenge. Often referred to as 'Shazam', which is actually the name of the wizard who gave him his powers, the D.C. owned superhero starred in the film Shazam! in 2019 and a sequel Shazam! Fury of the Gods in 2023. A Captain Marvel film featuring Marvel's version, now a female superhero also appeared in 2019. Confused? I am!
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