Golden Age "The Mighty Atom" (Al Pratt) Appreciation Thread (2021)

[MajorHoy]

First appearance: All-American Comics #19 (October 1940).
NOTE: Golden Age Green Lantern Alan Scott had debuted in issue #16


He was also a founding members of the Justice Society of America.

Both he and Hawkman were the only two heroes who were continuous full-time members during the Justice Society of America's Golden Age run, from All Star Comics #3 through issue #57 (cover-dated February-March 1951).

And from Who's Who: The Definitive Directory of the DC Universe Vol. I (March 1985),

[ducklord]

Of all the original JSAers, poor Al always seems to get the short end of the stick (so to speak). The rest of them have gimmicks, gadgets, powers, and interesting storylines and origins, but Al's just an angry young man who managed to find a socially acceptable way to channel his Napoleon Complex.
No wonder they eventually gave him an atomic punch.

Al and Per Degaton should go into therapy together.

[MajorHoy]

from the "Fact File" section of All-Star Squadron #10 (June 1982):

[MajorHoy]

First appearance: All-American Comics #19 (October 1940).
NOTE: Golden Age Green Lantern Alan Scott had debuted in issue #16

And now, the rest of the story . . .

[DrNewGod]

Was The Atom always a college student prior to the end of his feature in All-American Comics? I know they had him go on to run gyms and what not after his Silver Age revival, but was he stuck in university for 10 years in his original run?

[MajorHoy]

Was The Atom always a college student prior to the end of his feature in All-American Comics? I know they had him go on to run gyms and what not after his Silver Age revival, but was he stuck in university for 10 years in his original run?

I can't swear to it, but he might have been.

Hell, look how long it took before Dick Grayson actually graduated from being a "Boy Wonder" and headed off to college!

[DrNewGod]

I can't swear to it, but he might have been.

Hell, look how long it took before Dick Grayson actually graduated from being a "Boy Wonder" and headed off to college!

Good point. 30 years is a long adolescence

[Cat]

I love the costume Mike Parobeck gave him for the '92 JSA Series. A great little update that still adheres to the spirit of the original, still advertises that he's a brawler.

[MajorHoy]

I love the costume Mike Parobeck gave him for the '92 JSA Series. A great little update that still adheres to the spirit of the original, still advertises that he's a brawler.

[DrNewGod]

I love the costume Mike Parobeck gave him for the '92 JSA Series. A great little update that still adheres to the spirit of the original, still advertises that he's a brawler.

That whole series was just Solid Gold.

[MajorHoy]

That whole series was just Solid Gold.

[MajorHoy]

From the Golden Age Wildcat (Ted Grant) Appreciation 2021 thread:

All-Star Squadron Annual #1 (1982) featured a story that tied together the early days of Ted Grant, Al Pratt (The Atom), and The Guardian (Jim Harper).
Here's Wildcat's retelling of his origin:

Here's The Atom's portion:

[ducklord]

From the Golden Age Wildcat (Ted Grant) Appreciation 2021 thread:Here's The Atom's portion:

While I generally love Roy Thomas's work, and All-Star Squadron in particular, I always thought that this story was a textbook example of his tendency to occasionally make unnecessary connections where none were necessary.

See also: Chuck Grayson/Dick Grayson and Sandra Knight/Ted Knight being related to each other. Sometimes people just have the same last names, Roy!

[Ishmael]

I love the golden age Atom. The stories had a real “Peter Parker” vibe to them, only set in the ‘40’s (obviously). Really enjoyable stuff.

[MajorHoy]

While I generally love Roy Thomas's work, and All-Star Squadron in particular, I always thought that this story was a textbook example of his tendency to occasionally make unnecessary connections where none were necessary.

See also: Chuck Grayson/Dick Grayson and Sandra Knight/Ted Knight being related to each other. Sometimes people just have the same last names, Roy!

But at least I don't think Roy was responsible for making Roy Harper (Speedy, etc.) related to The Guardian (Jim Harper) since that had happened back in the 1970s when Roy was still working at Marvel.