Unsung Major Contributors to the Superman Mythos/Cosmogony

[t hedge coke]

A recent post here, attributing work from Roger Stern to Jack Kirby as feathers in Dan Jurgens' cap, got me wondering about really really are the most unsung major contributors to the Superman cosmogony. Not just those who did a lot of comics but get forgotten, but contributed elements, places, people, objects and scenarios that get reused or referenced regularly, without them really getting acknowledged for it.

[666MasterOfPuppets]

Well damn. This is a great question. Anyone? *bump*

[Sacred Knight]

While not having anything to do with world building on a narrative level, on a visual level, I think Tom Grummett is vastly underrated as a contributer to Superman's mythos.

[Last Son of Krypton]

I dunno... I think Jerry Siegel's contribution to Silver-Age Superman is really underestimated. Imo, his best Superman work belong to that era.

[Dolores - The Worst Poster Ever]

Donald Clough Cameron.

As far as I know, he was the first writer to mention that Superman had a vow against killing, as well as retconning all prior instances of Superman killing. The idea for Superman to stop killing was introduced by editors, but Cameron was the first to explicitly mention it in a book.

He also introduced agelessness to the Superman character, with a story where Superman is still appears as young as he was in Action Comics #1 decades after World War II. The same story is probably the first to really drive home the concept of super intelligence, with a mention of Superman dedicating his life to scientific pursuits after having eradicated evil.

[Truman Burbank]

If you're looking for people who added to the mythos and don't get much credit, I think the starting point is the writers of The Adventures of Superman radio drama, which included George Lowther, who also wrote the novel The Adventures of Superman.

[t hedge coke]

Donald Clough Cameron.

As far as I know, he was the first writer to mention that Superman had a vow against killing, as well as retconning all prior instances of Superman killing. The idea for Superman to stop killing was introduced by editors, but Cameron was the first to explicitly mention it in a book.

He also introduced agelessness to the Superman character, with a story where Superman is still appears as young as he was in Action Comics #1 decades after World War II. The same story is probably the first to really drive home the concept of super intelligence, with a mention of Superman dedicating his life to scientific pursuits after having eradicated evil.

Oh, that's huge. That's a beautiful example.