Superman's Editor Had a Super Power Too - He Was a Long-Time ASJA Member
Any research project can lead to serendipitous discoveries. One such discovery for me was how Superman is related somewhat closely to the Society of Magazine Writers, which in 1975 welcomed members who were book authors and changed its name to the American Society of Journalists and Authors.
This discovery came from a multi-year project to compile (including the programming of) a database of awards initiated by Society of Magazine Writers and ASJA. During this research I saw a name that also appears in the Superman TV series credits: “Story Editor……Mort Weisinger.”
Weisinger was an influential editor of the separate Superman and Batman comics beginning in 1941 when the characters were under National Periodicals. But that role was interrupted with military service until 1946, when he returned to National Periodicals to edit Superman and Batman. This led to work in California as story editor for the Superman TV Series with George Reeves. His editing began to focus entirely on Superman titles in 1958 and into 1970, when he retired as the editor.
According to a typewritten manuscript that became an October 1977 article in Parade Magazine (from the Mort Weisinger Archive at the University of Wyoming), Weisinger wrote:
“For thirty years of my life I chased around the universe with that flashing figure in red and blue, the mighty Superman, linked to him like a Siamese twin. . . If you think all these trips and treats were LSD activated, give yourself points for having ESP. Because for three decades — 1940 to 1970 — as editor of the Superman comic books and story editor of the TV series — LSD was my way of life. Lord of Superman’s Domain. It was my job to plot the adventures of the action ace, invent startling super-feats, create new villains, manipulate his romantic life and involve him in missions with celebrities like Johnny Carson, Bob Hope, Pat Boone, the Beatles and many others.”
More Than Superman
Aside from Weisinger’s immersion into Superman, he was also a non-fiction magazine writer. His magazine credits include Reader’s Digest, Collier’s, Parade, and The Saturday Evening Post. He was also the book author of 1001 Valuable Things You Can Get for Free.
Given his freelance work, it is not surprising that he was one of the early members of the Society of Magazine Writers in 1948. In several early society newsletters, he is considered one of the founding members of SMW. He also served as it’s treasurer in 1961 and 1962 and as president in 1976 and 1977.
Mort Weisinger was held in high esteem by his colleagues. After his death in 1978 an annual writing award was established: Mort Weisinger Award for Magazine Writing. The first recipient of the award was Betty Friedan in 1979 for her article, “ERA: Will It Play in Peoria” published in The New York Times Magazine in 1978.
The origins of the ASJA included some very serious, very productive, and very influential people. Mort Weisinger was one of them. Digging into history can unearth some interesting tidbits.
(This article originally appeared in the September issue of the ASJA Pacific Northwest Chapter newsletter.)
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Long-time ASJA member Bruce Miller is a former ASJA board member who jumped into the digital age early for himself and ASJA. In February 1996, in the days before you could buy domain names online, he drove to an internet service provider in Shoreline, Washington, with $35 cash to purchase the domain name “ASJA.org” for the organization.