More on the origin of Superman

Above: the cover of the 1933 Siegel and Shuster comic, "The Superman." It's the only page that has survived of this issue, which was to have published by Humor Publishing. However, the company's previous comic, Detective Dan, lost money, so the book was cancelled before it ever saw print.

Below: Joe Shuster's concept sketch. Dial B and The Super Site provide more background, as does James Vance's intro to the Fantagraphics Superman Dailies collection.