The Adventures of Superman (radio) twice a week on June 5, 1950, continuing on ABC until March 1, 1951. In all, 2,088 original episodes of "The Adventures of Superman" aired on American radio. Created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, the Man of Steel first appeared in "Action Comics" #1 in 1938. The following year, the newspaper comic strip began and four audition radio programs were prepared to sell "Superman" as a radio series. When Superman was first heard on radio less than two years after the comic book appearance, the character took on an added dimension with Bud Collyer in the title role. During
The Death of Superman the "Funeral for a Friend" issues; and "The Return of Superman" (), which compiles the "Reign of the Supermen!" issues. "The Death of Superman" was released in time for the 1992 holiday shopping season and, according to comics historian Matthew K. Manning, is the bestselling trade paperback of all time. Reprints of the three collections were published in 2003, 1998, and 2004, respectively, while a recolored edition of "The Death of Superman" was released in 2013. In September 2007, DC released an omnibus edition of the story, "The Death and Return of Superman Omnibus" (). It features all the issues