WONDER WOMAN, Continued.

"Wonder Woman has always been obliged to play a dual role," writes Les Daniels, in his Wonder Woman. The Golden Age, 2001; "In addition to keeping a large audience entertained with her exploits, she has been expected to serve as a representative and an example for her entire gender, and the tension between these two responsibilities has given Wonder Woman a unique position in American popular culture."

Left: Lynda Carter, from the TV series, 1975-1979. Right: Team member Wonder Woman of the Justice League of America; DC Comics, 1965.

In 1954, Dr. Fredric Wertham's book Seduction of the Innocent maintained that comic books caused juvenile delinquency, and that Wonder Woman's strength and independence, and her sometime assistants, The Holliday Girls, implied a lesbian subtext. (Batman and Robin were also under suspicion of being gay). After Senate hearings on juvenile delinquency, publishers created the Comics Code Authority as a self-censoring board. Thus, like Maid Marian before her, and contemporary Lois Lane, Wonder Woman loses the qualities that had made her so popular.

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