MUSEUM OF MODERN MYTHOLOGY AND POP CULTURE

THE SHADOW

1930. "Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? The Shadow knows!" One of the earliest heroes to emerge from the 20th Century, The Shadow began as a mysterious narrator on the radio program Detective Story Hour. After becoming popular with the listeners, the character was given a plup-magazine series of his own in 1931. Written by author/magician Walter B. Gibson, using the pseudonym Maxwell Grant, there were over 300 novel length adventures. By 1937, The Shadow earned his own radio show, with Orson Welles portraying the crime fighter in many epsides. Although the print character is somewhat different from the radio and film versions, The Shadow's powers include being skilled with firearms and martial arts, he is a master of disguise, can make himself appear invisible, and has the power to "cloud men's minds," learned from his travels in East Asia. The Shadow's influence extends to archetypes such as Batman, The Green Hornet, The Whistler, and Alan Moore's V. Author J. D. Salinger's story The Laughing Man is based on elements of the old radio shows.

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