Wonder Woman (October 25, 1941) This Day In Comics

Wonder Woman is a warrior princess of the Amazons and is known in her homeland as Princess Diana of Themyscira. When outside her homeland, she is sometimes known by the secret identity Diana Prince. She is gifted with a wide range of superhuman powers and superior combat and battle skills. She possesses an arsenal of weapons, including the Lasso of Truth, a pair of indestructible bracelets, a tiara which serves as a projectile, and a range of devices based on Amazon technology. Wonder Woman was created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston and first appeared in All Star Comics #8 (October 25, 1941).

Her depiction as a heroine fighting for justice, love, peace, and gender equality has led to Wonder Woman being widely considered a feminist icon. Marston was hired as an educational consultant for National Periodicals and All-American Publications, two of the companies that would merge to form DC Comics. It was suggested to Marston that he create his own new superhero; Marston’s wife Elizabeth suggested to him that it should be a female. Marston introduced the idea to publisher Max Gaines, co-founder of All-American Publications. Given the go-ahead, Marston developed Wonder Woman with Elizabeth, whom Marston believed to be a model of that era’s unconventional, liberated woman. Marston was also inspired by Olive Byrne, who lived with the couple in a polyamorous relationship. Initially, Wonder Woman was an Amazon champion who wins the right to return Steve Trevor – a United States intelligence officer whose plane had crashed on the Amazons’ isolated island homeland – to “Man’s World” and to fight crime and the evil of the Nazis. During this period, Wonder Woman joined the Justice Society of America as the team’s secretary. Wonder Woman was named the 20th greatest comic book character by Empire magazine, and in 2011 she placed fifth on IGN’s Top 100 Comic Book Heroes of All Time. Not all reaction to Wonder Woman has been positive. In Seduction of the Innocent, psychiatrist Fredric Wertham claimed Wonder Woman’s strength and independence made her a lesbian.