Where Joe Shuster walked (and slept, and drew)

After a talk I gave in Washington DC in November 2011, a woman named Janice Newman came up to me to say that her father had a dental office in the Cleveland building where, in the 1940s, Joe Shuster had his art studio.

I already had a few photos of that building. Naturally I asked if she had more. But who has photos of where his/her dad worked, especially if we’re talking decades ago?

Well, Janice didn’t, but her mom, Renee Siegel (no relation to Jerry) did. Only one (taken in 1984 because the building was going to be razed), and a rather limited view, but still…that could have been the entrance Joe used.



Also, my friend Brad Ricca (author of the upcoming Siegel and Shuster bio Super Boys) dug up another pic of Joe’s apartment building. It made the front page of the newspaper in 1955, and for a reason most unlikely (not to mention tragic).


Who knows how many more photos of these buildings are out there, waiting to be revealed?

In 2009, the city and the fans commemorated the former site of Joe’s apartment building (demolished in 1975) with a fence displaying a blown-up version of the first Superman story.

AP
Though I was not directly involved, I did encourage the decision-makers to incorporate at least one of the two known existing photos of Joe’s apartment building into the memorial. I like what was done, but I must admit (and told them) that I was disappointed they did not take that suggestion. When I make mecca to such a site, I’d prefer to see something rare—something that immerses you in the past—rather than something I can see online. My disappointment lingers but ultimately, I’m thrilled that Joe’s place gets the super treatment. 

Jerry’s does, too:

Caped Wonder