250's for America's 250 · Day 3: Action Comics #250

Publishing: Saturday, June 13, 2026 · DC Comics · Cover date: March 1959

Cover art by Curt Swan (pencils) and Al Plastino (inks)

See full issue details on the Grand Comics Database →

The comic that started it all — Action Comics #1 gave the world Superman in 1938 — reaches 250 here, a classic Mort Weisinger–era secret-identity puzzler.

The issue

In the lead story, "The Eye of Metropolis!," Perry White sends Clark Kent onto a live TV interview show. Clark X-rays the host's question cards and is alarmed to find them lined with lead — has the host figured out his secret? Strapped to a lie detector and asked point-blank whether he has super-powers, Clark hides a tiny grain of Kryptonite in a lead-lined compartment of his watch to briefly drain his abilities, so he can honestly answer "no" and beat the polygraph. It's quintessential Silver Age cleverness. Backup features bring Congorilla and Tommy Tomorrow along for the ride.

Who's in it

• Superman / Clark Kent — forced into one of his cleverest close calls, using a literal loophole (temporarily depowered by Kryptonite) to protect his secret identity without lying.
• Perry White — the Daily Planet's gruff editor-in-chief, unwittingly setting the plot in motion by booking Clark on live television.
• John Bates — the TV interview host whose probing questions nearly expose Superman's double life.
• Congorilla (Congo Bill) — adventurer Congo Bill, who can swap minds with a golden gorilla, headlines his own backup tale.
• Tommy Tomorrow — a futuristic Space Ranger hero from DC's science-fiction anthology stable, rounding out the issue.

Behind the book (creators)

• Cover: Curt Swan (pencils), Al Plastino (inks)
• "The Eye of Metropolis!": Bill Finger (writer), Wayne Boring (pencils), Stan Kaye (inks)
• Tommy Tomorrow: Otto Binder (writer), Jim Mooney (art)
• Editor: Mort Weisinger

Meet the creators

Bill Finger is best known today as Bob Kane's uncredited co-creator on Batman — the writer behind Batman's origin, his costume refinements, Robin, and most of his early rogues' gallery — but he was also a prolific staff writer across DC's whole line, including Superman-family scripts like this one. Finger worked in near-total anonymity for most of his career and didn't receive an official "co-creator" credit on Batman until 2015, decades after his death in 1974.

Wayne Boring was the definitive Superman artist of the 1950s, having taken over the character from co-creator Joe Shuster in the 1940s and gone on to draw both the newspaper strip and comic books for over two decades. His rendering of Superman — broad-shouldered, monumental, almost statuesque — became the template most fans associate with the character's Golden and Silver Age look, before Curt Swan's more streamlined style took over as the house style in the 1960s.

What it's worth

A real 1959 Silver Age issue — scarcer and more fragile than the Marvel #250s of the 1980s, so it carries weight despite having no major first appearance. Mid-grade (GD/VG–Fine) copies commonly sell $30–$90; VF copies roughly $150–$300+; and high-grade graded copies (rare in 9.x) can reach the several-hundreds to low four figures. (Its famous neighbor, #252 — first Supergirl — is worth dramatically more; #250 has no comparable key, so verify any high-grade figure.)

Where to read it (collected edition)

A specific modern reprint of Action Comics #250 could not be confirmed — it's a candidate for DC's Silver Age Superman omnibus/compendium lines, but treat its inclusion as unverified until you check the volume contents.

Part of "250's for America's 250" — counting 24 milestone #250 comics down to the U.S. 250th on July 4, 2026.