This month, DC Entertainment will celebrate the th issue of Action Comics —the comic book that introduced Superman to the world—with the release of Action Comics: 80 Years of Superman the Deluxe Edition , a commemorative hardcover collection of essays, tributes and reprints of classic Superman stories, edited by Paul Levitz, author, comics writer, historian and former president and publisher of DC Comics. Although the first issue of Action Comics had a cover date of June, it was released on April 18, It featured the first appearance of Superman, in a story written by Jerry Siegel and drawn by Joe Shuster, a character that became so popular it launched the superhero genre and transformed American popular culture forever. The edition also includes Superman stories from throughout the history of Action Comics —which has been published uninterrupted for 80 years—including a previously unpublished s story. Levitz spoke with PW about organizing the deluxe tribute edition he also contributes the book's introduction and a new Superman story and described the historic impact of Action Comics 1 —and Superman—on American comics publishing.