Hugo Hercules is an American weekly comic strip published in the Chicago Tribune, written and drawn by Wilhelm Heinrich Detlev Körner. It ran for five months, from September 7, 1902 to January 11, 1903, totaling seventeen strips. Despite its short run, it’s considered the earliest superhero fiction comic. A good-natured man endowed with superhuman strength, Hugo wandered about town, helping people with their problems and shocking them with his surprising displays of power. He was so strong he could pick up an elephant, kick a house like a football, wield an artillery cannon like a handgun, and lift a locomotive engine off the tracks and pull its cargo behind him at train speeds. Casual about his incredible feats, Hugo often repeated his catchphrase, “Just as easy”, shrugging off the adoring crowds.
First Appearance “Hugo Hercules Obliges Beauty in Distress”, The Chicago Sunday Tribune, Sept 7, 1902
First Publisher Chicago Tribune
Appearance List 17 comic strips, The Chicago Sunday Tribune, Sept 7, 1902 to Jan 11, 1903
Sample Read Hugo Hercules comic strips [Wikipedia]
Description Hugo Hercules is an American weekly comic strip published in the Chicago Tribune, written and drawn by Wilhelm Heinrich Detlev Körner. It ran for five months, from September 7, 1902 to January 11, 1903, totaling seventeen strips. Despite its short run, it’s considered the earliest superhero fiction comic. A good-natured man endowed with superhuman strength, Hugo wandered about town, helping people with their problems and shocking them with his surprising displays of power. He was so strong he could pick up an elephant, kick a house like a football, wield an artillery cannon like a handgun, and lift a locomotive engine off the tracks and pull its cargo behind him at train speeds. Casual about his incredible feats, Hugo often repeated his catchphrase, “Just as easy”, shrugging off the adoring crowds.
