| Sandman | |
|---|---|
 Wesley Dodds as the Sandman. Art by Gavin Wilson and Richard Bruning. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Dodds: New York World's Fair Comics #1 (April 1939) Sanford: The Sandman #1 (December 1974) Marshall: Sandman Mystery Theatre: Sleep of Reason #1 (February 2007) |
| Created by | Dodds: Gardner Fox (writer) Bert Christman (artist) Sanford: Joe Simon Jack Kirby Marshall: John Ney Rieber Eric Nguyen |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Wesley Dodds Garrett Sanford Hector Hall Morpheus Daniel Hall Sandy Hawkins Kieran Marshall |
| Team affiliations | Justice Society of America Justice League |
| Abilities | See list
|
The Sandman is thepseudonym of several fictional characters appearing incomic books published byDC Comics. They have appeared in stories of various genres, including the pulp detective characterWesley Dodds,superheroes such as Garrett Sanford andHector Hall, and mythicfantasy characters more commonly called by the nameDream. Named afterthe folklore character that is said to bring pleasant dreams to children, each has had some thematic connection todreaming, and efforts have been made to tie them into a common continuity within theDC Universe.
Wesley Dodds is the first DC Comics fictional character to bear the name of the Sandman.[1] Attired in a green business suit,fedora, andgas mask, the Sandman uses a gun emitting a sleeping gas to sedate criminals. He starts out as a "mystery man", but eventually develops into a more standardsuperhero, becoming a founder of theJustice Society of America. He later uses sand and a blowtorch that he could use to quickly create walls, and wears a purple and gold costume. Sandman would later pick up a sidekick, Sandy the Golden Boy. The Sandman appeared inAdventure Comics #40 (July 1939) through #102 (February 1946).[2]
| Sandman | |
|---|---|
 The Sandman #1. Art byJack Kirby. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| Schedule | Bi-monthly |
| Format | Ongoing series |
| Publication date | 1974–1976 |
| No. of issues | 6 |
| Main characters |
|
| Creative team | |
| Created by | Jack Kirby,Joe Simon |
| Written by | Joe Simon,Michael Fleisher |
| Penciller(s) | Jack Kirby,Ernie Chua |
| Inker(s) | Jack Kirby,Mike Royer,Wally Wood |
The Sandman of the 1970s was created byJoe Simon andJack Kirby.[3] Issue #1 was intended as aone-shot, but five more issues and an additional story followed. After the first issue, the stories were written byMichael Fleisher. The second and third issues were illustrated byErnie Chua. Inks were by Kirby,Mike Royer and, in the sixth issue,Wally Wood. All covers were by Kirby, and the fourth issue noted his return to the interior artwork on the cover.
This Sandman was originally intended to be theSandman of popularmyth, "eternal and immortal", despite his superhero-like appearance and adventures. The Sandman is assisted by two living nightmares namedBrute and Glob, whom he releases from domed cells with the help of a magic whistle. They are nuisances who beg for release, who are intent on hand-to-hand combat, but are implied to be relatively harmless and well-intentioned once freed. Using security monitoring devices, the Sandman can enter the "Dream Stream" or the "Reality Stream" (in which he acts like the superhero he looks like) and he carries a pouch of dream dust with which he can cause anyone to sleep and dream. The Sandman's main task is protecting children from nightmare monsters within their dreams, especially one young boy namedJed Paulsen, who lives with his grandfatherEzra Paulsen as well as to ensure that children have an appropriate level of nightmares rather than dealing with such anxieties in real life.
Implied to be a major foe of his is the Nightmare Wizard, who creates nightmares that are too extreme and sometimes kill children who dream them. In none of his three appearances does the Nightmare Wizard serve as an antagonist, but the two are clearly opposed to each other.
In the final Fleischer-Kirby-created adventure (intended forThe Sandman #7 but published inThe Best of DC #22)[4] he even assists the legendarySanta Claus against a menacing band of Seal Men who are angry about being sent the wrong gifts during the previousChristmas.
This version of the Sandman only appeared for a handful of issues and was generally unused for years thereafter. In aretcon byRoy Thomas, appearing inWonder Woman #300 (February 1983), the Sandman is revealed to beDr. Garrett Sanford, aUCLApsychology professor who became trapped in theDream Dimension while saving the life of a great man (there are hints that it is aU.S. President), who was in a coma while being terrorized by a powerful nightmare monster. This issue, and the following appearance, note for the first time that his appearances outside the Dream Dimension were strictly limited to one hour, because physically entering the Dream Dimension was a one-way process, so others could send him equipment, but he could not be brought out. Despite this, Sanford tries to romance Diana in spite of her acceptance ofSteve Trevor's proposal of marriage. The issue also introducedHippolyta Trevor (daughter of theEarth-Two counterparts of Diana andSteve Trevor), who would later be married to Sanford's successor, Hector Hall, and a major character in theVertigo series as mother ofDaniel Hall.[5]
The Sandman also becomes an honorary member of theJustice League inJustice League of America Annual #1 (1983) (written byPaul Levitz andLen Wein), in which they foughtDoctor Destiny, who had trapped Sanford in a tube like those used for Brute and Glob, and eventually the Justice League as well. Sanford declined a full membership because he cannot leave the Dream Dimension for more than an hour at a time.[6]
The latter two appearances, and the subsequent uses of the costume, featured a redhourglass on the front of the suit that did not appear in the Kirby (or Chua) art.
Letters pages in the original series often complained of the series being too juvenile,[a] whileWonder Woman #300 makes references to sexual dreams and has Sanford admit to observing Diana's dreams inappropriately.
Sandman, Jed, Brute, and Glob, observed byMetron, appeared in one panel ofSwamp Thing #62,Rick Veitch's first writing on the series.
InInfinity, Inc. #50 (May 1988), it is revealed that Sanford had since gone insane due to the loneliness of the Dream Dimension and committed suicide.[7]
In 2016, DC Comics implemented another relaunch of its books called "DC Rebirth" which restored its continuity to a form much as it was prior to "The New 52". Garrett Sanford has been operating in the Dreaming as Sandman for a long time while being served by Brute and Glob. Unlike the pre-Crisis version, this version of Sanford wields an Orichalchum Whistle that enables him to leave the Dreaming. Sandman appeared to helpForager after falling into a trap by General Electric wielding a copy of the Orichalcum Whistle. Electric's plot was thwarted when Forager traveled back in time and caused a paradox.[8]
InInfinity Inc. #50 (May 1988),Hector Hall (formerly theSilver Scarab and son ofCarter Hall) has now supplanted the deceased Sanford as the Sandman, and uses Sanford's body after his own was taken by the second Silver Scarab. Hector becoming Sandman was caused by Brute and Glob.[7]
InThe Sandman vol. 2 #12 (1990), it is revealed that the Dream Dimension is a small pocket dream world in the mind ofJed Walker created by Brute and Glob, two former servants ofDream who escaped his realm during his absence. Hall died some years prior, and that his incarnation as the Sandman is merely a shell that Dream sucks into another part of the Dreaming when he defeats the two creatures as the collapsing of this "Dream Dimension" unleashed a shockwave that accidentally killed Jed's abusiveAunt Clarice and Uncle Barnaby.[9]
Hall goes on to be reincarnated asDoctor Fate. His only appearances as Sandman are inInfinity, Inc. #49–51,The Sandman vol. 2, #11–12 andThe Sandman Presents: The Thessaliad #2.
Ambush Bug briefly wore the Sanford/Hall costume inAmbush Bug Nothing Special #1 in an attempt to become Dream's sidekick.
This Sandman likeness appeared, along with Brute and Glob, inJSA #63–64. This time, the costume was worn by Sandy Hawkins. Daniel Hall recaptured Brute and Glob and again retired the Kirby Sandman design.
Dream, also known asMorpheus, is one of seven archetypal beings referred to asthe Endless who embody various aspects of existence. He is the main character of the secondSandman series, written byNeil Gaiman. Dream is the personification ofdreams,storytelling and—because the Endless also represent the opposite of that which they personify—reality. Gaiman's Dream more closely resembles the concept of the Sandman as he is portrayed in mythology than a traditional superhero genre character. In the course of Gaiman's story arcs, it isretconned that the other DC characters named Sandman were connected to Morpheus. For instance, Wesley Dodds' prophetic dreams warning him of crimes and disasters are explained as an attempt by reality to fill the void left by Dream's absence from his realm during most of the 20th century, while the Kirby version of the Sandman is the result of two nightmares trying to manipulate a human being into fulfilling that same role in the hopes that they would be able to control the new incarnation of Dream.
Daniel Hall, the child of Hector Hall, eventually assumes the position of Dream when Morpheus dies. He, like Morpheus, is the embodiment of dreams, storytelling and reality. He refers to himself as simply "Dream of the Endless"; inThe Wake he states that he has no right to the name of "Morpheus", and that the part of him which was the mortal boy Daniel Hall no longer exists.
Some time later in the pages ofJSA 63–64, the chairman and heir to the Sandman legacySand has his soul stolen by Brute and Glob to briefly assume the role of the Dream Dimension's protector, again in the Kirby-designed costume. Doctor Fate (Hector Hall) and his wife Lyta lead a contingent of the JSA to Sand's rescue, with Brute and Glob being abjured to a part of the Dream Dimension known only as "The Darkness".
Subsequently, Sand officially adopted the Sandman name and a costume patterned after Wesley Dodds in the third volume ofJustice Society of America.
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In theSandman Mystery Theatre: Sleep of Reason mini-series, photojournalistKieran Marshall briefly takes on the identity of the Sandman to battle insurgents inAfghanistan, inspired by a visit Wesley Dodds made to the region shortly before his death.
An unidentified Sandman appears in theDC Super Hero Girls episode "Welcome to Super Hero High" as a graduate of the titular school.
The legendary tandem of writer Joe Simon and artist/editor Jack Kirby reunited for a one-shot starring the Sandman ... Despite the issue's popularity, it would be Simon and Kirby's last collaboration.
