In this episode of Distinguished Comics Radio, Simon Carver and Robert Reed take a spooky, conversational stroll back to the very beginnings of DC history, before the world had ever heard of Superman. They explore the eerie adventures of Doctor Occult, "the Ghost Detective," created by the same team that would later bring Superman to life: writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster. From the experimental pages of New Fun and More Fun Comics to capes, flying mystics, and vampire cases, the hosts connect how these early occult-detective strips helped Siegel and Shuster work out ideas they would later pour into the Man of Steel. Along the way, they talk about the scrappy world of mid‑1930s comic publishing, Malcolm Wheeler‑Nicholson’s all‑original comic magazines, and how the shadows of Doctor Occult still linger in Superman’s world.