Issue Description

The Execution of Clark Kent (Superman) -- 2. Daffy & Doodle -- 3. A Modern Noah's Ark (Congo Bill) -- 4. Hermit For A Day (Zatara) -- 5. (Hayfoot Henry) -- 6. The Blue-Ribbon Bandits (Vigilante)

Cover: On a lake, Superman gives an extra gust of wind on a child's "sailboat skis."  

Action Comics #118 is the last issue of Action with Jerry Siegel & Joe Shuster credited as the authors. 
 
 The story opens with Clark Kent being sentenced to death in court for the murder of Slugger Maull. Then we flash back to the origins of the story, where Maull is being released on bail in the police station and slugs Clark for publishing a story that got him arrested.
Later, as Clark is trailing Slugger as he leaves the police station, he sees Slugger being attacked by an unknown assailant. As Clark stops to check if Slugger is alive, he is caught, seemingly red-handed, by the police and charged with Maull's murder, even though Elmo Botts, a caretaker at a golf club, shows up claiming he killed Slugger.
Clark is convinced that Botts is taking the rap for someone else, so insists that the police arrest him, Clark, instead.
Back to the present, and Clark has apparently been executed, although of course Superman was unaffected by the electric chair and managed to feign death to fool the execution officers.
As Superman, he visits Botts and discovers that Botts was set up to take the rap and told by a Dr. Lagg that he had a bad heart and had only days to live anyway.
Meanwhile, Lois is convinced that Big Al Strumm, the gangster, is behind Slugger's murder and when she confronts Strumm, he locks her in a safe. He then convinces Botts to commit suicide, but Superman saves him as the explosion goes off.
Superman thinks up a novel way to get Strumm to confess. Since Strumm believes that Clark, Botts and Lois are all dead but Superman has saved them all, he sets up a scene in which all three of them pretend to be ghosts and visit Strumm in his office, accusing him of the murder. Scared out of his wits, Strumm confesses and Superman reveals his ruse.

Action Comics (1938)

Publisher

DC Comics

Volume Description

In the early days of comics books, it was not the convention to name comics after specific characters. Rather comics bore generic names such as this one. Although this series featured Superman throughout, it thus bore this name, one which it has become famous for (and the name was kept after the launch of The New 52.) It was the fourth DC Comics title, and the first new one produced after Detective Comics spread beyond the one title (this was after it purchased More Fun Comics and New Adventure Comics.)

Starring: Lex Luthor (starting #890) until #900.

Second Feature: Captain Atom (#879-#889), Superboy (#892), Jimmy Olsen (#893-#896)

(Issues #601-642 are filed under Action Comics Weekly)

Collected EditionsSuperman: The Golden Age Omnibus vol. 1 (#1-31)Adventures of Superman: Gil Kane vol. 1 (#539-541, 545, 546 & #551-554)Superman vs. Darkseid (#586)They Saved Luthor's Brain (#600, #668, #670-673, #676-678 )Panic in the Sky (#674-675)Death of Superman (#683-684)World Without Superman (#685-686)Superman: Funeral For A Friend (#685-686)Superman: Reign of the Supermen (#687-688)The Trial of Superman (#716-717)Transformed! (#729 & 732)DC Comics Presents: Superman #4 (#768, #771-773)Superman: Emperor Joker (#769-770)President Lex (#773)Superman: Our Worlds At War, Book One (#780-781)Superman: Our Worlds At War, Book Two (#782)Superman: Ending Battle (#795-796)DC Comics Presents: Superman #2 (#798)Godfall (Action Comics #812- 813, Adventures of Superman #625- 626 and Superman #202- 203)Superman: The Wrath of Gog (#814-819; backups #812-813)Superman: Sacrifice (Action Comics #829, Superman #218-220, Adventures of Superman #642-643 and Wonder Woman #219-220)Superman: Up, Up and Away! (#837-840)Superman: Back In Action (#841-843, plus stories from DC Comics Presents #4, #17 and #24)Superman: Last Son (#844-846, #851 and Action Comics Annual #11)The Third Kryptonian (Superman #668-670, Action Comics #847, Superman Annual #13)Redemption (Superman #659&666, Action Comics #848-849)3-2-1 Action (Superman #665, Action Comics #852-854, Legends of the DC Universe #14)Superman: Escape From Bizarro World (#855-857)Superman And The Legion of Super-Heroes (#858-863)Superman: Brainiac (#866-870)Superman: New Krypton Vol. 1 (#871)Superman: New Krypton Vol. 2 (#872-873)Superman: Nightwing And Flamebird Vol. 1 (#875-879 and Action Comics Annual #12)Superman: Codename Patriot (#880)Superman: Nightwing And Flamebird Vol. 2 (#883-889, Superman #696 and Adventure Comics #8-10)Superman: The Black Ring Vol. 1 (#890-895)Superman: The Black Ring Vol. 2 (#896-900; Action Comics Annual #13; Secret Six #29)Secret Six: Caution To the Wind (#897)Superman: Reign of Doomsday (#900-904)For Post-Flashpoint refer to Action Comics (Vol. 2)

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