Fans of Shazam may all be aware of the legendary names that make up his heroic identity, but they may be missing something extremely obvious. Writer Roy Schwartz pointed out that one figure curiously stands out among the group that makes up Billy Batson's alter ego.
When Billy Batson was recruited by the wizard Shazam, he was imbued with the power of six legendary heroes. By saying "SHAZAM!", Batson took on the form of Captain Marvel and was endowed with powers from figures that help make up the magic word like Hercules or Atlas. While the name "Captain Marvel" remains a DC controversy, what's stayed consistent is Billy and his family taking on the wizard's great power and using it to become noble heroes. From wisdom to speed, Batson and his siblings owe their powers to the collective of figures that helped create Shazam.
While there's no doubt that the six icons that gave Shazam his powers were legendary, one in particular doesn't match the general theme. In part of Screen Rant's upcoming interview with Roy Schwartz, author of Is Superman Circumcised?: The Complete Jewish History of the World's Greatest Hero, Schwartz brings up the one outlier in Shazam (or Captain Marvel’s) name. While discussing the Jewish influence on Golden Age heroes, he notes Shazam draws his wisdom from Solomon, a Jewish king instead of a Greco-Roman god.
The comic book medium is a Jewish invention. The superhero genre is a Jewish invention. In fact, with the exception of Wonder Woman and Shazam (Captain Marvel), every Golden Age character, every significant one, was a Jewish creation...And if you think of Shazam, his name is inaccurate, right? The wisdom of Solomon, strength of Hercules, Stamina of Atlas, etc. That's five Greco-Roman deities and one old Jewish guy. (laughs) What's Solomon doing in there?
Setting Shazam's magic powers aside, Schwartz does bring up a good point that Solomon doesn't seem to fit in with the likes of Hercules, Zeus, and Mercury. After all, Solomon was a king. A wise king, sure, but a mortal all the same. The others in Shazam's magic word and name are all-powerful deities, so why is it that Solomon was made part of the group, and get top billing for that matter?
While the historical evidence for King Solomon is a controversial topic, he took on a larger-than-life presence in stories that have been handed down for generations. Like the other figures that make up Shazam’s magic word, Solomon's key trait, wisdom, in this case, is seen as an important characteristic for the Wizard's champion to have. There are otherwise deities in the various pantheons, but few with the cultural cachet of Solomon. While it may seem like Solomon doesn't belong in a group mostly Greco-Roman gods, his inclusion is actually an honor. Solomon is seen as the defining figure of wisdom in the same way that Zeus is for power or Hercules for strength. Shazam’s namesakes might seem like an odd collection at first, but it actually serves as a tribute to some legendary figures.