While it's taken more than half a century for Batman co-creator Bill Finger to finally start receiving official credit for his shaping of the Dark Knight, his legacy goes even deeper. Even the comic book fans who know about the decades Finger spent as the 'secret' creator of Batman may not know Finger also wrote the issues which fleshed out the origin story for Superman, too.
Superman’s origin was revealed to readers as early as Action Comics #1 where Superman co-creator and writer Jerry Siegel describes Krypton as "a distant planet… destroyed by old age." But the comic book version of Superman was unaware of his alien origins until Finger wrote his story. First in "The Origin of Superman" published in Superman #53 (1948), which showed the actual society and failure of Kryptonians, all of which would form the basis of Superman's Kryptonian home, and tragedy.
In 1949 the Finger story was retold for Superman #61 with artist Al Plastino, in which "Superman Returns to Krypton" to witness the same Kryptonian heritage and disaster as written by Finger. And it's also the same issue in which Superman encounters 'Swami Riva,' a con man who can seemingly render the Man of Steel powerless... thanks to a piece of meteorite in his turban. Superman uses his powers to fly back in time to trace the stone’s origin, arriving at a distant galaxy where he learns the meteor is a piece of Kryptonite that came from his doomed home planet.
Finger’s story incorporates many elements previously established in other Superman media into the comic books. While Kryptonite first appeared in the 1943 radio teleplay “The Meteor from Krypton,” from The Adventures of Superman radio show, “Superman Returns to Krypton” marks the first time Kryptonite appears in the comics. Making 'Swami Riva' the first comic book villain to ever use Kryptonite against Superman. Notably, Swami Riva’s stone is colored red, although it weakens Superman like the more popular green kryptonite (which it would be changed to in future flashbacks).
Superman's birth father Jor-El and his mother Lara also appear in this story, as a time-displaced Superman (who exists as an invisible phantom in the past) witnesses them place his infant self in a rocket ship, and send it to Earth moments before Krypton explodes. Jor-El and Lara first appear in the 1939 Superman newspaper comic (where they are referred to as Jor-L and Lara), however Finger’s story reveals the first time Superman sees his real parents--even though he doesn't realize their true identity this until he follows his rocket ship to Earth and witnesses the baby Kal-El get discovered by the Kents.
Given the massive impact both Kryptonite and Superman’s knowledge of his alien heritage would have on future Superman stories, Finger’s narrative offers fertile material for later writers. Not only providing a means to physically weaken the previously indestructible superhero, but also tax him emotionally. After all, Superman’s awareness of his Kryptonian roots would go on to alienate him and make him question his sense of belonging.
Where most stories during the Golden Age of Comics emphasize Superman's near god-like abilities, Finger’s tale explores a more vulnerable side of Superman, making Clark Kent a more relatable character. Having played such a pivotal role in both Batman and Superman's earliest days... this Bill Finger must be one heck of a writer.