10 Awe-Inspiring Superman Moments That Prove He's DC's Greatest Hero

As WWII came to a close, Superman no longer had to contend with the Nazis (for a time anyways). The social crusader needed a new ill to address.

Superman was in many ways no stranger to provoking controversy. It sounds odd now, but there was a time when poking fun at the Nazis was a risky move politically. Superman's next focus would be no less proactive and just as necessary.

The 1940s Superman radio show was a big hit in its day. Superman star Bud Collyer was the first actor to showcase how the Man of Steel's secret identity could conceivably work. He spoke as a tenor as Clark Kent, then his voice deepened to a baritone for Superman. Along with Joan Alexander as Lois Lane, the popular series had much to lose when it featured Superman facing off against the Klu Klux Klan.

Sadly, the KKK was enjoying a resurgence shortly after WWII. A young activist named Stetson Kennedy sought to expose the KKK for the dangerous hate promoting group that it is; when his research failed to inspire legal action against the powerful organization, he turned toward reaching the public through one of the most widely heard broadcasts - Superman.

Kennedy's research provided the basis for what became the 16 episode storyline "Clan of The Fiery Cross". The story exposed much of the Klan's secret rituals, and presented the group in a way that stripped away any pretense of being about anything other than dehumanizing others. Superman had thoroughly embarrassed the Klan, and their recruitment efforts suffered enormously soon afterwards.