Joe Simon

“The name, Captain America, it just popped into my head. It sounded good.”

“There were a lot of superheroes flying around, but Captain America was the first to wrap himself in the flag.”

“Jack [Kirby] and I were the perfect team. He was the powerhouse, and I was the storyteller.”

“Romance comics were our biggest sellers. Bigger than superheroes.”

“We were creating a new mythology for America.”

“I never thought of myself as an artist. I thought of myself as a storyteller.”

“You have to have a good story first. The art comes second.”

“We were just trying to tell a good story. But we did tap into the zeitgeist of the time.”

“I was looking for a hero to personify the patriotic spirit of the country.”

“It was a wonderful time to be in comics. We were inventing a new language.”