Hugo Danner is a fictional character, the protagonist of the 1930 American novel Gladiator, by Philip Gordon Wylie. Born in the late 19th century with superhuman abilities via prenatal chemical experimentation, Danner tries to use his powers for good, making him a precursor of the superhero. However, Danner grows disillusioned with his inability to find a permanent outlet for his great strength, and dies frustrated.

*Gladiator (1930)

*While no confirmation exists that Superman co-creator Jerry Siegel was influenced by Gladiator, Siegel did read the novel in 1932 and reviewed the book in his Science Fiction fanzine. The first Superman character (Bill Dunn) created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster was not a hero, but rather a villain. Their short story "The Reign of the Super-Man" concerned a bald-headed villain, somewhat reminiscent of Flash Gordon's Ming the Merciless, bent on dominating the world. The story did not sell, forcing the two to reposition their character on the right side of the law. In 1933, their Superman story was again rejected by newspaper syndicates wanting to avoid lawsuits, who recognized the character as being a slightly altered Hugo Danner, the lead character from Philip Wylie's 1930 novel. Siegel and Schuster created a new Superman in next year.

*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugo_Danner Wikipedia]
*[https://marvel.fandom.com/wiki/Hugo_Danner_(Earth-616) Marvel Database]
*[https://dc.fandom.com/wiki/Hugo_Danner_(New_Earth) DC Database]
*[https://lxg.fandom.com/wiki/Hugo_Danner League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Wiki]
*[http://www.internationalhero.co.uk/h/hugodanner.htm International Superheroes]
*[http://www.comicvine.com/hugo-danner/4005-61397/ Comic Vine]
*[http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/42914 Project Gutenberg]
*[https://www.cosmicteams.com/jsa/profiles/ironmunro.htm Iron Munro]
*[http://www.marvunapp.com/Appendix/mangod.htm Man-God (Hugo Danner, World War I hero) - Marvel Universe]
*[http://www.pjfarmer.com/secret/contributors/superchildren.htm The Children of Superman, or The Hidden History of Superboy and Supergirl]
*[http://www.pjfarmer.com/chronicles/supermen.htm The Reign of the Supermen]
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