Superman was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster. The character first appeared in issue #1 of Action Comics, published in the United States on April 18, 1938. Siegel and Shuster, who were friends from high school in Cleveland, developed Superman as a superhero with extraordinary abilities who fights evil and upholds strong morals. They created the character's origin, costume, and alter ego Clark Kent during their collaboration starting in the early 1930s.