Created in 1933

1933 delivered a triple-shot of pulp legendry: Doc Savage, the Lone Ranger, and Tonto all rode onto the scene. Between the bronze super-scientist and America’s most iconic masked rider, this year helped define two entire branches of adventure fiction. This page lists the 1933 creations entering the U.S. public domain in 2029 — and any already there.

Entering the Public Domain in 2029 (Created in 1933)

Doc Savage
Doc Savage, created by publisher Henry W. Ralston and editor John L. Nanovic at Street & Smith Publications, with additional material contributed by the series' main writer, Lester Dent. debuted in Doc Savage Magazine in March, 1933. The Man of Bronze will enter the public domain on January 1, 2029.
Image: Cover of Doc Savage #1, illustrated by Walter. M. Baumhofer, March 1933.

The Lone Ranger & Tonto
The Lone Ranger & Tonto began as radio characters at WXYX in Detroit on January 30, 1933. The Lone Ranger and Tonto will enter the public domain on January 1, 2029.
Image: The Lone Ranger #55 from Dell Comics, 1953. Artist unknown.
For illustration purposes.

Already in the Public Domain (Created in 1933)

The Spider
While firmly in the public domain as a character, "The Spider" is trademarked by another entity, so The Sizzling Spider stalks the House of Justice.
Image: Cover of "Dr. Satan and the Element of Evil" by James L. Richardson, 2025.

1933: Context & Fun Facts

• This was the dawn of the “super-hero prototype.”
  Doc Savage predates Superman by five years and introduced many tropes the cape and cowl crowd eventually adopted — the Fortress of Solitude, the super-science gadgets, the elite team, even the square-jawed moral certainty.
• Radio was the beating heart of pop culture.
  The Lone Ranger and Tonto didn’t start in comics — they exploded on radio first. At the time, a hit radio serial had the cultural footprint of a modern blockbuster film.
• The Spider might be the first superhero on film.
  The Spider was such a popular character that he was adopted on film before any of his contemporaries. While Douglas Fairbanks brought Zorro to the cinema in 1920 and 1925, that character is not generally thought of as a 'super hero'. The Spider, masked, caped and using gadgets to fight crime, was arguably the first of his kind to hit theatres.