Clearly it’s Mandrake the Magician, but with the extremely small possibility of my being wrong, then it has to be Little Dot. Somewhere in the top 5 are Oor Wullie, Strontium Dog, and Ignatz Mouse.
Oh wait. Best known? Superman.
Well, Goku still originated in manga (albeit heavily based on the Monkey King, Son Goku/Sun Wukong), as do most popular anime. Sorry to say, but Astro Boy takes a back seat to most, like Naruto (blech), Sailor Moon, and Speed Racer.
There are occasional million-selling American comic books, but these are the result of marketing gimmicks that trick idiot speculators into buying multiple copies. STAR WARS comics sell much better than most superhero comics–STAR WARS #1 (2015) sold north of a million copies. (It should be noted that the 1977 STAR WARS #1, which sold pretty well, actually came out a month or two before the movie, so the legitimate answer to this question might well be Luke Skywalker or Darth Vader.)
Comics sales are pretty anemic these days. Even with all the movies, a typical Marvel comic book sells in the 20-70,000 range, numbers that Marvel used to cancel books over back in the 80s. In the 1940s, there were actually several comics that sold several million, whose characters are only peripherally remembered today, like the Golden Age versions of Captain Marvel and Daredevil. Comics publishing and distribution were handled by the mob, so perhaps those numbers should be taken with a grain of salt.
There were some Brazilian comics–like Condorito and Monica’s Gang–that regularly moved more units than X-Men in its heyday. I guess it all depends on what you mean by “well-known.”
If you look at the post you’re responding to, I specified superhero comic book character. I don’t consider Goku / Naruto / the Sailor Scouts as superheros, although I guess you could make that case for the last-named…
For overall comic book characters, I still suspect it’s Donald Duck, but the evidence seems to be leaning Mickey.
Superman.
Hands down.
“E”.
That’s a character used in comics, right?
The novelization came out even earlier, making them technically literary characters before they were comic book characters before they were movie character.
Odd but I got similar results a while back. Every source I could find put Batman first, then Spidey, Iron Man, then Supes. If you Google discussions on it, it seems that Americans think of Superman first, while most other countries think of Batman.
It’s definitely not any of the Marvel characters. Think of it this way: When little kids play superheroes, what’s the first (and often only) costume accessory they put on? A cape. And Captain America, Iron Man, Spider-Man, and Hulk don’t wear capes. But Superman and Batman do.
Superman. It’s gotta be.
And while his trappings may be specifically American, he has a universality to him that transcends that aspect. Captain America is American through and through, but Superman is an immigrant and an outsider, so it translates better beyond U.S. borders.
I suspect that “kid tying blanket around his neck,” is more trope than fact. How many kids really do that?
I did, 1966-ish, didn’t you?
Me too. I only remember one time very clearly, but I definitely did it.
I think recent movies might have had an impact, but not enough to bump Iron man or Captain america to the top. I think Batman is at this point more well known than Superman though.
Alfred E. Neuman and the black and white Spies got to be up there, too, yeah?
There’s also The Phantom, who predates both of them and is insanely popular in Scandinavia and Oceania. The answer to the OP’s question really depends on where it’s being asked.
I grew up with old Phantom comics and I’m Australian, so you’re right. But I think Superman towers above all others in part because he’s the prototypical superhero. Even his name is prototypical. Someone who has no interest in superheroes can still name Superman.