geekyOver the years a number of real (as opposed to fictional) US Presidents have made appearances as characters in a number of comic books in which they mingled with superheroes and in some cases gave those heroes their marching orders. In at least one case, this was inspired by the president's love of comic books. That was when Barack Obama made an appearance in the comic "Spiderman" prior to his inauguration. Obama had told certain audiences during the 2008 election campaign that he was an avid collector of Spiderman Comics.
In honour of this, the AMAZING SPIDER-MAN issue 583 featured what Marvel Comics called "the Spidey/Obama Team-Up". The comic featured a story entitled "Spidey Meets the President!" The story was written by Zeb Wells with art by Todd Nauck and Frank D'Armata. It takes place in Washington, D.C. on Inauguration Day and finds one of Spider-Man's oldest foes, the Chameleon, attempting to thwart the swearing in ceremony of the 44th President of the United States.
Marvel editor-in-chief Joe Quesada is quoted as saying "When we heard that President Obama is a collector of Spider-Man comics, we knew that these two historic figures had to meet in our comics' Marvel Universe. "Historic moments such as this one can be reflected in our comics because the Marvel Universe is set in the real world. A Spider-Man fan moving into the Oval Office is an event that must be commemorated in the pages of Amazing Spider-Man."
Presidents have been supporting characters in comics before. During World War II, superheroes fought Hitler as Franklin D. Roosevelt cheered them on. Other appearances by Presidents on the pages of comic books include:
*President Nixon orders the capture and prosecution of the Hulk and in Hulk issue 152 in 1972. That same year Nixon must deal with the threat of Galactus in Fantastic Four issue 123. Nixon is perhaps best known in the comic world for his appearance in Watchmen. In Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ dystopian tale, Nixon is still president in 1985. Dr. Manhattan's involvement in Vietnam helped the US to win the war, ending it in the mid-‘60s. Government-employed and dark-sided The Comedian is implied to have killed JFK, Woodward, and Bernstein. With term limits cast aside, Nixon is still in the Oval Office.
*Jimmy Carter makes an appearance in Justice League of America issue 150 (1978). Carter is threatened by the Star-Tsar and contacts the Justice League for help.
*Ronald Reagan meets with General Thunderbolt Ross in The Incredible Hulk issue 264 (1981). General Ross requests the President increase funds and man power to hunt the Hulk. Reagan offers him a jelly bean.
*Bill and Hillary Clinton attend Superman's funeral in "The Death of Superman".
*Superman meets with Ronald Reagan in 1986 in the Legends mini series. In the DC Comics Legends Mini Series a Darkseid operative turns the public against America's superheroes and the chaos reigns in the streets. The President is forced to issue an order to restrict all superhero activity. In the last issue the Martian Manhunter J'onn J'onzz assumes the identity of the President to draw the fire of terrorists in the White House. His super heroic act convinces Reagan to rescind the order against the heroes. Superman and the others are able to defeat the bad guys and regain the public's trust once again.
John F. Kennedy appeared in Action Comics issue 309 in 1963, when he helped protect Clark Kent's secret identity. "If I can't trust the president of the United States, who can I trust?" Superman tells Kennedy. That issue appeared a week after Kennedy was assassinated. DC Comics had to explain later that it was too late to recall the book.