1996 SkyBox : All Superman! All Joe Jusko!

"The Trading Card Event of the Decade..."

The trading card event of the decade... that never happened. In 1995, SkyBox International and DC promoted a new series of Superman trading cards painted by fantasy illustrator Joe Jusko. The "All Superman! All Joe Jusko!" series was scheduled to be released in the summer of 1996, but the project was cancelled in late 1995.

1995 SkyBox All Superman! All Joe Jusko! Autograph Promo

The proposed Elseworlds-style storyline would have depicted Superman throughout different periods of history. In The Art of Painted Comics from 2015, Joe Jusko said, "We got through three-and-a-half or four of the storylines, and then Fleer, who'd bought out SkyBox at that point, wasn't crazy about the concept. That art's been sitting around up at DC since 1995, I guess." (p. 201)

On March 9, 1995, the Marvel Entertainment Group purchased SkyBox International Inc. for $150 million and merged with the Fleer Corporation. The Fleer plant in Philadelphia used to cut and collate cards was closed on January 26, 1996. The Upper Deck Company continues to produce trading cards with the SkyBox brand name.

In 2009, The Art of Joe Jusko published illustrations that were intended for this series. One painting depicts a prehistoric-era Superman pulling a vehicle reminiscent of The Flintstones.

The Art of Joe Jusko (2009)


The Joe Jusko website has shared a photo of the painting used for promotional images. A Limited Edition set of 10,000 promo cards for the series were distributed at the 1995 San Diego Comic-Con International. The cards measure 5 x 7 inches and the backs are blank. There are 1,000 of these promos that were hand-numbered and signed by Jusko.

Joe Jusko also contributed Superman paintings for Kenner's Superman: Man of Steel cards and DC Villains: The Dark Judgment. Jusko is widely revered in the trading card community for painting the entire 1992 Marvel Masterpieces set.



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