Kryptonite turned to iron?

Hello, I remember a story my father had in a hardbound collection of reprints. 'Superman: from the 30's to the 70's'?

Anyway, the story may have been called 'Kryptonite no more!'. There was some kind of atomic blast that changed all(?) of the K to iron. It is coming back to me.... Some kind of history professor from the future grabbed Lincoln, Custer, ..., and Superman from their pasts to display to his students. Superman escaped the containment device, but was persuaded to go back so that history would not be altered.

'I'm not going back in there.... to die!'

Stories to follow included a Sand Superman?

Can someone point me to or near the issues in question? I recall a cover with Superman breaking a kryptonite chain from around his chest.

Thanks for any help.

Kerry

K. S. asks:

I have the same Superman: 30's to 70's book and you are blending two different stories.

Superman #233 was the issue with Kryptonite being turned to iron. Over the next few issues Superman's powers vanished until he was a normal man. The whole story arc lasted about a year (but I don't know if his powerlessness affected Action or any other DCU appearances).

The other story was a single issue (I think Action Comics #398 or 399) where Superman is pulled into the future 'just before his death' as part of a history lecture on the final moments of great heroes (including Custer, Lincoln, and Washington who also had been brought into the future). Superman was supposed to actually be a clone of a clone of the original Spid....I mean.... Superman <G>. History recorded that he would suffer fatal damage carrying an experimental reactor into space. The damage would be too severe for any more cloning. But a few hints that something is not right are dropped in the descriptions of the other men's final fates. The story ends with Superman surviving that reactor accident and decideing that he had been pulled into the future of an alternate Earth and therefore was NOT a clone (I love Silver-Age logic).

And to top it off Diana Prince (not calling herself Wonder Woman in that period I think) and I Ching played a part in the Sand-Superman resolution.

<< The Sandman being was created during the same explosion that turned the Kryptonite into iron; >>

A friend of mine just gave me a hardback Supes compilation that has that in it for my birthday! I finally got to see Kryptonite Nevermore!

It doesn't continue the sand creature storyline, though, so I appreaciate finding out what happened there.

All I can say is that I remember what you're talking about. I actually have this hardbound book you're referring to.
http://www.gsd.harvard.edu/~nrollins 'There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.'

Superman #233?

Hello All,

I just wanted to say thanks for the assistance. With your aid, I picked up a Superman 233 off the net. (I haven't gotten it yet, maybe it will come while I am gone this week!).

Now I'll be looking for that hardbound collection of reprints. 'Superman: from the 30's to the 70's'!

Thanks for the help again.

Look for 'Superman: From the '30s to the '80s' instead. It's an update of the original collection.