Secret Identity - History

History

The use of secret identities dates back to the early 20th century with characters such as Sherlock Holmes, the Scarlet Pimpernel, the Lone Ranger, and Zorro. Starting in the 1930s, the concept of a crime-fighters, superheroes, and vigilantes (and their adversaries) adopting secret identities became more widespread in dime novels, pulp magazines, comic books, old-time radio dramas, movie serials, and other popular fiction. Such characters remain popular to this day.