Neal Adams tried to break into comics right after he graduated from The School of Industrial Art in Manhattan in 1959. Unable to find work at DC, he found himself doing gag strips at Archie Comics and Ben Casey, a syndicated comic strip. He also did extensive work in the world of commercial art and advertising. It was in these fields where he developed a photorealistic style that when he returned to comic books was unlike anything else seen in the industry.

In 1967 he finally got to work at DC where he had breakout success with the character of Deadman in Adventure Comics. Receiving awards for Deadman, Adams, a freelancer, moved over to Marvel and went on to have more award winning success on X-Men. He also helped to create one of the most influential Avengers storylines - "The Kree-Skrull War". By this time he was one of the most well respected artists in the industry.

Arguably, his most notable work at DC is when he teamed with writer Denny O'Neil and worked on both Batman and Green Lantern/Green Arrow. During his stint on Batman he helped to create one of Batman's most noteworthy adversaries, Ra's al Ghul. His work on Green Lantern/Green Arrow dealt with real life issues - pollution, drug abuse, and racism.

While Adams' artistic talent is indisputable, perhaps his most remarkable contribution to comic book history was his fight to give proper creative credit and financial stability to the creators of Superman. In 1937 Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster signed an employment contract with Detective Comics (DC). Together, in 1938, they debuted the character of Superman in Action Comics #1 to great and immediate success. Over the years Superman was featured in movie serials, radio shows, toys, breakfast cereals, etc. While Siegel and Shuster were to receive 5% of net proceeds from any commercial exploitation of Superman beyond magazines, books, and newspapers, they found themselves suing to receive proper payment in 1948. Over the years they would sue to regain ownership of Superman, but the courts always ruled that DC maintained the copyrights.

By 1975 both Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster were in poor health. Shuster was also destitute sleeping on a cot in his brother's living room. Warner Brothers (DC parent company), this same year, announced the production of a big budget Superman movie to be directed by Richard Donner with Marlon Brando appearing as Superman's father, Jor-el. By this time Neal Adams came to find out that Siegel and Shuster were receiving no compensation for their creation of perhaps the most iconic superhero of all time. Legally, Adams realized there was probably no way the courts would return the Superman rights to Siegel and Shuster, however the court of public opinion was a different matter.

For four months Neal Adams launched public appearances, press conferences, and media appearances to create support for the two creators. In the end, with large sums of money at stake to finance the Superman movie, DC agreed to provide financial and medical assistance to Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. They also agreed that both men would always be credited as the creators of Superman in every Superman comic book from that point forward.