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Released by Columbia Pictures, the two black and white, 15-weekly-chapter Superman serials quickly became the most popular Saturday Matinee features, ever, with 'B'-movie veteran Kirk Alyn (1910-1999) bringing Superman/Clark Kent to life...
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Alyn based his interpretation largely on Bud Collyer's vocal performances in both the radio and animated productions, deepening his voice and taking on a commanding tone when becoming Superman, and changing his posture to indicate Superman's invincibility (a gimmick that would become a trademark in later portrayals of the Man of Steel). What set Alyn's portrayal apart from the other actors in the role was the sheer joy he exhibited, in strutting his stuff...He'd often flash a huge grin as bullets bounced off his chest, and he honestly seemed to hope that criminals would try to resist him...
For a generation entranced by the radio and cartoon adventures, seeing Kirk Alyn in the familiar costume (even if only in black and white), and hearing him solemnly proclaim the famous taglines, "This is a job for Superman!", and "Up, up, and AWAY!" was an incredible rush!
Costarring Noel Neill as Lois Lane, Tommy "Butch" Bond as Jimmy Olsen, and Pierre Watkin as Perry White, what the serials lacked in 'Special Effects' budget, it made up for in sheer energy! Youthful fans from coast-to-coast lined up to see Superman rescue Lois and Jimmy from a neverending series of cliffhangers, each more desperate than the week before...
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So what if cartoon animation provided Alyn's flying scenes (although a few 'wired' flying sequences would be attempted in the second serial)...From the destruction of Krypton to bald-pated evil genius Luthor (Lyle Talbot), hatching his nefarious plans, Kirk Alyn's serials were a sensation!
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When the "Superman" serials ended, and producers moved to the new medium of television, with new faces, Kirk Alyn starred in the last of the major adventure serials, "Blackhawk: Fearless Champion of Freedom" (1952), another adaptation of a DC title. Into his forties, with acting jobs limited, he retired to Arizona, occasionally taking a small role on TV or film. But serious Superman fans never forgot the first live-action 'Man of Steel', and director Richard Donner included a scene with Alyn and Noel Neill (as young Lois Lane's parents), in his blockbuster, "Superman: the Movie" (1978). While his appearance would be edited down to only a cameo, public interest was renewed, and Alyn enjoyed new respect and fan recognition, the rest of his life. (Ilya Salkind planned to cast him in a featured role as 'Pa Kent' in his "Superboy" TV series of the late 1980s, but declining health prevented the comeback).
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Kirk Alyn passed away in The Woodlands, Texas, March 14, 1999, at age 88, after a long illness...
and in 'The Adventures of Superman', 1953-1957) |
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and Noel Neill ('Lois Lane', in both 1948 and 1950 Serials, and in 'The Adventures of Superman', 1953-1957) |
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More powerful than a locomotive...
Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound..."
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"Yes, it's SUPERMAN ...strange visitor from another planet who came to Earth with powers and abilities far beyond those of mortal men...
SUPERMAN ...who can change the course of mighty rivers...bend steel in his bare hands...
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and who, disguised as CLARK KENT,
mild-mannered reporter for a great metropolitan newspaper,
fights a neverending battle for
Truth, Justice, and the American Way!"
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On the right, my portrait sketch of Reeves...
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Despite the success of the Superman movie serials, the 'Saturday Matinee' was dying, victim of the rise of a new medium, Television, and Superman would soon conquer it, as well!
Introduced in the low-budget feature film, "Superman and the Mole-Men" (1951), which served as a 'pilot' for a new television series, a new actor would don the cape for the small screen, and George Reeves (1914-1959) would forever be identified in the role...
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Kirk Alyn, while interested in continuing as Superman, was making salary and creative demands that worried National Periodical, which produced the film and first season of "The Adventures of Superman" on a very tight budget. It was decided to recast the part, and 36-year-old Reeves impressed everyone immediately. A veteran screen actor, with major film credits (including "Gone With the Wind"), Reeves had suffered the same fate as many other actors at the close of World War II; the combination of the return of the major male stars from military service, and budget cutbacks in a peacetime economy, dried up opportunities at the big studios, reducing gifted actors to bit parts or micro-budget features at far lesser studios. The situation made even the pariah medium of television seem attractive! Six feet tall, lantern-jawed and barrel-chested, Reeves brought power, charisma, and charm to the Man of Steel, and equally important, courage and integrity to Clark Kent (as the limited effects budget would necessitate more screen time, and a far more active, less wimpy role for Superman's alter ego). Joined by film co-star Phyllis Coates (in Season One) as Lois Lane, Jack Larson as Jimmy Olsen, John Hamilton as Perry White, and Robert Shayne as Inspector Henderson, the series offered vastly improved Special Effects, including very believable pole-and-wire flying sequences against projected backgrounds, and spectacular, springboard-created 'takeoffs' (begun after a wire broke during an early liftoff, dropping Reeves, unceremoniously, to the ground), tough, fast-paced film noir-influenced plotlines, and an overall quality that belied it's low budget.
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As the word began to spread of this incredible syndicated series, and it's irresistable star, more and more fledgling television stations added it to their viewing schedules, soon making "The Adventures of Superman" one of the most popular shows in the nation (much to the chagrin of Reeves and his castmates, who hoped the series would be quickly cancelled, and desperately wanted to avoid being forever typecast in their roles). By Season Two, Kellogg's signed on as a sponsor, Coates (who had scheduling conflicts), would be replaced by serial star Noel Neill, in the role of Lois Lane, and the early violence would be toned down, for family audiences. From Season Three, on, in a revolutionary, amazingly farsighted move, all episodes would be shot in color (despite the fact that most TV stations would lack the technology to even broadcast in color, for nearly a decade...)
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Despite an increasing silliness in plotlines (due, in large part, to pressure placed on Kellogg's by 'watchdog' parental committees, fearing the corruption of the nation's youth), Reeves' obvious aging, onscreen (the physical demands of the role were daunting, particularly in the 'color' seasons, when he had to wear an extremely hot, uncomfortable foam rubber red and blue 'uniform' over a padded T-shirt...to enhance his shoulders and biceps...as well as a corset, all of which would leave him seriously dehydrated after just a half-hour under the broiling studio arc lamps), and an ever-tightening shooting budget, the series never lost it's loyal fans.
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With the mysterious and tragic death of George Reeves, at age 45, in 1959 (Was it Suicide...or MURDER...a decades-long debate that even spawned a major motion picture, 2006's "Hollywoodland", and has never been definitively answered), a generation of children would lose their hero...and "The Adventures of Superman" would attain a near-legendary status that it continues to hold, to this day!
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and in 'The Adventures of Superman', 1953-1957) |
and in 'The Adventures of Superman', 1953-1957) |
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in 'The Adventures of Superman', 1951-1957) |
in 'The Adventures of Superman', 1951-1957) |
in 'The Adventures of Superman' |
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Many critics were writing off 'The Man of Steel' as passe and 'out-of-touch', as DC competitor, Marvel Comics, took center stage with more complex, 'realistic' superheroes, like Spider-Man...but a SPECTACULAR screen rebirth was on the horizon...
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CHRISTOPHER REEVE and DEAN CAIN(and JOHN HAYMES NEWTON and GERARD CHRISTOPHER) ~
TOM WELLING and BRANDON ROUTH ~
LINKS ~
KIRK ALYN | GEORGE REEVES | CHRISTOPHER REEVE | DEAN CAIN | TOM WELLING | BRANDON ROUTH |
Click on the names for info on each actor from The Internet Movie Database...
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