Adventures of Superman, also sometimes known simply as Superman, went into production in 1951, following the shooting and theatrical release of the feature film Superman And The Mole Men. The latter, produced by Robert Maxwell and directed by Lee Sholem, starred George Reeves in the dual role of Superman and Clark Kent, and Phyllis Coates as Lois Lane. Superman had already come to the big screen on three occasions in the 1940's, in a series of much-admired cartoons produced by the Fleischer Studios in the early part of the ...
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Adventures of Superman, also sometimes known simply as Superman, went into production in 1951, following the shooting and theatrical release of the feature film Superman And The Mole Men. The latter, produced by Robert Maxwell and directed by Lee Sholem, starred George Reeves in the dual role of Superman and Clark Kent, and Phyllis Coates as Lois Lane. Superman had already come to the big screen on three occasions in the 1940's, in a series of much-admired cartoons produced by the Fleischer Studios in the early part of the decade and two serials from Columbia Pictures starring Kirk Alyn as the Man of Steel and Clark Kent during the second half of the decade. In the wake of the second, Superman Vs. Atom Man (1950), the decision was made to do a television series, with a feature film as the "pilot"; unlike the serials, however, which were relatively low-budget productions, the series would break new ground in terms of quality and special effects, mostly because -- in contrast to the serials, in which Superman turned into a cartoon in those scenes in which he flew -- this version of Superman would actually show him flying. That meant that the show would be shot on film, which was then a new concept in television production -- up to that time, virtually all dramatic programming (and almost all programming, for that matter) was done live, and all science fiction-oriented programming and kids programs up to that time had been done live, in front of the camera, as it went out over the air; coupled with the low budgets involved overall, a lot of it looked cheap and it was impossible to do the kinds of special effects to which film audiences had become accustomed, or to properly preserve the material. Shooting on film was much more expensive, but it would allow for a sharper image, proper editing and the insertion of special effects, better sound and superior sound effects, and for the preservation of that program over time. Although it's lost on viewers in the twenty-first century, these were bold decisions for a series in 1951, especially one aimed at kids. Indeed, in those days, no one knew whether there would ever be a marketplace or a value in subsequent plays (what we now call reruns) of this (or any) kind of programming. The first thing that the producers -- radio veteran Robert Maxwell and serial hand Bernard Luber -- had to do was find a new Superman. They were originally intending to use Alyn again, but the actor wanted too much money for the feature film, and his reticence to do the role proved fortuitous -- it gave the producers a chance to recast the role in a tougher manner, which they did in the guise of a 36-year-old film actor named George Reeves. Born in 1914 in Woolstock, Iowa, he had been in Gone With The Wind in a small but prominent role, and also in such high-profile films as Lydia and So Proudly We Hail, the latter in a starring role, but his career had faltered since the end of World War II. In contrast to Alyn, who brought a dancer's agility to the part of Superman, Reeves was a former aspiring boxer, a well-built, powerful looking man, and also an intense actor. In addition to making a more powerful looking version of Superman, he would make a much more substantial Clark Kent, all of which would make the television show more complex than the serials had been. The next cast member in place was Texas-born Phyllis Coates, 11 years younger than Reeves who, in addition to being very pretty, projected a toughness in the role of Lois Lane, and also had one of the great moviescreams of her era -- one never forgot those moments in which Coates' Lois Lane had to let out a shriek for the cameras, as exhibited in the pilot, Superman And The Mole Men. The latter, running just over an hour, was produced and released through Lippert Pictures in early 1951 and was a success, showing what Reeves and Coates could do in the roles in an unusual science fiction-oriented story that also had sinister topical and political...
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Add this copy of Adventures of Superman: Season 1 to cart. $28.94, new condition, Sold by Good Buy 2 You LLC rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Fredericksburg, VA, UNITED STATES, published 2005 by WarnerBrothers.
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