The Man of Steel fights crime with help from his friends at the Daily Planet.The Man of Steel fights crime with help from his friends at the Daily Planet.The Man of Steel fights crime with help from his friends at the Daily Planet.
- Awards
- 1 win & 3 nominations
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Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaIt is now common knowledge that Clark Kent's Earth parents were named Jonathan and Martha. However, in the first episode, Superman on Earth (1952), Kent's parents were named Eben and Sarah. This is because the comics themselves were inconsistent with the Kents' given names until the characters became major players in "Superboy" comics stories at about this same time. The names Sarah and Eben were first used in the novel "The Adventures of Superman" (1942) and in the first Superman serial.
- GoofsWith the switch to more expensive color film in 1954, there was a mandate to shoot no more new effects scenes than absolutely necessary. Most Superman-in-flight footage was filmed right-to-left. When the plot unavoidably required Superman to fly in the opposite direction, the footage was "flipped," as can be detected by the reversal of the "S" chest emblem. Another explanation is that George Reeves' "body pan' was attached to a pole that was blocked from view by his body. Unfortunately it was attached on only on his right side. If he had to be shown flying in the opposite direction the film had to be reversed. This not only occurred in the colour episodes, but the black and white ones as well.
- Quotes
[title sequence]
Announcer: Faster than a speeding bullet! More powerful than a locomotive! Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound!
Voices: Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's Superman!
Announcer: 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, and who, disguised as Clark Kent, mild-mannered reporter for a great metropolitan newspaper, fights a never-ending battle for truth, justice and the American way.
- Alternate versionsSome episodes from the first and second seasons were censored for network broadcast. These edited versions were carried over to the early 16mm television syndication prints. The cut footage was restored in the 1960s.
- ConnectionsEdited into Superman in Scotland Yard (1954)
Top review
One of the best from the early days of television
Growing up in the 1950's I was an avid collector of comics. One of my favorites was superhero Superman. The other was Plastic Man. For some reason few have heard of the original Plastic Man, but Superman is still very much with us and probably will be for some time to come. Before judging this series, one must remember that only televisions that showed black and white were on the market. There was no color. If an early television show was produced in color it was for other reasons, say possible release on the big screen. Some producers hoped to string two or three episodes of a popular television series together and distribute it to movie houses as one feature as was done with The Lone Ranger. Also, there were no big-screen TV's. Therefore special effects could be kept fairly primitive (and inexpensive) because the viewer wouldn't be seeing much anyway. The average TV screen was about 13". A person was uptown if he/she had a 17" screen.
There were Superman movies out at the time featuring other actors rather than "the real" Superman, George Reeves. The Superman TV shows were compact, well-written, and well-performed. For me Noel Neill will always be Lois Lane. Ditto for Jack Larson as Jimmy Olsen, John Hamilton as Perry White, Robert Shayne as Inspector Bill Henderson, and even though Christopher Reeves did a bang-up job as a later Superman, George Reeves will always be Superman for my generation.
Another reason I was so drawn to the Superman TV show was because a stunt man who was married to my cousin at the time appeared in one of the episodes. In the episode, "The Wedding of Superman" Doyle Brooks played Mr. Poole, one of the heavies. Brooks was born in the little hamlet of Bethesda, Arkansas, married my cousin and set out to become a movie star in Hollywood. He ended up a successful stuntman but did very little acting. His biggest success was playing the Ajax White Knight in a now famous television commercial.
Superman's may come and go but George Reeves will always be "the" Superman to all of us who were kids in the 1950's.
There were Superman movies out at the time featuring other actors rather than "the real" Superman, George Reeves. The Superman TV shows were compact, well-written, and well-performed. For me Noel Neill will always be Lois Lane. Ditto for Jack Larson as Jimmy Olsen, John Hamilton as Perry White, Robert Shayne as Inspector Bill Henderson, and even though Christopher Reeves did a bang-up job as a later Superman, George Reeves will always be Superman for my generation.
Another reason I was so drawn to the Superman TV show was because a stunt man who was married to my cousin at the time appeared in one of the episodes. In the episode, "The Wedding of Superman" Doyle Brooks played Mr. Poole, one of the heavies. Brooks was born in the little hamlet of Bethesda, Arkansas, married my cousin and set out to become a movie star in Hollywood. He ended up a successful stuntman but did very little acting. His biggest success was playing the Ajax White Knight in a now famous television commercial.
Superman's may come and go but George Reeves will always be "the" Superman to all of us who were kids in the 1950's.
helpful•325
- krorie
- Nov 6, 2005
Details
- Runtime30 minutes
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