Superman (serial)
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| Superman | |
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 Promotional poster for Superman |
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| Directed by | Spencer Gordon Bennet Thomas Carr |
| Produced by | Sam Katzman |
| Written by | Lewis Clay Royal K. Cole Arthur Hoerl George H. Plympton Joseph F. Poland |
| Starring | Kirk Alyn (uncredited) Noel Neill Carol Foreman Tommy Bond |
| Music by | Mischa Bakaleinikoff |
| Cinematography | Ira H. Morgan |
| Editing by | Earl C. Turner |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
| Release date(s) |  January 5, 1948 |
| Running time | 15 chapters (244 min) |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Followed by | Atom Man vs. Superman (1950) |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
The Superman serial was a 1948 15-part black-and-white movie serial starring an uncredited Kirk Alyn (but billed only by his character name, Superman) and Noel Neill as Lois Lane. It is notable as the first live-action appearance of Superman on film and for the longevity of its distribution. The serial was produced by Columbia Pictures, directed by Tommy Carr (who later directed many early episodes of the Superman television show) and Spencer Gordon Bennet, produced by Sam Katzman and shot in and around Los Angeles, California. The series was originally screened at movie matinées and after the first three scene-setting episodes, every episode ends in a cliffhanger. The Superman-in-flight scenes are animations, in part due to the small production budget.
In 2006 the Superman serial was still available for purchase on videotape where it was first released back in 1987, and was officially released on DVD by Warner Home Video, along with its sequel Atom Man vs. Superman, on November 28, 2006 as Superman - The Theatrical Serials Collection. Warner subsidiary DC Comics acquired the rights to the serials from Columbia some years back, which explains why Warner now issues these worldwide.
Contents |
[edit] Plot
Superman is sent to Earth by his parents just as the planet Krypton blows up and is later raised as Clark Kent by a farm couple. After his foster parents die, the Man of Steel heads to Metropolis under the bespectacled guise of Kent and joins the staff of the Daily Planet in order to be close to the news. Whenever emergencies happen, he responds in his true identity as Superman. This first serial revolves around the nefarious plot of a villain who calls herself the Spider Lady.
[edit] Production
The Superman-in-flight scenes are animations, in part due to the small production budget. A peculiar characteristic of the mix of animated and live-action footage is that Superman's take-offs are almost always visible in the foreground, while his landings almost always occur behind objects, such as parked cars, rocks, and buildings. The reason for this difference should be obvious: It was easier to shift from live footage of Kirk Alyn starting to take off to animated footage than it was to shift from an animated landing to live footage of the actor. As a consequence of the need to hide Superman's landings, Superman frequently lands at some distance from where he wants to be and must run to get there.
Budget limitations also dictated the frequent reuse of film footage, especially scenes of Superman flying. For example, one sequence showing Superman flying over a rocky hill (shot in the hills of Chatsworth in Southern California's San Fernando Valley) was used at least once in almost every episode of the first serial. However, while the reuse of the same footage is difficult for anyone watching successive episodes to ignore, it was much less noticeable to the original theater audiences, who saw only one episode each week.
The serial was a popular success that made Kirk Alyn famous and launched Noel Neill's career.
A sequel serial, Atom Man vs. Superman, also directed by Bennet, was released in 1950.
[edit] Chapter titles
- Superman Comes To Earth
- Depths Of The Earth
- The Reducer Ray
- Man Of Steel
- A Job For Superman
- Superman In Danger
- Into The Electric Furnace
- Superman To The Rescue
- Irresistible Force
- Between Two Fires
- Superman's Dilemma
- Blast In The Depths
- Hurled To Destruction
- Superman At Bay
- The Payoff
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Superman at the Internet Movie Database
- Dr Hermes Review of Superman
- Superman article at Todd Gault's Movie Serial Experience
| Preceded by Tex Granger (1948) |
Columbia Serial Superman (1948) |
Succeeded by Congo Bill (1948) |
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| The Serials | Batman (1943) • Hop Harrigan (1946) • The Vigilante (1947) • Superman (1948) • Congo Bill (1948) • Batman and Robin (1949) • Atom Man Vs. Superman (1950) |
| Single films | Superman and the Mole Men (1951) • Batman (1966) • Supergirl (1984) • Steel (1997) • Road to Perdition (2002) • Catwoman (2004) • A History of Violence (2005) • Constantine (2005) • V for Vendetta (2006) • Watchmen (2009) |
| Franchises |
Batman (1989–1997): Batman (1989) • Batman Returns (1992) • Batman Forever (1995) • Batman & Robin (1997) Superman: Superman (1978) • Superman II (1980) • Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut (2006) • Superman III (1983) • Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987) • Superman Returns (2006) Swamp Thing: Swamp Thing (1982) • The Return of Swamp Thing (1989) |
 American films of the 1940s |
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| 1940 •1941 •1942 •1943 •1944 •1945 •1946 •1947 •1948 •1949 |
