Superman is a 1978 superhero film based on DC Comics featuring the eponymous character, played by Christopher Reeve. It is the first of four installments in the Superman film series starring Reeve as Superman. The film was directed by Richard Donner based on a screenplay by Mario Puzo, David Newman, Leslie Newman, and Robert Benton. The film features an ensemble cast including Marlon Brando, Gene Hackman, Jeff East, Margot Kidder, Glenn Ford, Phyllis Thaxter, Jackie Cooper, Trevor Howard, Marc McClure, Terence Stamp, Valerie Perrine, Ned Beatty, Jack O'Halloran, Maria Schell, and Sarah Douglas. It depicts the origin of Superman, including his infancy as Kal-El of Krypton, son of Jor-El (Brando), and his youthful years in the rural town of Smallville. Disguised as reporter Clark Kent, he adopts a mild-mannered disposition in Metropolis and develops a romance with Lois Lane (Kidder) while battling the villainous Lex Luthor (Hackman).
Adventures of Superman is an American superhero television series based on comic book characters and concepts that Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster created in 1938. The show was the first television series to feature Superman and began filming in 1951 in California on RKO-Pathé stages and the RKO Forty Acres back lot. Cereal manufacturer Kellogg's sponsored the show. The first and last airdates of the show, which was produced for first-run syndication rather than for a network, are disputed, but they are generally accepted as September 19, 1952, and April 28, 1958. The show's first two seasons were filmed in black-and-white; seasons three to six were filmed in color.
Kirk Alyn was an American actor, best known for being the first actor to play the DC Comics character Superman in live-action for the 1948 movie serial Superman and its 1950 sequel Atom Man vs. Superman, as well as fellow DC Comics characters Blackhawk from the Blackhawk movie serial in 1952, and Lois Lane's father Sam Lane in 1978's Superman.
Adventures of Captain Marvel is a 1941 American 12-chapter black-and-white movie serial from Republic Pictures, produced by Hiram S. Brown, Jr., directed by John English and William Witney, that stars Tom Tyler in the title role of Captain Marvel and Frank Coghlan, Jr. as his alter ego, Billy Batson. The serial was adapted from the popular Captain Marvel comic book character, then appearing in the Fawcett Comics publications Whiz Comics and Captain Marvel Adventures. The character is now owned by DC Comics and is known as Shazam.
Noel Darleen Neill was an American actress, pin-up girl, and model. She played Lois Lane in the film serials Superman (1948) and Atom Man vs. Superman (1950), as well as the 1950s television series Adventures of Superman. She appeared in 80 films and television series in her career.
The American comic book character Superman, created in 1938, has appeared in many types of media since the 1940s. Superman has appeared in radio, television, movies, and video games each on multiple occasions, and his name, symbol, and image have appeared on products and merchandise.
Superman is an American fictional character created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster and featured pervasively in DC Comic books. The character debuted in Action Comics issue #1 in June 1938 and has since become a paradigm for superhero characters.
The Superman curse refers to a series of supposedly related misfortunes that have plagued creative people involved in adaptations of the DC Comics character Superman in various media, particularly actors who have played the role of Superman on film and television. The "curse" is frequently associated with George Reeves, who starred in Adventures of Superman on television from 1952 to 1958, and died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound at age 45; and Christopher Reeve, the portrayer of the superhero in four theatrical films from 1978 to 1987, who was paralyzed in a 1995 horseback riding accident, and died nine years later at age 52 from heart failure.
Superman and Lois Lane are a fictional couple. Created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, both characters, including Superman's alter ego Clark Kent, first appeared in DC Comics' Action Comics #1. They have remained in a complicated relationship ever since. A supercouple and the first superhero comic book romance, they are among the best-known fictional couples and have appeared in multiple media adaptations.
Look, Up in the Sky! The Amazing Story of Superman is a 2006 documentary film from executive producers Bryan Singer and Kevin Burns which details the history of the Superman franchise, from comic book, to television, to the big screen. The story of Superman is told through archival footage, as well as interviews with many of the actors, directors, and producers involved with the Superman media over the years. The closing credits feature outtakes from the Christopher Reeve Superman films, including an outtake of Marlon Brando improvising during the recitation of a poem in a scene deleted from the original version of Superman II.
Spencer Gordon Bennet was an American film producer and director. Known as the "King of Serial Directors", he directed more film serials than any other director.
Atom Man vs. Superman is a 1950 American film serial and the second Superman movie serial featuring Kirk Alyn, credited only by his character name, Superman.
Superman is a 1988 American animated Saturday morning television series produced by Ruby-Spears Enterprises for Warner Bros. Television that aired on CBS from September 17 to December 10, 1988, featuring the DC Comics superhero of the same name. Veteran comic book writer Marv Wolfman was the head story editor, and comic book artist Gil Kane provided character designs.
Superman: Doomsday is a 2007 American animated superhero film adapted from the DC Comics storyline "The Death of Superman", which focuses on the death and return of the superhero Superman. Released by Warner Home Video, it is the first film of the DC Universe Animated Original Movies. The film received generally positive reviews from critics, and made $10 million in home media sales on a budget of $3.5 million.
DC Comics's Superman franchise, based on the character of the same name created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster in June 1938, has seen the release of various films since its inception. The character debuted in cinemas in a series of animated shorts beginning in 1941 and was the protagonist of two movie serials in 1948 and 1950. An independent studio, Lippert Pictures, released the first Superman feature film, Superman and the Mole Men, starring George Reeves, in 1951. In 1973, the film rights to the Superman character were purchased by Ilya Salkind, Alexander Salkind, and Pierre Spengler. After multiple scripts and several years in development, Richard Donner was hired as director, and he shot two films, Superman (1978), and Superman II (1980), at the same time, both starring Christopher Reeve. Donner had filmed 75 percent of Superman II before it was decided to finish shooting the first film. The Salkinds fired Donner after Superman's release and commissioned Richard Lester as the director to finish Superman II. Lester returned to direct Superman III (1983). The Salkinds also produced the spin-off Supergirl (1984). They then sold the rights to Cannon Films, which produced the poorly reviewed Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987). Ilya Salkind commissioned a fifth Superman script before Warner Bros. acquired the rights in 1993.
Frederick Whitney Ellsworth was an American comic book editor and sometime writer and artist for DC Comics during the period known to historians and fans as the Golden Age of Comic Books. He was also DC's "movie studio contact", becoming both a producer and story editor on the TV series The Adventures of Superman.
Superman/Batman: Public Enemies is a 2009 American animated superhero film based on the DC Comics story arc "Public Enemies" in the Superman/Batman comic book series, written by Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuinness, which focused on Superman and Batman teaming up to prevent a meteorite from striking Earth, and taking down Lex Luthor, who has been elected President of the United States. Directed by Sam Liu. It is the sixth film of the DC Universe Animated Original Movies. The film received generally positive reviews upon release. Additionally, Tim Daly, Kevin Conroy, Clancy Brown, and CCH Pounder reprise their respective roles from the DC Animated Universe as Superman, Batman, Lex Luthor, and Amanda Waller.
Lois Lane is a fictional character first appearing in DC Comics Action Comics #1, an intrepid reporter commonly portrayed as the romantic interest of the superhero Superman and his alter-ego Clark Kent. Since her debut in comic books, she has appeared in various media adaptations, including radio, animations, films, television and video games. Actresses who have portrayed Lois Lane include Noel Neill, Phyllis Coates, Margot Kidder, Teri Hatcher, Erica Durance, Kate Bosworth, Amy Adams, and Elizabeth Tulloch.
Blackhawk is a 1952 American 15-chapter science fiction adventure movie serial from Columbia Pictures, based on the comic book Blackhawk, first published by Quality Comics, but later owned by competitor DC Comics. It was Columbia's forty-ninth serial. The one-sheet poster referred to the serial as The Miraculous Blackhawk: Freedom's Champion. The home video release added the tagline: "Fearless Champion of Freedom". The actual on-screen title is Blackhawk: Fearless Champion of Freedom.
Superman: Man of Tomorrow is a 2020 American animated superhero film based on the DC Comics character Superman. Produced by Warner Bros. Animation, and DC Entertainment, and distributed by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment, it is the first installment in the DC Animated Movie Universe's second phase, and the sixteenth overall. The film is directed by Chris Palmer, and written by Tim Sheridan, and stars Darren Criss and Zachary Quinto. The film depicts the early days of Clark Kent's career as the superhero Superman. It is the 41st film in the DC Universe Animated Original Movies.
