Superman (1948) Columbia Movie Serial Episode One (Part 3 of 3)

Superman Comes To Earth

Superman (1948) is a 15-part black-and-white Columbia film serial based on the comic book character Superman. It stars an uncredited Kirk Alyn (billed only by his character name, Superman; but credited on the promotional posters) 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 directed by Thomas 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. It was originally screened at movie matinées and after the first three scene-setting chapters, every episode ends in a cliffhanger. The Superman-in-flight scenes are animations, in part due to the small production budget.

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• Superman
• Columbia
• Pictures
• serial
• 1948

[Melicioel7]

One word: Farfetched

[hermankatnip]

@Melicioel7 That is technically two words joined together. It should be hyphenated :)

[ChrisMohrSr]

Why was Clark sitting around in a business suit just to read a book? And why was he wearing glasses at that time?

[TheFrontrowkid]

I have met Kirk Alyn who played the Superman in the serials and he told us of how close the train actually came to him while he was pretending to fix the rails. Columbia did not provide him with a stuntman. A real great guy who made several personal appearances as Superman and later also was Blackhawk.

[iosefcaro]

greattttttt

[NedN00b]

A few things have bothered me over the years, but I never worried too hard about them: It sure seemed like they had mere hours from the council meeting to the end of the world.

If there wasn't enough time for one man to build an additional rocket, how could he expect a government to crank out rockets for everyone?

If there was warning, why didn't he make rockets for him and his wife?

Why didn't he just fly to Earth? Superman could apparently breathe, talk, and fly in space, traditionally.

[GettingStrange]

@PrettyMuchEveryoneWhoCommente­d Because it's a serial made for children in the 1940s. Do you comment on clips of the Batman TV show questioning the physics of "THWACK!!!" appearing onscreen when someone gets punched? Relax and enjoy the show.

[Melicioel7]

@hermankatnip You mean the word farfetched is far-fetched? lol thanks for the correction

[Adom]

@comanchio1976 she originally tried etching the "S" in there with acid, but it didn't work, so she scratched it out with a chunk of Kryptonite they found near the ship.

Or it's just a silly line.

[fromthesidelines]

Producer Sam Katzman had no intention of showing the death of Clark's parents [neither did the original comic book story], or the "aftermath"- a few simple lines of narration "disposed" of them {and you're left to wonder WHY}. In the TV version of the origin story, "Eben Kent" collapses and dies of a heart attack, and Clark leaves his mother to take a bus to Metropolis [it's explained his aunt will look after her, but we never see "Sarah Kent" again for the rest of the series].

[mp01juve]

So Clark Kent leaves the house with the bodies of his dead parents inside.