New Releases Movies
Adventures of Superman: The Complete First Season
Adventures of Superman: The Complete First Season
- The legendary Man of Steel assumes the secret identity of Clark Kent, mild-mannered reporter for the Metropolis Daily Planet. And with powers and abilities far beyond those of mortal men, he battles for truth and justice as Superman. The first ever Superman TV series! Originally aired in the 1950’s, it features George Reeves as Superman and enjoyed tremendous success during its broadcast. The TV s
The legendary Man of Steel assumes the secret identity of Clark Kent, mild-mannered reporter for the Metropolis Daily Planet. And with powers and abilities far beyond those of mortal men, he battles for truth and justice as Superman. The first ever Superman TV series! Originally aired in the 1950’s, it features George Reeves as Superman and enjoyed tremendous success during its broadcast. The TV series premise was established a year before its broadcast via the theatrical release of “Superman and The Mole Men” in 1951. In 1952 Superman flew right into the hearts and minds of the American TV audience faster than a speeding bullet. Though most people were already familiar with man of steel through his comic books, as well as the popular radio show, it was the new medium’s Adventures of Superman that transformed our resident Kryptonian into a timeless icon. For many young baby boomers, Superman was the ultimate symbol of truth, justice and the American way. After watching this nostalgic t
List Price: $ 39.98
Price: $ 8.97
Top MOvie Today
Gary Marsh to Exit as Disney Branded Television President,
‘The Many Saints of Newark’ Magical and Burdensome, Reviews
‘Shang-Chi’ Adds $21 Million as Box Office Slows Down
‘The Eyes of Tammy Faye,’ ‘The Card Counter’ Revive Indie
‘Trust Me, You Don’t Want This’
-
Movies News5 years agoVenom struggle scene footage with out CGI is sure to make you giggle
-
Celebrities8 years ago
TV Query: Can ‘Lucifer’s’ Tom Ellis play the piano in real life?
-
Movies News8 years ago
Aubrey O'Day Reveals Pauly D Has His Penis Pierced: ''We've Been Having Rea…
-
Celebrities8 years ago
‘Vikings’: Who’s the man with one eye? We know the answer
Benjamin J Burgraff
October 21, 2011 at 7:18 pm
Terrific Debut of TV’s First ‘Man of Steel’!,
I’ve always gotten razzed when I say that George Reeves was the greatest ‘Superman’. After all, Christopher Reeve was closest to the comic book, Dean Cain introduced a level of sexiness to the character, and Tom Welling is the current teen heartthrob; the general impression of Reeves was as the chubby, aging, ‘long johns’-clad Superman, from the silly color TV episodes of the late 50s, who “killed himself” when the series ended.
The new DVD “Adventures of Superman – Complete First Season” should put that impression to rest!
Filmed in B&W, in 1951, the youthful, 37-year old Reeves offered a ‘Man of Steel’ of compassion, integrity, and honor, with a twinkle in his eye and a ready smile for the TV audiences who shared his ‘secret’. Far more charismatic than his movie serial predecessor, Kirk Alyn, he was as quick to use his head and his fists as his “Powers and Abilities’ to defend “Truth, Justice, and the American Way” against gangsters, spies, and evildoers. While some may quibble that his ‘Clark Kent’ was TOO heroic, and similar to his costumed alter ego, he was an unabashed role model for a generation of young viewers, and he never let us down, during the ‘Superman’ years, either on screen, or off.
The first season episodes are, perhaps, the best of the series, produced by veterans of the B-movie industry who knew how to make action-packed stories quickly, and cinematically. The plots are rich in film noir touches (“The Haunted Lighthouse” is so atmospheric that it could stand beside many of the noir dramas of the 40s), and offer, for the first time, believable flying effects (achieved, in large part, by double-exposing film of Reeves hanging by wire and harness, attached to a body-contoured ‘flying pan’, worn under his suit, with moving aerial shots). The episodes were never ‘dumbed down’ for kids; while some characters were played for laughs, the stories were serious, the violence real. These shows were not produced for children, they were made for the same audiences who loved adventure stories in movie theaters (it would take self-appointed committees to decide children weren’t fit for such things, and force the series into complying, in later seasons).
Joining Reeves in the cast were 24-year-old Phyllis Coates as a spirited Lois Lane far ahead of her time; John Hamilton, 65, a veteran character actor for nearly 50 years, as crusty editor Perry White; B-movie vet Robert Shayne, 50, as Kent’s friend, Police Inspector Henderson, and, best of all, 18-year old Jack Larson as a tousled-haired, naive Jimmy Olsen.
But, ultimately, the season (and the series) owed it’s success to George Reeves, who appeared in every episode, and worked tirelessly to bring the Last Son of Krypton to life. As the syndicated series reached more and more markets (as TV stations began to spread across the nation), his performance, and the series, became national sensations, giving him the success that had eluded him in twelve years of acting, but also forever ‘typing’ him in a role that would cost him his career, and possibly his life.
“The Adventures of Superman” would be his legacy, and this fabulous collection might have you joining me in celebrating the BEST Superman of them all!
Was this review helpful to you?
|A. Gammill
October 21, 2011 at 6:33 pm
A classic series, nice bonus features, a great low price….Super!,
What a treat, both for Superman fans and people who just enjoy classic t.v. shows of the fifties. It’s pretty much universally acknowledged that season one of THE ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN is far and away the best of the series. George Reeves was a no-nonsense hero, and quite believable in the role. The series had plenty of action and the first-season scripts were usually solid.
And I’m pleasantly surprised to see the rare theatrical feature, SUPERMAN AND THE MOLE MEN included here. Although it’s essentially Superman on a b-movie budget, there’s plenty to like about this forgotten piece of Superman history.
A common practice in the early days of television was to get a show’s actors to endorse the advertisers’ products. Perhaps the rarest and most unusual treat for fans of classic t.v. are the orignial Kellog’s cereal commercials, featuring cast members from the show. Clark Kent sells Frosted Flakes!
There’s an informative documentary, with comments from Superman experts and a VERY old Jack Larson, who played Jimmy Olsen on the show. With all these extras and a first-rate presentation of the episodes, this is a classic t.v. lover’s dream come true. Highly recommended.
Was this review helpful to you?
|