Post-war Superman on the other hand, was thought to carry a more embellished version of American conservatism. Whatever Superman should mean to you, your childhood or your present day life, I hope we can join in to wish him and all those who identify as Jewish, a very Happy Hanukkah! The last day of Hanukkah is this Thursday, December 5th. Here are a few from our collection. Jack Nachbar and Kevin Lause Leave a comment. Filed under American Culture.
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About American Library. Blog at WordPress. Follow Following. American Library Join 1, other followers. Sign me up. There was definitely the same level of tension between conflicting ideas of American identity. What struck me most was the sense of displacement in the movie. When his parents are discussing their decision to send him to earth, his mother expresses anxiety that earth is too foreign, and that Kal-El will never be able to adapt to life there.
His father, on the other hand, stresses that his son will be able to look convincingly human. The fact that Krypton is then destroyed means that Superman can never go back to his place of origin, and that his past life would doom him, as well as his planet.
This, Engle writes, is reminiscent of the experiences of Eastern European Jewish immigrants in the 20th century, for whom acknowledging their own culture made assimilation impossible. This cements the fact that he has to keep moving forward, facing the future and not dwelling on the past.
This is consistent with the idea that America is a place of reinvention, where past identities can be discarded. Superman has no access to his Kryptonian heritage once on earth. At once, America represents freedom from the past, and somewhere from which it can never be accessed. Comments RSS. You are commenting using your WordPress. Jerry Siegel having died in January , his wife and daughter filed a copyright termination notice in Although Joe Shuster died in July , no termination was filed at this time by his estate.
This time the copyright term was extended to 95 years with a further window for reclamation introduced. In January Mark Peary, nephew and legal heir to Joe Shuster's estate, filed notice of his intent to reclaim Shuster's half of the copyright, the termination effective in Warner Bros.
The ruling does not affect the International rights, which Time Warner holds on the character through DC. Issues regarding the amount of monies owed Siegel's estate and whether the claim the estate has extends to derivative works such as movie versions will be settled at trial, although any compensation would be owed only from works published since Time Warner offered no statement on the ruling but do have the right to challenge it.
A similar termination-of-copyright notice filed in by Siegel's wife and daughter concerning the Superboy character was ruled on in their favor on March 23, This ruling is currently subject to a legal challenge from Time Warner, with the case as yet [update] unresolved. A July 9, , verdict on the case denied a claim by Siegel's family that it was owed licensing fees.
District Court judge Stephen G. Larson said Warner Bros. However, the court also ruled that if Warner Bros. Superman, given the serial nature of comic publishing and the length of the character's existence, has evolved as a character as his adventures have increased. The powers and villains were developed through the s, with Superman developing the ability to fly, and costumed villains introduced from The concept itself had originally been established to the reader in in the Superman comic strip.
The s saw the introduction of a second Superman. DC had established a multiverse within the fictional universe its characters shared. This allowed characters published in the s to exist alongside updated counterparts published in the s. This was explained to the reader through the notion that the two groups of characters inhabited parallel Earths.
The second Superman was introduced to explain to the reader Superman's membership in both the s superhero team the Justice Society of America and the s superhero team the Justice League of America. The s saw radical revisions of the character. DC decided to remove the multiverse in a bid to simplify its comics line.
This led to the rewriting of the back story of the characters DC published, Superman included. John Byrne rewrote Superman, removing many established conventions and characters from continuity, including Superboy and Supergirl. Byrne also re-established Superman's adoptive parents, The Kents , as characters. In Superman was killed by the villain Doomsday , [ 76 ] although the character was soon resurrected. His origin is again revisited in After a confrontation with Brainiac that results in his father's death, Superman discovers the lost city of Kandor, which contains 10, Kryptonians.
Their stay on Earth causes trouble, and the Kryptonians create their own planet, New Krypton. Eventually, New Krypton wages war against Earth. The two sides sustain major casualties and most of the Kryptonians are killed. Superman then starts a journey to reconnect with his adopted home world. In the original Siegel and Shuster stories, Superman's personality is rough and aggressive. The character was seen stepping in to attack and terrorize wife beaters , profiteers, a lynch mob and gangsters, with rather rough edges and a looser moral code than audiences may be used to today.
Although not as cold-blooded as the early Batman , the Superman featured in the comics of the s is unconcerned about the harm his strength may cause, tossing villainous characters in such a manner that fatalities would presumably occur, although these were seldom shown explicitly on the page.
This came to an end late in when new editor Whitney Ellsworth instituted a code of conduct for his characters to follow, banning Superman from ever killing. Today, Superman is commonly seen as a brave and kind-hearted hero with a strong sense of justice, morality and righteousness. He adheres to a strict moral code often attributed to the Midwestern values with which he was raised. His commitment to operating within the law has been an example to many other heroes but has stirred resentment among others, who refer to him as the "big blue boy scout.
This same loss, combined with the pressure of using his powers responsibly, has caused Superman to feel lonely on Earth, despite his many friends, his wife and his parents. Previous encounters with people he thought to be fellow Kryptonians, Power Girl [ 83 ] who is, in fact from the Krypton of the Earth-Two universe and Mon-El, [ 84 ] have led to disappointment.
The arrival of Supergirl , who has been confirmed to be not only from Krypton but also his cousin, has relieved this loneliness somewhat.
In many ways, Clark is the most human of us all. And how fortunate we all are that it does not occur to him. Superman has sometimes portrayed as a vegetarian, while at other times, an omnivore ; indeed, it is often unclear as to whether he even needs to eat, although in some works, such as Superman: Peace on Earth , it is clearly stated he doesn't need to eat, and thus he only eats for pleasure and will never know hunger. In Superman: Birthright , Superman is portrayed as a strict vegetarian.
However, in Straczynski's " Superman: Grounded " he ordered a "philly cheese steak" sandwich. It's a Plane Both the multiverse established by the publishers in the s and the Elseworlds line of comics established in have allowed writers to introduce variations on Superman. These have included differences in the nationality, race and morality of the character. Alongside such reimaginings, a number of characters have assumed the title of Superman, especially in the wake of " The Death of Superman " storyline, wherein four newly introduced characters are seen to claim the mantle.
As an influential archetype of the superhero genre, Superman possesses extraordinary powers, with the character traditionally described as "faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, and able to leap tall buildings in a single bound", a phrase coined by Jay Morton and first used in the Superman radio serials and Max Fleischer animated shorts of the s [ 96 ] as well as the TV series of the s.
For most of his existence, Superman's famous arsenal of powers has included flight , super-strength , invulnerability to non-magical attacks, super-speed , vision powers including x-ray , heat-emitting, telescopic, infra-red, and microscopic vision , super-hearing, and super-breath, which enables him to blow out air at freezing temperatures, as well as exert the propulsive force of high-speed winds.
As originally conceived and presented in his early stories, Superman's powers were relatively limited, consisting of superhuman strength that allowed him to lift a car over his head, run at amazing speeds and leap one-eighth of a mile, as well as an incredibly dense body structure that could be pierced by nothing less than an exploding artillery shell. Writers found it increasingly difficult to write Superman stories in which the character was believably challenged, [ ] so DC made a series of attempts to rein the character in.
The most significant attempt, John Byrne's rewrite, established several hard limits on his abilities: he barely survives a nuclear blast, and his space flights are limited by how long he can hold his breath. The source of Superman's powers has changed subtly over the course of his history. It was originally stated that Superman's abilities derived from his Kryptonian heritage, which made him eons more evolved than humans.
As Superman's powers increased, the implication that all Kryptonians had possessed the same abilities became problematic for writers, making it doubtful that a race of such beings could have been wiped out by something as trifling as an exploding planet. In part to counter this, the Superman writers established that Kryptonians, whose native star Rao had been red, possessed superpowers only under the light of a yellow sun. Superman is most vulnerable to green Kryptonite , mineral debris from Krypton transformed into radioactive material by the forces that destroyed the planet.
Exposure to green Kryptonite radiation nullifies Superman's powers and immobilizes him with pain and nausea; prolonged exposure will eventually kill him. The only substance on Earth that can protect him from Kryptonite is lead, which blocks the radiation. Lead is also the only known substance that Superman cannot see through with his x-ray vision. Kryptonite was first introduced to the public in as a plot device to allow the radio serial voice actor, Bud Collyer , to take some time off.
Stories making reference to the possibility of Superman siring children have been featured both in and out of mainstream continuity. Incarnations of Supergirl , Krypto the Superdog , and Superboy have also been major characters in the mythos, as well as the Justice League of America of which Superman is usually a member.
Team-ups with fellow comics icon Batman are common, inspiring many stories over the years. When paired, they are often referred to as the "World's Finest" in a nod to the name of the comic book series that features many team-up stories. Superman also has a rogues gallery of enemies, including his most well-known nemesis, Lex Luthor , who has been envisioned over the years in various forms as both a rogue scientific genius with a personal vendetta against Superman, or a powerful but corrupt CEO of a conglomerate called LexCorp who thinks Superman is somehow hindering human progress by his heroic efforts.
The alien android in most incarnations known as Brainiac is considered by Richard George to be the second most effective enemy of Superman. Darkseid , one of the most powerful beings in the DC Universe, is also a formidable nemesis in most post- Crisis comics. Other important enemies who have featured in various incarnations of the character, from comic books to film and television include the fifth-dimensional imp Mister Mxyzptlk , the reverse Superman known as Bizarro and the Kryptonian criminal General Zod , among many others.
Superman has come to be seen as both an American cultural icon [ ] [ ] and the first comic book superhero. His adventures and popularity have established the character as an inspiring force within the public eye, with the character serving as inspiration for musicians, comedians and writers alike.
Kryptonite, Brainiac and Bizarro have become synonymous in popular vernacular with Achilles' heel , extreme intelligence [ ] and reversed logic [ ] respectively. Similarly, the phrase "I'm not Superman" or alternatively "you're not Superman" is an idiom used to suggest a lack of invincibility.
The character's initial success led to similar characters being created. Wonder Man was published in May , and although DC successfully sued, claiming plagiarism , [ ] Fox had decided to cease publishing the character. Fox later had more success with the Blue Beetle. Fawcett Comics ' Captain Marvel , launched in , was Superman's main rival for popularity throughout the s and was again the subject of a lawsuit, which Fawcett eventually settled in , a settlement which involved the cessation of the publication of the character's adventures.
Superman became popular very quickly, with an additional title, Superman Quarterly , rapidly added. In the character was represented in the annual Macy's parade for the first time. The earliest paraphernalia appeared in , a button proclaiming membership in the Supermen of America club. By the amount of merchandise available increased dramatically, with jigsaw puzzles, paper dolls, bubble gum and trading cards available, as well as wooden or metal figures. The popularity of such merchandise increased when Superman was licensed to appear in other media, and Les Daniels has written that this represents "the start of the process that media moguls of later decades would describe as 'synergy.
Superman's appeal to licensees rests upon the character's continuing popularity, cross market appeal and the status of the "S" shield, the stylized magenta and gold "S" emblem Superman wears on his chest, as a fashion symbol. The "S" shield by itself is often used in media to symbolize the Superman character.
The character of Superman has appeared in various media aside from comic books. This is in some part seen to be owing to the character's cited standing as an American cultural icon, [ ] with the concept's continued popularity also being taken into consideration, [ ] but is also seen in part as due to good marketing initially.
The first adaptation of Superman was as a daily newspaper comic strip, which was launched on January 16, The strip ran until May and significantly, Siegel and Shuster used the first strips to establish Superman's background, adding details such as the planet Krypton and Superman's father, Jor-El , concepts not yet established in the comic books.
The series ran until March Collyer was also cast as the voice of Superman in a series of Superman animated cartoons produced by Fleischer Studios and Famous Studios for theatrical release.
Seventeen shorts were produced between and By Superman was back in the movie theatres, this time in a filmed serial, Superman , with Kirk Alyn becoming the first actor to portray Superman on screen. A second serial, Atom Man vs. Superman , followed in In a television series was commissioned, Adventures of Superman starring George Reeves , with the 25th and 26th episodes of the series being adapted from the theatrical release of the movie Superman and the Mole Men.
The series ran for episodes, from — The next adaptation of Superman occurred in , when Superman was adapted for the stage in the Broadway musical It's a Bird It's Superman. Despite good reviews, the play closed after only performances. Superman was again animated, this time for television, in the series The New Adventures of Superman. Sixty-eight shorts were made and broadcast between and Bud Collyer again provided the voice for Superman. Superman returned to movie theaters in with director Richard Donner's Superman starring Christopher Reeve.
The early 21st century brought an increased presence of Superman in live-action media. In , the Smallville television series was launched, focusing on the adventures of Clark Kent as a teenager before he dons the mantle of Superman; Tom Welling stars as Clark.
The series ended after ten seasons in May The film was presented as a loose sequel to the first two Christopher Reeve films. In , Welling was in consideration for the role of Superman in the planned film Justice League: Mortal , to be directed by George Miller.
Though never officially announced, D. Cotrona was cast in the part of Superman, but the film was canceled before production began. Superman has also featured as an inspiration for musicians, with songs by numerous artists from several generations celebrating the character.
Donovan 's Billboard Hot topping single " Sunshine Superman " utilized the character in both the title and the lyric, declaring "Superman and Green Lantern ain't got nothing on me". This cover is referenced by Grant Morrison in Animal Man , in which Superman meets the character, and the track comes on Animal Man 's walkman immediately after. Parodies of Superman did not take long to appear, with Mighty Mouse introduced in "The Mouse of Tomorrow" animated short in In Bugs Bunny was featured in a short, Super-Rabbit , which sees the character gaining powers through eating fortified carrots.
This short ends with Bugs stepping into a phone booth to change into a real "Superman" and emerging as a U. In Daffy Duck assumes the mantle of "Cluck Trent" in the short " Stupor Duck ", a role later reprised in various issues of the Looney Tunes comic book.
Jerry Seinfeld , a noted Superman fan, filled his series Seinfeld with references to the character and in asked for Superman to co-star with him in a commercial for American Express. Superman has also been used as reference point for writers, with Steven T. Seagle's graphic novel Superman: It's a Bird exploring Seagle's feelings on his own mortality as he struggles to develop a story for a Superman tale.
Superman has been interpreted and discussed in many forms in the years since his debut. The character's status as the first costumed superhero has allowed him to be used in many studies discussing the genre, Umberto Eco noting that "he can be seen as the representative of all his similars".
He regarded Superman's character in the early seventies as a comment on the modern world, which he saw as a place in which "only the man with superpowers can survive and prosper. Grayling, writing in The Spectator , traces Superman's stances through the decades, from his s campaign against crime being relevant to a nation under the influence of Al Capone , through the s and World War II, a period in which Superman helped sell war bonds, [ ] and into the s, where Superman explored the new technological threats.
Bush and the terrorist Osama bin Laden , America is in earnest need of a Saviour for everything from the minor inconveniences to the major horrors of world catastrophe. And here he is, the down-home clean-cut boy in the blue tights and red cape". Scott Bukatman has discussed Superman, and the superhero in general, noting the ways in which they humanize large urban areas through their use of the space, especially in Superman's ability to soar over the large skyscrapers of Metropolis.
He writes that the character "represented, in , a kind of Corbusierian ideal. Superman has X-ray vision: walls become permeable, transparent. Through his benign, controlled authority, Superman renders the city open, modernist and democratic; he furthers a sense that Le Corbusier described in , namely, that 'Everything is known to us'.
Jules Feiffer has argued that Superman's real innovation lay in the creation of the Clark Kent persona, noting that what "made Superman extraordinary was his point of origin: Clark Kent. Joe and I had certain inhibitions That's where the dual-identity concept came from" and Shuster supporting that as being "why so many people could relate to it".
Ian Gordon suggests that the many incarnations of Superman across media use nostalgia to link the character to an ideology of the American Way. He defines this ideology as a means of associating individualism, consumerism, and democracy and as something that took shape around WWII and underpinned the war effort. Superman he notes was very much part of that effort. Superman's immigrant status is a key aspect of his appeal. The extraterrestrial origin was seen by Regalado as challenging the notion that Anglo-Saxon ancestry was the source of all might.
Through the use of a dual identity, Superman allowed immigrants to identify with both their cultures. Clark Kent represents the assimilated individual, allowing Superman to express the immigrants cultural heritage for the greater good. He notes that "the only thing capable of harming Superman is Kryptonite, a piece of his old home world. He argues that Superman's early stories portray a threat: "the possibility that the exile would overwhelm the country.
Told that Superman was American, the boy reminded them that Superman is an alien, and furthermore that Wonder Woman is a foreigner. While Superman is largely considered to be the archetypal superhero, and the flagship character of DC Comics, he has enjoyed virtually no success in video games.
Ever since , when the first game was released on the Atari , numerous developers have tried at making a Superman game that was generally well-received, although none have succeeded.
One of the most notorious examples is the game for the Nintendo 64, simply titled "Superman" although often erroneously called "Superman 64" due to the tradition of N64 games putting the number "64" at the end of several titles , which is largely considered to be one of the worst games of all time.
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