Original ad campaign plan for the first full length superman movie. Before mccarthyism created an environment of forced jingoistic conformity in american culture, and before psychiatrist fredric werthams campaign against subversive elements in comic books made any straying from 1950sera norms a careerending. The ray cannon effects are quite novel as well, and they dont really look. Marchand mediasuperman 1950s tv show george reeves. Blow the man down 2020 kingdom come 1996 superman and the mole men 1951 alice in wonderland 3d 2010. The mole men are a race of intelligent, subterranean humanoids. When underground beings explore the surface world from a deep oil well and inadvertantly cause a panic, only superman can prevent a tragedy. For what its worth, my other favorite comic bookstrip movies are the first blondie feature, dick tracy meets gruesome, the lone ranger with clayton moore, the 1966 batman feature, mario bavas danger. It appeared a message to the ignorant and racist alike that this is america and that it is accepting of all who come to it either thru its shore,from outer spaceas superman did himself. Superman doesnt have all that much screen time, with much of the pictures 58 minutes devoted to a couple of mole men trying to outrun the citizens of silsby. Today, a look at the first superman feature film, 1951s superman and the mole men. We truly start in silsby as we see characters talking like stereotype of 50s characters, which i guess makes those accurate.
The 58 minutes long movie was produced by lippert picturs, the company behind the lowbudget surprise hit of 1950, rocketship xm. Print advertisement for superman and the mole men from 1951. Since the lateforties, televisions had begun popping up in homes, and. Essentially it is a tv production taken to the big screen. With george reeves, phyllis coates, jeff corey, walter reed. Although the molemen are interesting, a bit creepy.
The drill, however, has penetrated the underground home of a race of. Many actors have come after, but george reeves was the definitive superman. Oct 29, 2017 superman and the mole men, george reeves, vintage photo still 51 ebay. Shot on a studio backlot in just 12 days and on a microbudget, superman and the mole men is certainly a product of its time and comes complete with all the typical 50s b. Batman v superman dawn of justice art of the film book peter aperlo sealed new. Superman s first fulllength film stars george reeves as the title character and phyllis coates as lois lane, roles both actors performed on the tv series of the 50s. The mole men in that movie were somehow created through forced degeneration presumably some kind of breeding program to act as slaves for a lost human civilization living underground. It is not long before the two reporters discover what caused that fatal fright. Superman and the mole men 1951vscaptain america 1990. Theres nothing terribly flashy about superman and the mole men. Both would continue on the tv series adventures of superman.
Superman and the mole men 1951 may, 2020 may, 2020. They are short, nearly bald, and have molelike bodies. Im not sure why the mole men even came up to the surface. Superman and the molemen 1951 superman and the mole. Comic movie master list superman and the mole men 1951. It later became the site on which the mole men first ascended to the surface of the earth angry citizens in the town, led by luke benson, attacked the first mole men to visit the surface. George reeves and phyllis coates are much fun as superman and lois lane and some familiar faces like jeff corey as the town rabblerouser and billy curtis as one of the mole men are also fun to see. Nm 1951 superman and the mole men movie campaign plan. The man who stole memories starring superman, moose collins, and professor higgins, script by bill woolfolk. Americas greatest comic book hero to movie audiences in 1951 with a message of tolerance for those who are not like us. Superman and the molemen realized siegel and shusters. Superman finished its 15week story, the last son of krypton made his return to the silver screen in superman and the mole men, released by lippert pictures. Since then, filmmakers have continually mined the realms of comic books, graphic novels, animation, tv, and even.
Id fly around the block with a pillow case pinned to my. Superman and the mole men flights, tights, and movie nights. It was the first theatrical feature film based on the superman characters although two live action superman films had already been shown in. Superman and the mole men is an independently made 1951 american black andwhite. This group is 40 files, a few being a few kilobytes of the start. Lots of shots of mole men sneaking around and then being chased by an angry mob, but very little actual superman. Superman and the mole men 1951 out of 4 reporters clark kent george reeves and lois lane phyllis coates are sent to texas to do a story on an oil rig that has dug six feet into the ground but soon the big story becomes the mole men that have crawled out of the hole. Superman, the comicbook man of steel created in 1938 by jerry siegel and joe shuster, made his featurefilm debut in lipperts superman and the mole men. Superman and the mole men is generally considered the first full length superhero movie even though there were serials for both batman and superman before this one. Fullpage ad for the feature film superman and the mole men. The comic book company decided to include a feature film as part of the.
It was later chopped into three episodes for air during the series. Superman and the mole men 1951 pressbook from zombos closet. George reeves was the cats meow in the 1950s and 60s to every kid boys mostly growing up and watching the adventures of superman on television. Reporters clark kent and lois lane arrive in the small town of silsby to witness the drilling of the worlds deepest oil well. Superman and the mole men 1951 was the first fulllength superman film brought to american audiences. Superman and the mole men was just another cheap, shlocky b movie intended for quick consumption. Up until superman and the mole men, the only onscreen adaptations of comic book characters were in the form of serials. Based on the comic book character created by jerry siegel and joe shuster created in 1938. Silsby is a small town somewhere in the united states, originally famous during the 50s for having the worlds deepest oil well, a well that extends down nearly 6 miles. The story takes place in the small town of silsby, where the local oil.
Prince, tom petty, steve winwood, jeff lynne and others while my guitar gently weeps duration. Superman and the mole men 1951 is more to my taste. But, superman and the mole men has the distinction of being the first feature film based on a dc comic book. Superman, the comic book man of steel created in 1938 by jerry siegel and joe shuster, made his featurefilm debut in lipperts superman and the mole men. It is the first feature film based on any dc comics character the films storyline concerns reporters clark kent and lois lane arriving in the. Why you should watch the adventures of superman screenrant. This lowbudget production was, in fact, not so much a film that was intended to stand on its own legs, as it was a pilot for a planned superman tv series. Forgivable keep in mind that this film is based on a golden age comic book. Superman and the mole men is an independently made 1951 american blackandwhite superhero film released by lippert pictures produced by barney a. Superman and the mole men is an independently made 1951 american blackandwhite. Considered by many to forever be the quintessential superman, george reeves, left the world much too young and with a touch of immortality. Superman and the molemen was written by robert maxwell, who had worked on the superman radio show, as well as whitney ellsworth, a dc comics editor and writer, who had worked as consultant on the previous batman serials, as well as the superman serials. Three mole men with their advanced weapon, standing beside superman during their first ascent to the surface. For what its worth, my other favorite comic bookstrip movies are the first blondie.
Id fly around the block with a pillow case pinned to my jacket like a cape and swoosh down on evildoers, but only after school let out, of course. Superman and the mole men borrows quite liberally from numerous sources, including the day the earth stood still 1951. Superman and the molemen 1951 published on may, 2020 may, 2020 by jon thomas up until superman and the molemen, the only onscreen adaptations of comic book characters were in the form of serials. Since then, there have been many stories written about the last son of krypton, leading to the character being adapted to radio, television, film, and books. Superman and the mole men george reeves lobby card rare 5. But it struck a nerve and set the nation on a path to fall in love with superheroes. The mole men are radioactive, and leave everything they touch aglow. Superman and the mole men 1951 pressbook from zombos. Superman and the molemen 1951 was the first fulllength.
Superman and the mole men is tagged as the first fulllength feature for superman. But lets not forget kirk alyns 1948 and 1950 movie serials. There are no big flying effects, no big action sequences, and the mole man makeup is not especially mole like. The story takes place in the small town of silsby, where the local oil company is drilling what will become the worlds deepest well. Superman and the mole men, 1951 original vintage lobby card movie poster 11x14 starring george reeves. How has every superman movie done at the box office. According to my research, the film was meant as a test for a planned superman television series. They seem to posess advanced technology, as is evidenced by the laser weapon they use. Superman thrill salesman, script by edmond hamilton, art by al plastino. With barely a year having passed since atom man vs. Superman, the comicbook man of steel created in 1938 by jerry siegel and joe shuster, made his featurefilm debut in lipperts superman. The fact that they glow in the dark scares the townfolk, who form a mob, led by the vicious luke benson, intent on killing the. Phyllis coates played lois lane during the first season of the series as well as the pilot film, superman and the mole men, but backed out of returning to the role for its second season, leaving the role to noel neill, who had previously played ms. Get the best deals on superman movie memorabilia when you shop the largest online selection at.
Whenever i see lists of superhero or comic book movies, typically the first movie on that list is this one. Superman and the mole men by lee sholem george reeves. Superman and the mole men is a 1951 black and white film starring george reeves as superman and phyllis coates as lois lane. So we guess they can both be called the original lois lane. Now, only superman can stop a war from breaking out between bizarre underground dwellers and hicktown yokels. This is the old superman series from 19521958 with george reeves as clark kent superman. Superman and the mole men dvd 1951 cheezy flicks ent.
Superman and the molemen 1951 directed by lee sholem. Superman must save a small western town from an invasion of radioactive mole men making. Here is a listing of all of the superman movies that received theatrical release i am not including the serials that ran in short segments over an extended period of time. Superman and the mole men 1951 intro subtitulada youtube.
Sarecky and directed by lee sholem, it stars george reeves as superman and phyllis coates as lois lane. The drill, however, has penetrated the underground home of a race of small, furry people who then come to the surface at night to look around. I can see why this was titled superman and the molemen rather than vs. Nicholas 20070920 finally warner brothers has released this movie to dvd as part of the adventures of superman collection starring george reeves its in vol 1 and warners.
The potential for these crusaders to draw in audiences has been explored and expanded further than anyone could have imagined back when superman and the molemen became the first superhero movie to hit cinemas in 1951. Due to the nature of what serials are, its debatable on what you want to say is the first superhero movie. Much fun very low budget beginning sort of pilot film for the early 51 tv series classic. Superman and the mole men was a 50s film that served as the basis for the tv series. Used to watch this tv show a lot as a kid and it came out way before i was even born. Superman clark kentkalel by john byrne comic book artists.
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