Enjoy this vintage German promotional material for the international release of Superman IV: Die Welt Am Abgrund’, (Interestingly translated as ‘The World At The Abyss’) where the copy goes to considerable effort to make the movie sound like the greatest thing to ever grace the silver screen.
Featuring the ‘unique’ German cut & paste poster art, the tiny Cinenews Program from March 1988 (top pic) proudly declares this is ‘Superman’s last chance’ in ‘The huge battle with over 300 optical effects’ before opening up to a nicely composed spread of publicity photos (second pic) where the accompanying review labels it ‘As strong as Kryptonite’.
Exhibiting far more restraint is the large pull-out poster (third pic) from an unknown magazine produced in association with the movie’s broadcast on German TV channel Sat 1, where it was presented as the cult movie of the week…
In an era where cereal premiums and movie promotions really gained momentum, the Nabisco Company had wisely remained faithful to the Superman movie franchise after a successful campaign backing Superman II a few years earlier.
Always looking for new gimmicks to push product out to kids (and ensuring its longevity by making their giveaways a collectable series) the ‘Action Replay Games’ found in special packs of Shreddies were a cunning use of nothing so special as laminate cardboard that would wipe away felt-tip pen.
Based on various scenes from Superman III this handsomely illustrated (with art provided by the stalwart Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez) series of six cards were an instant hit but by their very nature would deteriorate quickly (quicker still had you not read the instructions & used ball-point pen) and so would ultimately be disposed of, making them a rarity in the years to follow.
SUPERMANIA therefore, is proud to present not only the comic book ad (bottom pic) but scans of an original pristine Shreddies cereal box detailing all the fantastic artwork (and some rare stills) used in the promotion.
And coming soon – the complete set of ‘Action Replay’ games reproduced front & back in resolution suitable for printing…
Roughly translated from the cover as ‘gift of the first comic of Superman’ this magnificent vintage feature from the pages of ultra-rare Italian TV guide is 34 years old this month and SUPERMANIA’s Christmas treat for 2014.
With (flipped, notice the redone ‘S’ shield) cover art utilizing the fantastic painting used for the International release of Richard Lester’s Superman II the nine-page pictorial combines stills from the new movie with reproductions of the pages of Action Comics #1, highlighting ‘Il giorno In cui Superman arrivo sulla terra – Superman’s arrival on Earth.
SUPERMANIA wishes all its loyal followers the most Super-Christmas and all the best for the new year. The Adventure Continues in 2015..!!!
What better time than the holiday season to revisit one of the most fun Superman-related broadcasts of yesteryear. Appearing in episode 18 of Season 4 of The Muppet Show, special guest Christopher Reeve shows off his considerable comic talent in a series of amusing sketches with Kermit & Co. in 1980.
Though an unmissable childhood favourite, SUPERMANIA was surprised to learn that Jim Henson’s long-running beloved creation was actually made in the UK for Lew Grade’s ITV. This accounts for the use of Mego’s European version of the 12″ Superman figure among the hordes of British promotional material (including an early still of Reeve, bottom pic) for Superman: The Movie in Miss Piggy’s dressing room.
Also on show in the first clip (top) is a copy of Action Comics #506 (second pic) flicked through by Reeve before changing (in a phone booth) to perform a hilarious rendition of ‘East of the Sun and West of the Moon’ with Miss Piggy…
Courtesy of Superman In Advertising And Media come these exclusive vintage photographs of the artefacts featured in The Smithsonian Institution’s ‘Superman, Many Lives, Many Worlds’ exhibition circa 1988.
Celebrating the 50th anniversary of a true American icon, SUPERMANIA continues its retrospective from the star-attended opening (click here) to the significant collection on display and even some memorabilia from the event itself.
While the George Reeves TV show The Adventures Of Superman features prominently behind the Plexiglas, the recent release of Superman IV: The Quest For Peace had clearly yielded some treasures under the banner of ‘A New Superman In Hollywood’ where both Christopher Reeve’s Superman Costume featured at one end (top pic) and Mark Pillow’s Nuclearman costume at the other. Quite why the expensive outfits were mounted on such cheap wooden cutouts is a mystery but faring better is Margot Kidder’s silk dress (second pic) accompanied by no less than Reeve’s Clark Kent glasses and Marc McClure’s bow-tie worn as Jimmy Olsen.
Other great items from the movies on show are an original Daily Planet newspaper cover and below it, one of the script drafts for Superman IV by Konner and Rosenthal. As if the opportunity of seeing these relics first-hand was not enough, there was also an opportunity to purchase exclusive collectibles on the day, such as the advertising postcard (third pic) with superb art from Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez and two buttons below from the SUPERMANIA collection pictured with a promotional ad…
