Presenting the first of a series of posts coming to you directly from an exclusive tour of the Propstore Of London!
The editors of SUPERMANIA, A Tribute To Christopher Reeve and the No Wires Facebook page came together this past week and were given unprecedented access to the huge archive of original props and material currently on display/for sale at the UK office. Though the facility is a fanboy paradise in its own right (with treasures from decades of movie magic too numerous to even list here) we had been granted special permission to examine one of the showcase pieces of the Propstore collection – an original and authentic Superman costume.
It was during the walkaround of one of the Propstore’s many storage areas when Sebastian Columbo noticed something familiar stood high on a wooden shelf nestled anonymously among other pieces such as the Alien Queen maquette and simply stated ‘Boots’. I asked one of the helpful assistants to fetch the items down for us to see and once the cloud of dust had dissipated, sure enough we all stood in wonder looking at the costume pieces shown above.
Unconvinced at first due to the zips being visible on the rear, I peeked inside and instantly noticed the faded inscription inside reading ‘Stamp’, then noticed the label dangling from the left boot (second pic) and it was confirmed – we were looking at General Zod’s original boots.
As we had been given permission to photograph the Superman costume I asked if the boots could come along too, which our guide (General Manager Tim) was happy to arrange. Later as we were snapping away Alexei paused to look at the boots and noticed something odd – ‘They’re red’ he kept saying. Convinced Superman’s cape was reflecting on the black PVC I suggested we took them out into the daylight for a better look…
The debate regarding the Phantom Zone villain’s all-black uniforms really opened up with the release of Superman II, The Richard Donner cut where during some scenes, the shiny accoutrements of the trio’s costume indeed seemed to be metallic red. SUPERMANIA can confirm that incredibly, in a similar fashion to the Superman’s costume’s ability to change colour with light, General Zod’s boots follow the same principle. I have no idea how this was achieved but as the (third & fourth) pics show, Yvonne Blake’s customary alchemy is still in full effect…
Our sincere thanks go to Tim, Stephen and the Propstore crew for their kindness and generosity. View the official listing for the boots here – as of this writing, they are still available to own…
In celebration of Superman’s 75th birthday, SUPERMANIA looks back at a special moment in the character’s history where the comic-book and movie worlds would briefly collide, culminating in one of the most publicised campaigns in its history.
With the unprecedented response to the Great Superman Movie Contest and resulting boost in sales for DC Comics, a follow-up competition was somewhat of an inevitability. But what could possibly top the prize of the first contest (where lucky young winners Tim Hussey and Ed Finneran were picked from thousands of entries to actually appear in Superman: The Movie) and what challenge would have to be met to better the submission of coupons obtained over months of various DC titles?
Fans may have had to answer a series of complex DC trivia questions to enter this time (25 in fact, all buried within the pages of different issues) but the prize was arguably even more coveted – Christopher Reeve’s screen-worn walking cape from Superman: The Movie.
Once again from the multitude of submissions (and many more lower tier prizes won) only 21 entrants managed to answer the questions 100% correctly. DC President Sol Harrison thought such dedication should be rewarded by the final draw being made by somebody prestigious from the new Movie – and who better than Superman himself?
DC employee Bob Rozakis recounts – “So, the morning he came in, he was escorted down the hall to Sol’s office and with all pomp and circumstance, Chris reached into the box and pulled out the winner. He was quite surprised that the box was not overflowing with cards, but when we explained about the 25 questions, he smiled and said, “I never would have gotten them all and I am Superman!”
Editor Jack Harris elaborates further – “Sol Harrison had charged me with the task of finding ‘someone from the movie’ to draw our winners because of my contacts with the Warner Publicity Department during my editing of “Superman: the Movie Magazine.” I called my contact upstairs and told him what we were looking for. Proving the theory that no one in New York City is more that two phone calls away from anyone else, I called the agent. I asked him if any of his clients would be willing to help us. He said, “Oh, there’s someone here in my office right now who can probably help you.” In another second I was talking to Christopher Reeve himself! Chris told me he was appearing on a morning news show the following day in a studio right across the street from the DC offices at Rockefeller Center and that he would be happy to stop by…”
With a glittering career spanning over five decades and the globe, its intriguing to discover British stalwart costume designer Yvonne Blake’s first tribute volume is written in Spanish. Indeed, Victor Matellano’s lavishly-illustrated paperback went unbeknownst to me until late last year despite being published in 2006.
And what a volume it is – over the course of almost 300 pages the reader is treated to dozens of Ms. Blake’s sketches (rendered in her distinctive style) with corresponding photographs of the staggering multitude of productions showing how her creations were brought to memorable life. Having dressed everybody from Streep to Pacino it becomes more and more remarkable as the chapters come & go just how many screen credits have been amassed in some of the most popular movies of the 20th century.
With an introduction by notoriously recluse Director Richard Lester, the book charts Blake’s early career beginning in late ’50’s London and steadily gaining momentum thanks to the British Hammer Horror productions throughout the 60’s and expanding onto bigger budget blockbusters such as ‘The Eagle Has Landed’. By 1973 Blake had a considerable Hollywood portfolio and had caught the attention of extravagant producer Alexander Salkind, who along with his son Ilya hired Blake for their ambitious take on ‘The Three Muskateers.’ for what would infamously become two pictures shot simultaneously. So well-received were Blake’s creations that the young designer was first and only choice for the Salkind’s next huge project, Superman: The Movie.
Chapter 11 is entitled Marlon Brando y el hombre de acero (Marlon Brando and the Man of Steel) and is devoted to exploring how these now classic creations were forged (see pics above). From Brando’s own day-glo robes (achieved by firing light onto 3M front projection material) to the final design of the first cinematic Superhero costume not intended to draw yucks from a modern audience…
While precious little information has surfaced over the years about the nature of Blake’s Superman costume, dedicated fans including myself have pooled resources and have attempted to provide the most exhaustive guide to date (the book corroborates most of our findings short of stating the costumes were made in Austria rather than Germany) and the updated version can be found here along with sumptuous galleries portraying Blake’s most lingering legacy…
Currently in exhibition at the appropriately futuristic EMP (Experience Music Project and Science Fiction Museum) of Seattle, Washington are these two incredible artefacts from the Superman series. Since June 2012 the ‘Icons Of Science Fiction’ display has wowed visitors with an impressive collection of authentic props and costumes from Alien to Star Trek while offering an insight into Sci-Fi’s literary roots.
From the top; SuperFan and colleague Jason DeBord of the original prop blog photographed the original Superman costume from Superman IV: The Quest For Peace on a recent visit – though the belt stands out as reproduction and the squat nature of the mannequin lend the display odd proportions (third pic from google search)
The museum’s real coup, however, is the detailed miniature of the baby Kal-El Starship from Superman: The Movie preserved with its pylons and even some of its clear ‘flying’ lines intact. Though an unknown number of these type of miniatures were produced by Derek Meddings’ team, its scale makes me think it could be traced back to last being on public display in London’s Planet Hollywood. Still an impressive design, the amazing shot by Eric Skaar (bottom pic) depicts it in all its otherworldly glory.
Read Jason DeBord’s full report on the visit here…
On loan from the BFI Archive and part of a vast collection of wardrobe chronicling over 100 years of cinema, The London Victoria & Albert museum will be exhibiting a complete costume from Superman IV: The Quest For Peace from next week.
The Hollywood Costume exhibition runs until January 27th 2013 and covers three expansive galleries. Mounted in a flying position and free from inhibiting plexiglass, this is a rare opportunity to see one of the few genuine Superman costumes worn by Christopher Reeve up close and in detail. The exhibition also has the clever feature of LCD screens with stills of the actor’s faces in place of generic mannequins.
SUPERMANIA will be bringing you a full report from the site with accompanying photographs soon – thanks to Zimbio.com for the exclusive behind the scenes pics above…
