1988 was a landmark year for the Superman character – his 50 year anniversary was intended by DC Comics to be a grand event celebrated across all mediums.
Beyond featuring on the cover of Time magazine it was instead a subdued occasion with only the best-forgotten TV special (hosted by Dana Carvey) to mark it. The film series had bowed out on a sour note with disappointing returns and poor critical and audience response to Superman IV: The Quest For Peace. Initiators of the Superman Film series, Alexander and Ilya Salkind would eventually buy the rights back from The Cannon Group Inc. after premiering their SuperBoy TV show to similarly lukewarm notices. Though the series would continue for three seasons, Superman would be noticeably absent from our screens for some time…
From the top – Vintage magazine ad, scarce A3 size pop-up promo card for video rental, an original copy in library case and the UK Laserdisc…
This fascinating collage of screengrabs culled from the Superman IV; Deluxe Edition DVD represent a very special memory for me as this was irrefutable proof that not only did these scenes exist, but would finally, finally be released –
I remember first reading the news (and nearly falling out of my chair) during a Warner Bros. Q&A about the Ultimate Edition Box Set and the casual announcement that “All the footage from Superman IV had been found” and there “Will be a considerable amount of deleted scenes”. I still refused to believe it until I saw the list of chapters themselves for rating by the BBFC. Then upon the boxset release, SuperFan Sebastian Columbo swiftly sent me the images above.
Considering the footage was the subject of volumes of speculation and debate that would litter the Internet for years, the only agreement across the board was that it would never be seen. A true highlight of my fandom and thanks to WB for making it happen…
Exclusive to the UK and released around 1989, Superman; The Collection was one of the first VHS boxsets made available by Warner Bros.
Culled from the second run of individually released titles and repackaged as ‘The Superheroes’ collection (Including Supergirl and other WB catalog titles including Santa Claus: The Movie) the set was expensive at the time and therefore a rarity today.
Contained in a handsome box utilising elements of the shield graphic from Superman: the Movie and Daniel Goozee’s poster art for the Superman IV: The Quest For Peace, its interesting to note how many production companies were tied into the distribution (WB/Weintraub/Cannon/Hollywood NItes) before Warner’s retained full ownership of the rights in 1993. It would be decades before advances in technology would permit them to exploit the titles once again in a far more definitive boxset on DVD…
