When the long term loan of the incredible Superman costume display from the Propstore Of London was over, the London Film Museum required fresh Superhero items to exhibit.
While nothing could ever compete with the splendid ‘Hall Of Superheroes’, (the Michael Keaton Batman/Returns suit also returning to its owner) the former Movieum nevertheless sourced a new (albeit curious) menagerie of props to fill the gap until its eventual closure of the South Bank site last year.
These extraordinary shots from the flickr album of [email protected]depict a group of objects pertaining to be from the original Superman series hastily assembled against a somewhat underacheived backdrop (top pic).
The first prop (second pic) hanging from the ceiling is apparently a large flying miniature of Christopher Reeve (although there was no signage to verify this as a production used or made piece) in appropriate condition for its age but sporting a baggy costume and what appears to be short PVC cape.
The second mystery is the giant upper portion of a magnificent rendering of the Statue Of Liberty. Again, with no signage to which picture this was attributed there is no way to verify its use or authenticity (Superman IV’s torn away cape shot??) although the build quality definitely suggests screen used.
Lastly, there thankfully could be no doubt regarding the provenance of what would be proven as a legitimate prop from Superman IV: The Quest For Peace. In remarkable condition given its age and materials used, the baby Kal-El starship is notable for being the only item on show to feature signage, albeit misleading and inaccurate.
The current whereabouts of these pieces is sadly unknown. With the London Film Museum becoming a a permanent display of Bond Vehicles over in its Covent Garden site (see the last Superman item to be exhibited there here) its doubtful they will be seen again for some time. If anybody can update SUPERMANIA as to the fate of these props, feel free to get in touch..!
This latest vintage addition to the SUPERMANIA collection has the distinction of being preserved for all eternity on a special AKAI videocassette (for high fidelity sound and picture!) released in 1992.
Beneath its fragile cardboard slipcase (with obligatory flipped deleted scene still on the rear) lurks an unmarked VHS tape, the contents of which are the longest available European cut of the film at 89 minutes in fullscreen with Danish subtitles and an AKAI logo in place of the standard Cannon/Warner intro card.
A perfect accompaniment for the tape is the Dutch theatrical release poster from the archive (bottom pic) which text translates; ‘The greatest adventure of all time, soon in theatres – Christopher Reeve is back in Superman IV…
SUPERMANIA extends a warm welcome back to one of its greatest contributors and as evidenced above, Superfan Jayce76 has maintained a keen eye for the iconic.
As showcased on the all-new site CinemaZone Wallpaper, these amazingly authentic-looking print ad style compositions continue Jayce long association with celebrating the classic Superman series. All these unique creations from the best (and most obscure) cult properties from the silver screen are free to download. See some of his equally stunning earlier works here and look out for more in future…
It may have taken over thirty years to clarify but when Perry White confronts his Daily Planet staff about the mysterious ‘flying whatchamacallit’ and asks “What does he keep hidden under that cape of his?? Batteries!?” The answer, most emphatically, is yes.
Courtesy of SuperFan Steve Lumsdon comes yet another SUPERMANIA exclusive and tribute to the ingenuity of special effects craftsmen of yesteryear. Pictured above is the finest reference to date of the legendary ‘Cape Flapping’ device built by Colin Chilvers & Co. to simulate convincing movement whilst ‘in flight”. The mechanism was created out of necessity to control the flow of the cape whilst star Christopher Reeve was suspended on the infamous ‘Pole Arm’ or wire flying rig.
Operated by remote control, the custom unit consisted of a motor and battery pack housed in an aluminum box which was mounted on Reeve’s back by a velcro attachment (third pic). When activated, the motor would drive the umbrella-like poles (covered in cape fabric to blend seamlessly into folds) up & down at random to create ripples. Besides the full-size version, at least one more was created, amazingly,in miniature for models in certain scenes.
As the production team in 1978 worked hard to preserve the illusion that ‘you will believe a man can fly’ by not revealing the details on how many of the effects were achieved, this device was widely considered a myth until it was officially acknowledged in the extras on the Superman: The Movie Special Edition on DVD. Although undetectable for the vast majority of the Salkind produced films (including Supergirl) in which it was used, the scene where Superman swoops down to save Frisky from the tree and the blooper from Superman III (Bottom pic) are the best proof of its existence until now…
For the enviable opportunity of owning this piece of SFX Magic and cinema history, catch Steve’s auction here…
A SUPERMANIA exclusive courtesy of Jim Lynn and his fantastic blog VHISTORY, from tape 222 of his vast archive of 3000 vintage VHS recordings comes this long-thought-lost footage from the making of Superman IV: The Quest For Peace.
Barry Norman’s Film (insert year) was a British institution on the BBC for decades and pre-internet, arguably the best source for all things Cinema. Despite his famously sardonic presentation style it was clear Norman had an enduring affection for the Superman series as evidenced by this excellent location report from Film ’87, presented here for the FIRST time on the internet with never-before-seen onset footage.
The basis for Norman’s report is how Christopher Reeve had come back to the franchise after controversially (at the time) declaring ‘Never again’ during part III. Reeve’s comments in the interview are hilariously contradicted by a clearly embittered Margot Kidder, nose firmly out of joint having been thought of as too old to resume her role as Lois Lane. While Reeve is clearly happy indulging himself with his second-unit direction/story contribution and comparing his latest co-star (Mariel Hemmingway) to Ingrid Bergman, Kidder’s opinion about being sidelined is ironically at odds with her part in the finished film as the love story between Superman & Lois had not been given greater emphasis since Superman II…
