SUPERMANIA extends its sincere thanks to SuperFan James Sawyer for providing the superb pictures above taken from the recent ‘Superheroes’ exhibit at the Indianapolis Childrens Hospital –
Among some of the awesome exhibits on show was this unique special effects portrait figure of Christopher Reeve as Superman not seen since its sale at auction in 2008. Most of this fantastic creation can be attributed to the legendary Stuart Freeborn, who was responsible for the unmistakable sculpting (the mold for which and other flying figures discussed here) and also presumably Derek Meddings for the mechanical cape flapping device.
At over 30 years old its a wonder this 26″ long puppet and tribute to moviemaking genius has survived in such pristine condition for everyone to enjoy. Check James fabulous Pop Culture blog Action Features for the full tour featuring other Super-items (the cape being covered here in the next post) and also take a moment to check out James ’89 Bat-Blog brother site to SUPERMANIA here…
Now that the merchandising powerhouse behind the upcoming Man Of Steel movie is starting to fill shelves with product across the globe, SUPERMANIA once again endeavours to campaign for a typically retro alternative.
Ironically, this project was initiated by the fresh availability of the Batman 1966 TV series licence, which, encouragingly, has been embraced by the industry and is being fully exploited even as a forty plus year-old property.
Frustratingly remaining unexploited is the ‘classic’ Superman movie series, which, despite having an equally broad, vocal fanbase, has yet to spawn a modern action figure line. Although DC Direct and Mattel continue to pump out various incarnations (of debatable quality) of the Superman character, arguably the closest embodiment of the version represented in the movies has not been seen since Kenner’s Superpowers line of 1984. Superman fans have clamoured for a figure line based on the series ever since.
In recent years Mattel had gone a great way to alleviate this by producing a totally unexpected line of 12″ adult collector figures (reviewed here, here and here) offered exclusively on mattycollector.com. While these were a welcome surprise, in retrospect, Mattel had probably passed on a better opportunity by not optioning a 6″ line first.
Cut back to 2013 and Mattel are not only full-force behind Man Of Steel but recently unveiled their Batman ’66 line to the amazement of fans that have waited literally decades for the opportunity. If nothing else, it proves how fickle the industry is and that all good things come to those who wait.
Meantime, inspired by the fabulous art-direction of the new Batman lineup I sought to create something I thought would be passable as a parallel addition. A pure wish-fulfillment project I’ve considered many times before, it wasn’t until I saw that Mattel had used a cardboard figure of Batman in their prototype packaging that I believed such a thing could be replicated low-tech by hand and look credible.
Fulfilling my brief that the final model should be a 100% practical bubble on card was not going to be easy. I have no photoshop skills but knew exactly how I wanted it to look. I called upon my good friend Jim Bowers to provide me with some high-quality images (which I composed for the backing card using Microsoft Word, no less). and then called upon Alexei Lambley-Steel to fashion me a printable Superman figure which I would hand-draw articulation on. The notion of the blister was always going to be problematic as I had no vaccuforming machine. After some thought It occurred to be laminating A3 sheets and making the shape squared off (and therefore foldable) rather than rounded would be just about undetectable. I would then photograph it so it wouldn’t be disregarded as a mere manip. The test for me was to look at it finished and really, really wish it were real. I did. Here it is above for your consideration, and I remain hopeful somebody in the industry is similarly captivated. Its already been too long…
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…
SUPERMANIA is pleased to report that at very long last the art and text for the Superman IV Trading Card set is complete! Barring last-minute changes, the set is now in the capable hands of Alexei who is currently in the process of selecting the ideal machine and sourcing the most accurate card stock for the era before going to print…
More updates and printed samples to follow..!
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…”
