Issued to coincide with the release of Superman II in 1980, this exclusive set of letraset transfer sheets were dropped one at a time into packs of Nabisco Shreddies breakfast cereal. Intended for use with various cityscape ‘action scenes’ printed on the backs of the boxes, kids were free to create their own archaic version of the Metropolis battle.
Though amusingly primitive by today’s standards, the ‘rub down transfer’ craze would be huge in its day with a plethora of science-fiction/action movie/military/TV show offerings in sets featuring numerous figures and backdrop options. Denied a set in its own right, the Superman series was represented only by the promo as shown above and consequently complete sets are scarce. Should this bring on an irresistible wave of nostalgia I recommend visiting action-transfers.com for a comprehensive list…
The Propstore Of London has struck again with another fine piece of cinematic history, this time from the opening scene of Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut where Lois Lane seeks to prove Superman’s identity by way of a sketch.
The above is one of the few ‘clean’ versions of this prop as Margot Kidder would be required to draw her Clark Kent over Superman’s picture with marker take after take (as shown in the contact sheet supplied!). Its a little known fact that the Daily Planet newspaper mockups were headlines & pics assembled around real news stories of the time/gibberish and that only the covers (and inserts when required) were produced wrapped around the London Evening Standard for filler.
Due to the obvious fragility of these pieces they are steadily becoming more scarce. I had the opportunity to purchase one of the above years ago (at a fraction of the price its commanding now) but because I didn’t recognise it from any of the films I passed – Imagine the head-slapping moment when the Donner Cut finally emerged and the prop gets the most amount of screen time in the series…
A limited edition release to coincide with DC Comics 75th anniversary, the Christopher Reeve as Superman bust represented a new direction for collectables division DC Direct by going retro. Indeed, the sculpture pictured above is only the second-ever officially licensed collectable from Superman: The Movie bearing the likeness of Reeve, (the 1/6 statue sculpted by Karen Palinko being the first) the line continuing to spawn similar tributes to Tim Burton’s Batman.
While the piece is nicely rendered by Adam Beane (reminiscent of Reeve in his earliest Fortress scenes) on a crystal base featuring the \S/ logo, its let down horribly by the paint-job and the sheer lack of attention to detail. While I admit not fully comprehending the purpose of display busts anyway this could have been a great, fun item but in honesty I’m a bigger fan of the box and purchased it only for completest sake.
Beane’s talents seem to have been way under-utilised here and one could make a convincing case that the 1/6 statue would have benefited more from his take on the celluloid Man Of Steel provided the finish was of equal standard. As is, IMHO its a chintzy companion piece to said statue and should only be of interest to die-hard fans. Having said that, a donation to the Christopher & Dana Reeve foundation is made with its every purchase and there can be no better recommendation than that…
Presenting the final set of unpublished photographs taken by ‘ParkStreetParrot’ of the cast & crew on location during the shooting of Superman IV: The Quest For Peace.
Beside his starring duties, Christopher Reeve took story credit (along with Lawrence Konner & Mark Rosenthal) and also second unit direction. From the top, Reeve having fun/practicing his golf swing, Gene Hackman & Jon Cryer rehearsing their escape alongside the camera car and Reeve awaiting his call…
Nestled among the ‘New Additions’ on the Propstore Of London website is this little piece of cinematic history, a casting struck from one of make-up legend Stuart Freeborn’s miniature Superman head sculptures.
This rare offering comes with the great provenance of a still showing Freeborn himself holding aloft two finished flying puppets from Superman II topped with similar casts. Almost primitive by today’s standards, these puppets originate from a clutch of models made in various scales to double for the actors in long shots and more complex flying scenes.
The most obvious use of similar props is the Eiffel tower and climatic Metropolis battle sequences where they were frequently ‘flown’ on transparent thread. Go here to read more about Stuart’s contribution to the Super-Movies and see his 1:1 lifecast of Christopher Reeve which he released only recently after keeping it stored for decades…
