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Superman (1941)
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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writers:
Release Date:
26 September 1941 (USA)
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Plot:
The Man of Steel fights a mad scientist who is destroying Metropolis with an energy cannon. full summary | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Mad Scientist
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Ray
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Superman
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Bridge
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Laboratory
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Awards:
Nominated for Oscar.
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NewsDesk:
(5 articles)
Radio Voice Of Lois Lane Dies
(From WENN. 25 May 2009, 9:05 AM, PDT)
Max Fleischer's Superman: 1941-1942 - DVD Review
(From Monsters and Critics. 23 April 2009, 5:25 AM, PDT)
(From WENN. 25 May 2009, 9:05 AM, PDT)
Max Fleischer's Superman: 1941-1942 - DVD Review
(From Monsters and Critics. 23 April 2009, 5:25 AM, PDT)
User Comments:
The First of 17
more (16 total)
Cast
(Cast)| Joan Alexander | ... | Lois Lane (voice) (uncredited) | |
| Jackson Beck | ... | Perry White / Narrator (voice) (uncredited) | |
| Bud Collyer | ... | Clark Kent / Superman (voice) (uncredited) | |
| Jack Mercer | ... | The Mad Scientist (voice) (uncredited) | |
| Julian Noa | ... | Perry White (voice) (uncredited) |
Additional Details
Also Known As:
Superman: The Introduction (UK) (video box title)
The Death Ray (UK) (video box title)
The Mad Scientist
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The Death Ray (UK) (video box title)
The Mad Scientist
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Parents Guide:
Runtime:
10 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (Western Electric Noiseless Recording)
Certification:
Company:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
This film series is where Superman "learned" to fly. Prior to this, he was only able to "leap tall buildings in a single bound." It was deemed that leaping would not look right on film. But even when Superman flies it looks as if he needs to make a jumping start, rather than just taking off.
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Quotes:
[first lines]
Voices: Up in the sky, look: It's a bird. It's a plane. It's Superman!
Narrator: [opening narration] In the endless reaches of the universe, there once existed a planet known as Krypton, a planet that burned like a green star in the distant heavens. There, civilization was far advanced and it brought forth a race of "supermen," whose mental and physical powers were developed to the absolute peak of human perfection...
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Voices: Up in the sky, look: It's a bird. It's a plane. It's Superman!
Narrator: [opening narration] In the endless reaches of the universe, there once existed a planet known as Krypton, a planet that burned like a green star in the distant heavens. There, civilization was far advanced and it brought forth a race of "supermen," whose mental and physical powers were developed to the absolute peak of human perfection...
more
Movie Connections:
Featured in "Troldspejlet: (#1.1)" (1989)
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FAQ
Where can I get the unaltered versions with the original sound?List: Mad scientist will show those fools
Are the sound effects new?
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more (16 total)
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This is the first of what would turn out to be 17 Superman cartoons produced by the Fleischer brothers for Paramount Studios. This cartoon was released on September 26, 1941. The plot is as follows: An evil mad scientist threatens to attack the city at midnight. Lois Lane hops in her airplane and flies to the scientists hide out. The scientist captures her, and then procedes to attack Gotham. Blowing up a bridge, and attempting to topple the Empire State Building, until Superman arrives and saves the day.
The New York Times said of this cartoon " {this cartoon} is among the brothers' less successful efforts. The Fleischers show so little aptitude for -or interest in-realistic animation styles. Superman and Lois Lane are at their most wooden. So is the story's villain, a mad scientist. But the scientist's raven is wildly alive, like any real Fleischer creation, and the film sneaks in as many raven's-eye glimpses as possible. Heroic human figures have little to do with the grim, witty hallmarks of the Fleischers' imagination."
I must disagree with the Times' opinion. If one was to look at Superman comic strips from this point of time, one would see that the Superman of the comic books and the Superman of the cartoons, looks essentially the same. Yes, the raven is the most "cartoon" like character in the cartoon, but the film is still enjoyable, and is a snapshot of what cartoons were like right before the start of WWII.