Max Fleischer and Dave Fleischer were reluctant to take this assignment because it would require much more realistic designs and animation than they usually used. They tried to discourage Paramount by stating they would need a budget of around $100,000 per short, four times the budget of an average Walt Disney cartoon, which then had the highest budgets in animation. To their shock, Paramount executives agreed to at least half the amount, which made the Superman series--in adjusted dollars--the biggest-budgeted animation series in film history.
Marks the first appearance on film of the famous introduction, "Faster than a speeding bullet", etc. . . . , and of the "Look, up in the sky,", etc. . . .
This 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. However, even when Superman flies it looks as if he needs to make a jumping start, rather than just taking off.
The sound of the planet Krypton exploding in the introduction was achieved by amplifying the sound of an apple being ripped apart by hand.
Superman (1941) was the title character's cinematic debut. It was also the first superhero animation.