The Adventures of Superboy

With today, April 18, 2018, marking the 80th birthday of Superman as he made his debut on the cover and pages of Action Comics # 1 cover-dated June 1938 on today's date of that year, I thought I'd review some obscure items of his on this site. Earlier today, I reviewed the TV version of his Broadway musical which starred David Wilson from 1975. This review is of John Rockwell's portrayal of The Man of Steel as a teen boy of Smallville in what turned out to be the only ep of The Adventures of Superboy. Whitney Ellsworth who previously produced The Adventures of Superman starring George Reeves decided to do this one of Supes' younger years after Reeves died suddenly of undermined causes. While the previous series was in color most of the time, it was decided to go back to black-and-white for this initial entry so Rockwell wore a brown-and-gray suit instead of the blue-and-red one. Anyway, this initial ep has The Son of Krypton trying to catch some crooks involving some diamonds. I'll stop there and just say how intriguing it was seeing Clark Kent's alter ego using his superhearing to detect how one of the crooks was lying after listening to his heartbeat which is heard on the soundtrack. This was quite an exciting pilot to watch on YouTube just now. 12 more scripts were written and General Mills expressed interest in using their cereal Wheaties to sponsor the show but competitor Kellogg's-which had previously and was still sponsoring The Adventures of Superman in syndication-did not want the competition so that kaput any more eps of the Superboy program. Too bad as I liked Rockwell as the teen Clark Kent along with Bunny Henning as Clark's female friend, Lana Lang. Like I said, it's on YouTube if you're interested...

I recognized some of the same names behind the camera in the old Superman series. Too bad they didn't do quite as well as they did when George Reeves was the grownup Superman.

The Adventures Of Superboy was a pilot for a TV series never made and seeing it I can tell why. The acting was on the level of a high school play. John Rothwell as Superboy and Bunny Henning as Lana Lang were just awful. Really bad when you contrast them with the bad guys Richard Reeves, Stacy Harris and Edwin Maxwell who attempt to pull off a diamond heist in Smallville. This trio rose above script and did a good job.

Superboy would have to wait almost 30 years for his own series. But these were not big shoes to fill.

The notion of making any more episodes of the TV series THE ADVENTURES of SUPERMAN ended with the death of series Star, George Reeves, in the summer of 1959. The copyright owner of the Superman empire (which had included comic books,newspaper strip,radio show, movie serials,feature films, animated cartoons as well as all sorts of merchandising)came up with this pilot for a TV series featuring "the Adventures of Superman,when he was a boy"! The idea had done well in the comic books,so why not on the small screen?

Apparently the publisher, NATIONAL COMICS(ALSO KNOWN AS DC COMICS) had leaked out this info, as it was soon reported in the TV sections of the daily newspapers. They even mentioned it in the letter columns of their comics and sent a mailing(post card) to readers that they should watch for Superboy on Television.

The series never materialized. It's unfortunate that it did not. After having viewed the Pilot film one finds a decent, family oriented story which was not ashamed to endorse an ethical and law abiding way of life. In short,although it featured the presence of the young Superman, it was a story that could be anyone's story happening anywhere. It was at least as good as so much of the series Television that was around in 1961.

"The Adventures of Superboy" is a pilot episode for a television series that was never approved by the networks. It is available to see on YouTube (as are quite a few other failed pilots) and it's surprisingly good considering it was ultimately a failure.

John Rockwell plays the title character. He is pretty much the Superboy you'd expect--living in Smallville and dating Lana. The crimes he has to contend with are two which are related--an attack on a police car by an armed gunman and the robbery of some jewels at a local theater. Helping Superboy and the police is the doorman at the theater...a man whose son had been a bit ashamed of him because of his seemingly lowly job. By the end, of course, all is right and the boy has gained greater respect for good old dad.

The only serious flaw in the show was a problem with the plot. Supposedly the gunman shooting at the police car was a diversion and both his gang leader AND the cops said that the most they could charge him with was 'malicious mischief' and he'd get 6 months! Umm....he shot at a cop AND Superboy and so attempted murder and 10- 20 years would be more like it!! Otherwise, well made AND entertaining...and a profound loss that more were never made.

Considering the era, it's intended audience, and budgetary realities, this is a pretty good pilot film. The story is nothing profound, but is reasonable fare for a Superboy story, emphasizing human drama and subplot over super-heroics. Nonetheless, it treats Superboy and his world with far more dignity than many of the comic mag stories of the time. It's dramatic value is on par with an average 'color' episode of George Reeves' show, yet possesses none of the 'camp' tendencies associated with the color years.

The casting of John Rockwell as Clark/Superboy was fairly inspired, as this actor possessed good looks similar to many teen idols of the era, yet was able to project sufficient earnest and heroic qualities so as to be credible as the boy of steel. Superman adaptations hinge upon the actor playing the man of steel, and I think Rockwell could have made this series profitable.

If this show had been picked up, it could easily have had crossover appeal between kids and teens. Just prior to this there had been a series of successful teenage monster/scifi films, Teenagers From Outer Space, I Was a Teenage Werewolf, Teenage Frankenstein, and Teenage Caveman to name but a few. Teens paid money to see those flicks at the drive-in, so it seems likely they would have watched Teenage Superman at home for free.

The other cast members are good, but they don't, IMO, have the appeal of the actors who played Lois, Jimmy, Perry, and Inspector Henderson on George Reeves' show. Nonetheless, they might have developed a chemistry had they been given the chance.

Jake Rossen writes that Wheaties cereal was interested in sponsoring this show, but that Kellogs, which was still sponsoring reruns of the Reeves show in many markets, used their clout to keep this series from being picked up. This sounds plausible, and it is the only reasonable explanation I have heard as to why National Comics went to the trouble and expense to produce this only to have it shelved. This pilot is as good or better than many shows playing for the same markets in the early 1960's.

The concept for this show was recycled in the late 1980's in syndication, featuring a handsome young Superman, and it was generally well received.

Then in 2001, Time-Warner revamped the concept again, this time adding Dawson's Creek type melodrama and angst into the mix with the teen idol looks. This show, Smallville, has been a hit in syndication and with the alternative TV networks. In that context, this 1961 Superboy pilot seems ahead of its time.

I saw this on youtube a year or so back, and I think there are some inexpensive copies to be found for home video. Fans of the old time Superman, old time TV and movies, and of the George Reeves show should watch it, since we all tend be an obsessive bunch and it will be interesting and fun. Don't pay too much and you won't be disappointed.