I read an enjoyable book last week but haven't had the time to write about it until today.
Superman Vs. Hollywood: How Fiendish Producers, Devious Directors and Warring Writers Grounded an American Icon by Jake Rossen looks at the history in the media of the Superman franchise.
It begins by recounting how the radio show was devised not so long after the character appeared in comic form.
The advent of new genres of media like television and cinema prompted the companies that handled the franchise to bring Superman to these forms of entertainment. These entrances into new media were always riddled with controversy of some kind.
Jake Rossen has put an incredible amount of research into this. It is filled with so many facts that were eye popping. For instance, when the late-70s Superman movie was being cast, one of the names on the shortlist was Muhammad Ali as he himself was an American Icon. I scratched my head at that one for obvious reasons.
It was also interesting to read that Christopher Reeve was trained by David Prowse in order to get fit for the role. Prowse being the man who played Darth Vader in the first three Star Wars movies.
I used to be a comic book fan when I was a teenager and I think, had I got this book back then, I would have liked it even more than I do now.
I guess what I mean by that is - it would be a great read for people interested in the character. I liked it and can only imagine it being ten times better to those with more of an interest.
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