Costume month continues here at SUPERMANIA with this most curious clash of silver and small screen, culminating in the final appearance of a Christopher Reeve worn Super-suit and its eventual fate as restaurant decor.
After a five-year respite between their last critical and commercial failure of Supergirl in 1984 and having sold the rights to Superman in 1985, Producers Alexander and Ilya Salkind were back in the super-business with a typically ambitious venture to be shot at Disney MGM Studios in Florida – Superboy – The Series.
Importing both trusted resources and crew from the UK (among them effects guru Colin Chilvers), this left-over wardrobe from their ground-breaking Superman movies was one of a number of costume pieces to be adapted for their first foray into television.
Though not strictly canon with the Super-movies, the show would inevitably share many parallels with its big-screen incarnation, from production-values to a young lead with an uncanny resemblance to their original star. In fact, newcomer John Haymes-Newton would screentest in a complete Christopher Reeve costume (as seen in the first season DVD set) and his own costumes would be made from the same bridal-weight spandex as its predecessor. The Superboy costumes would also utilize the remaining stock of belts and capes worn in the films, the latter already having been cut shorter for Supergirl.
As the first season broadcast it became evident the one thing it didn’t share with its cinematic counterpart was the quality of its special effects and more importantly, scripts. To that end, having given a competent performance for the first 26 episodes, Newton would be replaced by less expensive/troublesome Gerard Christopher (screentesting in one of Newton’s suits) and the entire production moved to Universal Studios, Orlando.
For the remaining three seasons, Christopher would make the role his own supported by IIan Mitchell-Smith (Best remembered as Wyatt from Weird Science) as quirky comic-relief roomate Andy McCallister. For the two-parter “Bizarro – The Thing of Steel” and “The Battle with Bizzaro’ Smith as McCallister shows up for a costume party as Superboy ironically dressed in a screenused Superman suit (top pic)
Although the boots are a recycled pair of Newton’s (second pic) the costume is clearly the same Reeve suit as used in Newton’s screentest and, while faded (it was 11 years old at this point) holds up well to Christopher’s fresher incarnation (bottom pic).
In 1992 after 100 episodes, The Adventures of Superboy would end its run having left a modest mark in super-history. Many of its props and costumes would find their way into private collections but the Superman costume shown here with its colourful history would go on to enjoy a retirement displayed proudly in the Downtown Disney branch of Planet Hollywood, where, reunited with its matching boots, it would be suspended from the ceiling for years until being relocated to the lobby in a plexiglass case for thousands to enjoy…
August is Supersuit month here at SUPERMANIA with a series of posts dedicated to the iconic costume past, present and future in anticipation of the newly revised and updated feature coming soon to Capedwonder,com.
This first contribution from Superfan Jonathan Pierson is a superb example, appearing in the most unexpected of places but to longtime readers of the blog, this particular display may seem familiar. Jon takes up the story here –
“I attended the National Sports Collectors Convention in Rosemont, IL (http://www.nsccshow.com/). It was held at the Donald E Stephens Convention Center from Thursday, July 30th to Sunday August 2nd. As you can see from the title it is a Sports Collectors Convention which was why I was pleasantly surprised to walk in and see the Christopher Reeve Superman suit on display. It was on display right at the entrance. I couldn’t tell if it was up for auction or not but thanks to your articles I was carefully looking at the fabric to see if it was authentic. I took the photos of the suit with an iPhone camera and was upset that I didn’t bring my better camera but then again, I wasn’t expecting to see the suit there. I was wondering if it really was a suit that Reeve wore. The mannequin that it was on made it look rather small but I am guessing that it would have stretched to fit him. I believe the display listed the suit as being from the first movie. They also had on display the green crystal used by Marlon Brando to put into the ship before it took off. It seems like you guys know some of the history of this particular suit and I would love to learn more about it…”
Made public from ‘The most significant Christopher Reeve Superman collection in private hands’ and offered in auction by Profiles in History in July 2012, the complete, genuine outfit above was formerly part of the Dreier Collectionand sold for an impressive $65,000.
As these latest pictures show, little has changed from how the lot was presented a few years ago and seems to be in the same fine condition. Still mounted on its uncomfortably thin mannequin in an awkward pose, the suit is hardly shown off to its maximum potential unstretched and almost calls its authenticity into question with its wonky chest shield and barely attached cape.
Boldly exhibited in open air there is thankfully enough detail here (tacky sign notwithstanding) to reassure that this is indeed a genuine and enduring piece, with the stitchlines in the boots and unique lycra weave present and correct. Thanks to Jon for this great find…!
Original Show Features Sports Legends, Iconic Pop Culture Props and Costumes
Baseball meets Batman in the latest special exhibition at Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory (LSMF). The attraction has teamed up with Topps, the legendary card maker, to create the first-ever retrospective of Topps® trading cards. The show opens March 14 and runs through October 4, 2015.
Along with iconic baseball cards, Topps has also produced collectible cards for other sports and pop culture giants such as Star Wars, the Beatles, and Pokémon. Props, costumes and artifacts from movies, television, music, comics and cartoons will be displayed alongside their Topps cards, including these monumental pieces:
· Luke Skywalker’s Light Saber*
· Indiana Jones’ Whip
· Adam West’s Batman Costume*
· Christopher Reeve’s Superman Costume*
· Nichelle Nichols’ Lt. Uhura Costume*
· Elvis Presley’s Scarf
· Ringo Starr’s 1964 Drumsticks
· Jobu Doll from Major League
“There’s something fun for everyone in this show,” said Anne Jewell, VP and Executive Director of LSMF. “Topps has an amazing history and ability to tap into the cultural current. We’re thrilled to partner with such a powerhouse and share their entertaining story with our guests.”
Featuring two thirds of a screenused ‘walking; costume from Superman IV: The Quest For Peace on loan from the Azerian Collection (actual sign, second pic), this splendid exhibition has rightly earned local news coverage (top) for its current occupation of the Louisvile Slugger Museum until this October.
Taking its rightful place in the pantheon of Topps trading card history, the costume is displayed alongside examples of its many card sets, with mint wrapped examples still in their display box from Superman II (bottom).
One of the many memorable scenes in The Making of Superman II is the walkaround shot demonstrating the plethora of capes for The Man of Steel hanging proudly in the wardrobe department. As we know, many of the scarlet drapes were produced for very specific purposes such as flying or walking, and also made from a variety of fabrics to highlight movement.
It would be easy to claim the pics above are of one of the few pieces left from the production but alas, it is instead the work of talented Superfan Greg Vasilof, who, frustrated with the lack of detail on the various replica capes on the market, sought out to make his own (top pic).
Buying up a healthy portion of the tried & true red wool gaberdine fabric used by Action Costumes to create their replicas – Greg refined details such as the pleats and padding while adding an authentic, finishing touch – the handwritten interior label (second pic).
Famously noted as ‘Colour B’ (red) these sewn in patches (Greg even replicated the handwriting and copied the haphazard stitching) were mounted in most capes so the costume dept. could distinguish one from the other as often they would need to be changed scene by scene.
Not content with producing the cape labels, Greg also went on to reproduce the famed interior Bermans and Nathans costume labels with authentic details (bottom pic) to stitch into his own display costume to give it the accurate finish. As a conscientious Superfan, however, Greg is neither selling nor distributing these labels to avoid them being used as provenance for counterfeit costumes (the sales of which I’m proud to say has eroded considerably in recent years thanks to growing awareness) but is indeed producing capes to sell privately. Should any discerning Superfan wish to add one of these quality props to their collection feel free to contact me…
With the unveiling of the latest live-action incarnation of the Maid of Might going viral faster than a speeding bullet, SUPERMANIA leaps ‘once upon a time-warp’ to compare Super-Fashions thru the ages.
While the new small-screen ensemble leans heavily to the modern trend of muted, almost blacked out colours (influenced by, and therefore canon with Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel) its interesting to observe that the basic format of the suit has transcended any excessive studio revisionism and still echoes the movie version years later.
Emerging from a decade where the Superhero costume in live action was considered passé and decidedly uncool (pioneered by the producers of Smallvilleand their ‘no flights, no tights’ rule) its refreshing have the source material embraced fully once again.
Indeed, given the creative freedom afforded to other recent DC Comics adaptations like Arrow and The Flash with their ultra-modern twistthe fact the mini-skirt and even the classic ‘S’ shield survived intact signifies a welcome return to classic comic iconography.
The translation of a comic-book costume to screen is traditionally subject to infinitesimal changes as designer Emma Porteous discovered in creating Helen Slater’s look for Supergirl in 1984. Literally adapting the style seen in the comics of the era, early versions of the costume (as seen in the Making of Supergirl) had the young actress screentest in a baggy suit resplendent with red headband. Successive fittings would eventually realise a feminine version of the Superman costume worn by Christopher Reeve (even utilizing his production-used capes) with the subtle additions of yellow waistband and a two-tone skirt in place of red shorts.
In 2011 The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis was host to a multitude of screenused treasures in their ‘Incredible Costumes from Film & TV’ exhibition, where an original Supergirl costume (on loan from the Azerian collection) was paired with one of Lynda Carter’s surviving season 2 costumes from Wonder Woman (top pic). Exclusive images courtesy of their flickr album permit detailed inspection of the costume as it was prepared for display confirming the fabric used was indeed the same ‘Bridal weight spandex’ from the Superman series and that the capes were trimmed considerably (second pic).
As the boots were not present to complete the outfit its notable that the tights actually had boot-esque stockings attached to be worn beneath them in exactly the same design with the yellow trim. Construction-wise the suit retains the same patterns as the Superman costume with the exception of the chest shield, which in this instance is so small the complex method of inserting the negative shapes gave way to simply stitching the ‘S’ directly onto the yellow background.
With the new show debuting this year and rumours of Helen Slater making an appearance it seems the Supergirl fairytale is set to continue for years to come…
