The Adventures of Superboy
Encyclopedia
The Adventures of Superboy was a proposed TV series that was put into production in 1961. It was meant to capitalize on the success of Adventures of Superman
, which was cancelled years earlier. A revival was planned, but abandoned following the death of George Reeves
, but only a pilot episode, "Rajah's Ransom", was produced. It featured the first non-comic book portrayals ever of Superboy
and Lana Lang
and stands as a forerunner of later series Superboy
, which lasted four seasons and Smallville
, which lasted ten seasons.
The show starred Johnny Rockwell
as Superboy/Clark Kent and Bunny Henning as Lana Lang. Although they did not go into production, twelve additional scripts were prepared, should the series be picked up.
A book titled Superboy and Superpup: The Lost Videos, written by Chuck Harter, was published during the 1990s by Cult Movies Press, which looked at both The Adventures of Superboy pilot and The Adventures of Superpup
pilot, as well as the 12 additional Superboy scripts that were prepared, had the Superboy pilot been picked up as a series.
A short clip of this pilot can be seen in the documentary "Look, Up In The Sky: The Amazing Story of Superman".
and screen test footage as Superboy and Superpup: The Lost Pilots.
This pilot episode has been included in the 62 disc DVD box set of Smallville
: The Complete Series, released in November 2011, along with additional bonus features not included in the individual season releases of Smallville.
Adventures of Superman (TV series)
Adventures of Superman is an American television series based on comic book characters and concepts created in 1938 by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. The show is the first television series to feature Superman and began filming in 1951 in California...
, which was cancelled years earlier. A revival was planned, but abandoned following the death of George Reeves
George Reeves
George Reeves was an American actor best known for his role as Superman in the 1950s television program Adventures of Superman....
, but only a pilot episode, "Rajah's Ransom", was produced. It featured the first non-comic book portrayals ever of Superboy
Superboy
Superboy is the name of several fictional characters that have been published by DC Comics, most of them youthful incarnations of Superman. These characters have also been the main characters of four ongoing Superboy comic book series published by DC....
and Lana Lang
Lana Lang
Lana Lang is a fictional supporting character in DC Comics' Superman series. Created by writer Bill Finger and artist John Sikela, the character first appears in Superboy #10...
and stands as a forerunner of later series Superboy
Superboy (TV series)
Superboy is a half-hour live-action television series based on the fictional DC Comics comic book character Kal-El's early years as Superboy. The show ran from 1988–1992 in syndication...
, which lasted four seasons and Smallville
Smallville
Smallville is the hometown of Superman in comic books published by DC Comics. While growing up in Smallville, the young Clark Kent attended Smallville High with best friends Lana Lang, Chloe Sullivan and Pete Ross...
, which lasted ten seasons.
The show starred Johnny Rockwell
Johnny Rockwell
Johnny Rockwell is an American actor. He was the first actor to play the role of Superboy, in the pilot for the proposed series The Adventures of Superboy .-Superboy pilot:...
as Superboy/Clark Kent and Bunny Henning as Lana Lang. Although they did not go into production, twelve additional scripts were prepared, should the series be picked up.
A book titled Superboy and Superpup: The Lost Videos, written by Chuck Harter, was published during the 1990s by Cult Movies Press, which looked at both The Adventures of Superboy pilot and The Adventures of Superpup
The Adventures of Superpup
The Adventures of Superpup, a 1958 pilot which never aired on TV, was meant to capitalize on the success of Adventures of Superman. Superpup featured the first television portrayal of the Superman characters as non-humans.-Overview:...
pilot, as well as the 12 additional Superboy scripts that were prepared, had the Superboy pilot been picked up as a series.
A short clip of this pilot can be seen in the documentary "Look, Up In The Sky: The Amazing Story of Superman".
Cast
- Johnny RockwellJohnny RockwellJohnny Rockwell is an American actor. He was the first actor to play the role of Superboy, in the pilot for the proposed series The Adventures of Superboy .-Superboy pilot:...
- Superboy/Clark KentSuperboySuperboy is the name of several fictional characters that have been published by DC Comics, most of them youthful incarnations of Superman. These characters have also been the main characters of four ongoing Superboy comic book series published by DC.... - Bunny Henning - Lana LangLana LangLana Lang is a fictional supporting character in DC Comics' Superman series. Created by writer Bill Finger and artist John Sikela, the character first appears in Superboy #10...
- Ross Elliot
- Monty Margetts
- Charles MaxwellCharles MaxwellCharles Carlton Maxwell was an American character actor who worked primarily in television.Maxwell frequently appeared as a guest star in Western shows such as Bonanza, Gunsmoke, Rawhide, and The Rifleman, among others. He appeared on Bonanza eight different times as eight different characters...
- Robert Williams
- Richard ReevesRichard Reeves (actor)Richard Reeves was an American actor best known for playing henchmen and thugs. He appeared in many television series, particularly those based on comic books, and his height and build made him suitable for roles involving muscle.-External links:...
- Yvonne White
- Stacy Harris
- Jimmy Bates
- Ray Walker
- True Ellison - Donna
Video & DVD releases
The only releases so far for The Adventures of Superboy have been from specialty distributors, such as Video Rarities, which released it on VHS along with The Adventures of SuperpupThe Adventures of Superpup
The Adventures of Superpup, a 1958 pilot which never aired on TV, was meant to capitalize on the success of Adventures of Superman. Superpup featured the first television portrayal of the Superman characters as non-humans.-Overview:...
and screen test footage as Superboy and Superpup: The Lost Pilots.
This pilot episode has been included in the 62 disc DVD box set of Smallville
Smallville
Smallville is the hometown of Superman in comic books published by DC Comics. While growing up in Smallville, the young Clark Kent attended Smallville High with best friends Lana Lang, Chloe Sullivan and Pete Ross...
: The Complete Series, released in November 2011, along with additional bonus features not included in the individual season releases of Smallville.
External links
- Information from Superman.nu
- Original Pilot on YouTube pt. 1, pt. 2, pt. 3