Superman Archives - Retro Reminiscing Video and Pictures

Superman and the Early Tony the Tiger

Long before Tony the Tiger became the big, sporty “They’re Gr-r-reat!” mascot we all remember, he looked a little different — and in this old Kellogg’s Sugar Frosted Flakes ad, he even shared the screen with George Reeves from The Adventures of Superman.

That is what makes the commercial so strange and fun today. You have Clark Kent/Superman helping sell cereal, and beside him is an early Tony who does not quite look like the Tony we grew up with. He is skinnier, odder, and still finding his final look.

Back then, shows and sponsors were tied together much more directly. Kellogg’s sponsored The Adventures of Superman, so seeing George Reeves pitch cereal was just part of the deal. To kids watching, Superman was not just saving the day — he was also telling you what to eat for breakfast.

Do you remember when TV stars would show up right in the commercials?

The Adventures of Superman

I was not even born when The Adventures of Superman first aired, but it still became one of my favorite TV shows.

The series starred George Reeves as Clark Kent and Superman, and for a generation of kids, he was the Man of Steel. The show originally ran in the 1950s, but because it was syndicated, it did not belong to one single night across the country. Local stations could run it whenever they wanted.

That is how I remember it — turning up before or after cartoons, rarely getting in the way of them, even on Sundays. Superman just seemed to be there, flying into the living room when you least expected it.

Looking back, the show was simple, but that was part of the charm. Clark Kent worked at the Daily Planet, Lois and Jimmy got into trouble, Perry White barked orders, and sooner or later Superman showed up to save the day. There were no giant special effects or complicated superhero universes. Just good guys, bad guys, and George Reeves making you believe a man could stand for truth and justice.

I also remember being devastated when my dad told me George Reeves had died by suicide. As a kid, that made no sense to me. How could the Man of Steel die?

That is the strange thing about childhood TV heroes. We know they are actors, but part of us still believes in them. And for many of us, George Reeves will always be Superman.

Do you remember watching The Adventures of Superman in reruns?

Super Friends

Super Friends was one of those Saturday morning cartoons that made DC superheroes feel like they all lived in the same neighborhood. It first aired on ABC in 1973 and was produced by Hanna-Barbera, bringing together Superman, Batman and Robin, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and later other heroes from the Justice League world.

The show was definitely made for kids, so the action was toned way down compared to the comic books. Instead of darker superhero stories, you got teamwork, moral lessons, danger, science-fiction plots, and everybody meeting at the famous Hall of Justice. Early on, the show even had kid sidekicks Wendy, Marvin, and Wonder Dog, before later seasons brought in the much better-remembered Wonder Twins, Zan and Jayna, with their monkey Gleek.

For a lot of us, the best-remembered version is probably Challenge of the Superfriends from 1978. That’s the one that gave us the Legion of Doom, led by Lex Luthor, with villains like Cheetah, Riddler, Bizarro, Scarecrow, Captain Cold, Black Manta, and Solomon Grundy. Their creepy swamp headquarters, the Hall of Doom, was almost as memorable as the heroes themselves.

Looking back, Super Friends could be corny, stiff, and sometimes unintentionally funny, but that was also part of its charm. For a whole generation, this was the first time we saw Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and the rest of the gang teaming up every Saturday morning. Before the big movies, before the modern animated Justice League shows, this was our superhero universe.

The Adventures Superman TV intro

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 on RKO-Pathé stages and the RKO Forty Acres back lot. It was sponsored by cereal manufacturer Kellogg’s.

Relive the memories! Buy an episode or buy a season. Makes a great gift!

https://www.yourememberthat.com/files/4ceddb7736bccbbb.mp4