(Syndicated, 1952; reruns on ABC Daytime, 1957 - 1958) [aka: "Superman"; 104 episodes produced 1951 - 1957; a popular TV series which was derived from characters originally created for "Action Comics" by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster; These comic books which began in the thirties inspired a transcribed 1940 radio series heard on WOR New York, and the Mutual radio network (later on ABC) which starred a very young Clayton ("Bud") Collyer in the lead role as the voice of Superman (as well as his alter ego Clark Kent, a mild-mannered newspaper reporter.) Since the face of Bud Collyer wasn't known to audiences (just his voice) Collyer wasn't typecast, so he went on to be a successful game show host on television later; A couple of different theatrical film serials and longer low-budget B-pictures were made based upon "Superman" during the late 1940s including one starring an up-and-coming actor named George Reeves" called "Superman and the Mole Men" (1951); As the result of his performance in the film, Reeves was offered the TV role which made him famous -- one he would come to think of as a decidedly mixed blessing later; The supporting cast on the "Superman" TV series included Phyllis Coates as Lois Lane, Jack Larson as Jimmy Olsen, and John Hamilton in the role of newpaper editor Perry White; Initially the series was syndicated, sponsored by Kellogg's Cereals, In fact, the series was initially syndicated; it first aired on WENR-TV, Chicago on September 19, 1952. It was to become a very popular syndicated show all across the U.S. And then in 1957 ABC reran it on their daytime schedule for one season. But it had a long life in syndicated re-runs. Unfortunately George Reeves was typecast as Superman and had trouble finding work after the series ended although some say he was being offered other parts before his tragic death in 1959; Reeves died as the result of a gunshot wound that was ruled a suicide; the gunshot happened upstairs following a party at his house -- and suspicious circumstances involved a spurned lover who was an wealthy older married woman; in addition Reeves had been involved in a serious auto accident weeks before which caused him to heavily use alcohol and pain killers; Speculation exists that Reeves might have even been playing with the loaded luger handgun in his altered state from alcohol or painkillers, and died the way TV actor Jon-Erik Hexum did in 1984 as the result of a silly impulsive mock-Russian Roulette gesture. Dying because of a fleeting impulse is unthinkable; it seems so pointless -- but it could have happened. Debate over factors in his untimely death kept circling around for almost as long as the series remained in re-runs; Despite all the controvery, for many who grew up watching the series and hearing its music stirring the imagination, "The Adventures of Superman" is still an object of fond memories; In 1966 a cartoon version of "Superman" aired on Saturday mornings; and a sequel series called "Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman" was produced in 1993 starring Dean Cain in the title role with music by Jay Gruska]
[above is title as filed for copyright; ASCAP title variations... aka: "Superman M & E"; aka: "Superman Main & End"; aka: "Superman Theme"; aka: "Superman"; In a phone interview with Leon Klatzkin during the 1980s, he said this theme was recorded on a soundstage in New York City, but episode scores were tracked with library material which was recorded overseas. For the first couple of seasons, episode scores were tracked using interior cues from the MUTEL Music Service of David Chudnow, a Hollywood music editor who became a packager of music for low-budget TV and film series. Chudnow commissioned a few original cues now and again for his library. For TV, he mostly recycled old B-picture cues and re-recorded them all in France under the baton of George Tzipine, according to Paul Mandell, a researcher who has spent years tracing the origins of music for this series, and who recently co-produced a CD of Superman TV music on the Varèse Sarabande label (see below.) In comparing the original B-picture cues with what showed up in MUTEL and its subsequent sub-license to the Capitol "Q" library, it is obvious that the melody or arrangement of the cues were modified slightly from their original versions in the film, but not by very much. Apparently this was a feeble attempt to create a variation that would serve as being "different" from the original for copyright purposes, since the cues were now being listed under new names (and even new fictitious composer names) for collecting ASCAP and BMI royalties. Apparently the early music suppliers thought this was what one did -- just "change a few notes" -- and you could call it a new composition, for this same technique was used for the "Lone Ranger" TV series which was re-orchestrated and changed from earlier B-picture cues used verbatim on radio. When the MUTEL interior cues had become over-used in episodes of "Superman", the producers tracked later episodes of the series using several British Mood Music libraries. Subsequent theories were postulated that perhaps the THEME for "Superman" itself was recycled from an old film, perhaps even a foreign film that would not be recognizable to U.S. audiences, or ghost-written by someone hired by MUTEL owner David Chudnow. One theory which has been put forward involves assistants to composer Jack Shaindlin who may have supplied a score to MUTEL, but no connection can be made positively...and it is all highly speculative at this point in time; So many of these theories were postulated by colleagues who disliked Leon Klatzkin for one reason or another, or latter-day researchers who can only speculate by trying to prove a negative. As everyone knows it is more difficult if not impossible to prove a negative; No factual substantiation of any possibility has been made yet that would support who in fact DID compose this THEME if it was not Klatzkin. Over the phone, Klatzkin spoke in 1983 of two parts of the THEME he called "the Main Flying Theme" and the "Superman March", although the official title of the THEME in copyright records is "Superman MS" (which is an abbreviation for manuscript); and ASCAP lists it as "Superman M & E" (which is an abbreviation for a Main Title and End Credits, or End Title THEME) Contributor David Schecter writes that Irving Gertz, who wrote the original Main Title for "The Millionaire" and scored many episodes of "Ramar of the Jungle" was music supervisor of the "Superman" TV series "beginning with the second season, and continued on in this capacity up through at least 1956." Schecter wrote that Gertz "used music from libraries such as FDH (Francis, Day, and Hunter,) Paxton, Impress, Video Moods Records, and other sources." When "Superman, The Movie" appeared, composer John Williams score had a similar Main Title. Although both THEMEs have a triadic motif (which outlines a major triad), many pieces do -- including the Superman radio theme called "Superman March", by Sammy Timberg and several cues in the MUTEL library; So attempting to trace origins of the TV series main title using crude analyses of triads are of no more valid help than trying to link the film to the TV series which was not related; One regretable detail is that the music manuscript for the Superman TV THEME was not filed for copyright by publisher The Bourne Company until 26 years after its composition -- in 1977; The lead sheet actually filed for copyright was of a very odd arrangement, attempting to cast the tune in a fledgling rock-a-billy style. It has incorrect chords and a ludicrous attempt to fit the tune with the words "...a bird, a plane, Superman..." which don't fit at all... Unfortunately, this terribly botched manuscript found its way into print as the basis for a piano arrangement in a folio book of TV themes. Too bad that both the original publishers and the folio book publishers are too young to remember the "Main Flying Theme" and this great "March" tune with any accuracy.] Credited Composer: Leon Klatzkin (ASCAP) Original Publisher: Marlen Music Co. (ASCAP) [one of David M. Gordon's music publishing companies] 1978 Publisher: Bourne Co. (ASCAP) 1997 Publisher: Bourne Co. (ASCAP) of New York, NY Composition Date: 1951 [filed under the title "Superman - MS"]: Unpublished Copyright Date: Nov. 14, 1977; Eu 843 714. Unpublished Renewal Date: Recordings: 45 single: by "Chase" [a bad Disco dance group] Churchill CR-7730 (1978) LP: "Super Disco" Studio '79 Springboard SPB-4114 (1979) LP: "Greatest Science Fiction Hits, vol. 2" Neil Norman [orchestration, rather weak] GNP Cresecendo Records GNPS-2133 (1986) CD Reissue: "Greatest Science Fiction Hits, vol. 2" Neil Norman [orchestration, rather weak] GNP Cresecendo Records GNPD-2133 CD: "Television's Greatest Hits" [Volume 1] TeeVee Toons Records TVT - 1100 CD (1986) CD: "Adventures of Superman - the Original 1950s Television Series" Varèse Sarabande 302 066 093 2 (2000) [This CD produced by P. Mandell and B. Kimmel with Music Restoration by G. Newton, includes a number of episode cues from the MUTEL library heard in the first couple of seasons of the "Superman" TV series. Some of the cues reproduced from the MUTEL were also used as TV THEMEs for other classic series including "Boston Blackie" and "Terry and the Pirates", etc.]
[aka: "Hollywood Epic"; Library music expert and CD producer P. Mandell writes that this was a frequent Act Closer -- used at the end of the final act but before the End Credits THEME; Although it was not used this way in all of the episodes, it comes as close to "format music" as any other cue; the fans of TV production music have their favorite cues to score episodes which are much too numerous to mention; but it is generally considered that the music editors of "Superman" including Leon Klatzkin did make copious use of some of the best sources of library music available at the time from British and U.S. sources; and this was one of them] Composer: Jack Beaver (British PRS/ASCAP) Original Publisher: Francis, Day & Hunter Ltd. (British PRS) 1978 Publishers: Francis, Day & Hunter Ltd. (British PRS) and Emil Ascher, Inc. (ASCAP) 2002 Publisher: KPM Music Div. (ASCAP) div. of Associated Production Music of Los Angeles, CA Composition Date: 1946 U.S. Copyright Date: Dec. 23, 1953; EFO-26 440. U.S. Renewal Date: Oct. 5, 1981; RE-102-403. Recordings: 78-rpm single: FDH-002 in the Francis, Day & Hunter Ltd. British Mood Music (production music) Library CD: "Archives 6 - 1940s and 1950s" KPM Production Music KPM 224 CD