Audience reaction to George Reeves' appearance in this 1953 war drama film broke his heart
Posted: June 13, 2024, 3:37PMThere's nothing worse than clinching to your chest as your heart breaks into a million pieces.
George Reeves grappled with the role of Superman, hesitant to accept once he received the offer. As a Hollywood movie veteran, transitioning to the small screen was seen as a step down, a potential threat to his established career. The fear of being typecast also plagued him. Yet he and Jack Larson were told that no one would see Adventures of Superman but a handful of kids.
"'This is twenty-six weeks' work. It's money, and no one would ever see the show.' They told me George Reeves had done something called Sir Galahad just to pick up money... They said, 'Take the money and run,' so I did," Jack Larson once said, according to the book Hollywood Kryptonite: The Bulldog, The Lady, and the Death of Superman by Sam Kashner and Nancy Schoenberger.
Adventures of Superman, initially filmed in 1951 but broadcasted on February 9, 1953, was a roaring success. To millions of kids, Reeves was Superman. The show's impact was so significant that children even swarmed a restaurant where Jack Larson was meeting with a friend, causing chaos and necessitating a hasty relocation by the police.
It was clear that people did see the series, and this became a significant issue for Reeves, particularly at the sneak peek preview of From Here to Eternity. According to Jack Larson, who, along with other members of Adventures of Superman, attended the preview to support Reeves, the film broke George Reeves' heart.
"Larson attended the film's sneak preview, which was the most highly anticipated preview that year in Hollywood...This was Reeves' most important film in ten years since So Proudly We Hail...But when Reeves first appeared onscreen, the audience went wild and started to yell, 'Superman.'"
The studio executives, who were primarily from the film industry, were perplexed by the audience's reaction. Television was not their domain, so they had no idea what the commotion was about.
"They discovered the reason for the audience's excitement, and an executive decision was made to cut George's role of Seargent Stark from the film."
It also didn't help that the preview audience wrote, "It's great to see Superman in that movie!" on their preview cards. George's friends and co-stars were "heartsick" at the audience's reaction because they knew what it meant.
Unfortunately, Reeves fell victim to typecasting. This meant that work opportunities would become scarce, as he was seen only as Superman rather than the versatile actor he was.
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