Musicals On TV - It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's Superman!

ABC, 1975

Starring Lesley Ann Warren, David Wilson, Kenneth Mars, and David Wayne

Directed by Jack Regas

Music by Charles Strouse; Lyrics by Lee Adams

Yes, even Superman, one of the biggest comic book characters ever, has been the subject of a musical. It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's Superman debuted on Broadway in 1966. It wasn't a hit, but it did have a few songs that went over well. In 1975, ABC commissioned this updated version, featuring several major stars of the time, plus a newcomer as the Man of Steel. It was intended for prime-time...until ABC saw the results and dumped it on their late-night show Wide World of Entertainment. Does it deserve better nowadays, or should it be blown to bits? Let's start at The Daily Planet, just as its workers are revealing how they feel about Superman, and find out...

The Story: Everyone at The Daily Planet wants to know who Superman (Wilson) is and when he'll help Metropolis again. Reporter Lois Lane (Warren) has a crush on him after writing many articles about his activities. Gossip columnist Max Menken (Mars) is insanely jealous of all the love Superman gets from the public. His secretary Sydney (Loretta Swit) would rather he paid attention to her and his writing. Neither Lois nor Max realize that Superman is really quiet, unassuming Clark Kent (Wilson), whom Lois never notices. Planet editor Perry White (Allen Ludden) wishes they'd all pay attention to getting bigger scoops.

Menken isn't the only villain who has a bone to pick with Superman. Scientist Dr. Abner Segewick (Wayne) is furious and bitter over being snubbed for a Nobel Prize yet again. He is determined to destroy Sweden, and figures he has to get rid of Superman before that plan can proceed. Even a group of gangsters has it in for Superman - he keeps disrupting their operations. When Segewick unleashes his evil plan, it'll take Lois' faith and a reminder that he still has fans to remind Superman that generic gangsters and scientists are no match for the Man of Steel!

The Song and Dance: There's a reason this keeps getting revived regionally, even though the plot is no great shakes. Strouse and Adams crafted a decent score, with at least one showstopper in "You've Got Possibilities." Mars is thoroughly enjoying chewing that paper scenery to bits as the egotistical gossip hound, and Swift tosses in a few good zingers, usually at her boss' expense. And they do occasionally manage to make the cheap production work, especially when "bricks" fall in after Superman bursts through the paper walls. 

Favorite Number: We open with all of Metropolis, from the journalists on The Daily Planet to the cops and college kids on the street, explaining why "We Need Him." Lois gives her own opinion on why she's so crazy about a man she only knows when he's rescuing her with "It's Superman." The gangsters reveal why they love their homeland - and robbing it blind - in the one new song written for the show, "It's a Free Country."  Max tries to convince Lois "You're the Woman for the Man" in a charming soft-shoe, but despite her seeming interest, Lois remains faithful to Superman. Sydney tries her own seduction of Clark in the show's only standard, "You've Got Possibilities." It's Lois who reminds the gangsters that "I'm Not Down Yet" and Superman will save her when they've all been captured in the end.

Trivia: Though the original 1966 Broadway cast went over well with critics, it couldn't find an audience and shut down after four months. It's never been back on Broadway, but it has seen several well-received concerts, including an Encores! show in 2013. 

What I Don't Like: Other than Lois, Superman, and Perry White...what does any of this have to do with Superman? What's wrong with Lex Luthor for the villain? Worked in several movies and all of the cartoon series featuring Superman. Why didn't they use other regular Superman characters like Jimmy Olsen? The plot is witless, boring, and badly dated. Their attempts at the camp elements that still make the 1966 Batman TV show a hoot, like the paper comics sets, look cheap and silly here. Sedgewick takes down Superman with psychology? Why not kryptonite? And the same writers would go on to pen the screenplay for the first Christopher Reeve movie. Obviously, they did a lot more homework in the four years between this and the release of that blockbuster. 

The characters don't come off so great, either. Warren's Lois is too cutesy and annoyingly gosh-golly-gee. Her overwhelming desire to marry Superman is not only condescending, it doesn't at all match the narrator's (Gary Owens) description of her as a spunky reporter, or the tenacious Lois most people recognize today. Her ballad "What I've Always Wanted" is dated and overly-sweet, with its silly fantasy sequence, even if Warren does sing it well. Wilson is annoying and whiny whether he's Superman or Clark Kent. No wonder Lois doesn't notice him. 

I'm not a fan of the updated tempos on the songs, either. "You've Got Possibilities" in particular sounds totally wrong with funky guitar riffs and extra synthesizers. They cut a lot of the stage score, too. While I have to admit I enjoy "Free Country" (though some of its lines sound a little too on-the-nose right now), among the losses are another number for Clark ("Doing Good"), for Max Menken ("So Long, Big Guy"), and a nice ballad that admittedly was for a character who didn't mean much to the plot ("We Don't Matter at All"). 

The Big Finale: The cast and a few good songs can't overcome the cheap production, badly dated plot, lousy villains, and dull performances. Only if you're a really, really huge Superman fan. Look up the not-bad original cast album for this show on CD instead. 

Home Media: Currently, this rarity can only be found on YouTube.

YouTube