George Reeves: The Life of TV's First Superman

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A mythical story that would capture the fascination of enthusiast for several decades.

George Reeves, a struggling actor at the time, took on the role with limited understanding of the character and was unaware of the profound influence it would have on his life - unfortunately, his life would ultimately take a tragic turn after the series ended its run in 1958.

We're looking at the life, career, and fatal end of George Reeves.

The cover of the Superman oral history book Voices from Krypton

This would eventually be edited into two episodes with the title "The Unknown People." But the initial task was to cast an actor for the dual role of Superman and Clark Kent.

In 1939, he was cast as the main actor. It turned out to be a great choice, as he convincingly played the role of Clark Kent, a persistent crusading journalist and a vengeful Man of Steel with a serious demeanor.

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A momentous weekend in television history unfolded on January 14, 1957, when two cultural phenomena of the 1950s merged in a spectacular way when George Reeves, whose portrayal of the Man of Steel had captivated kids all across America on the show Adventures of Superman, made an on-camera appearance as the iconic superhero.

Getting the outcome one wants. In some ways, George Reeves got the outcome he desired, but it didn't unfold as he had envisioned. I'm an actor myself, and I've made a living from the craft, so I felt a strong connection to him, because this was a story of success with very little actual success linked to it. This isn't a story about an actor who became wealthy and famous. It's fair to say he became famous. It's true that financial gain isn't the only appealing part.

George Reeves as Superman and Phyllis Coates as Lois Lane in 1951's "Superman and the Mole Men" Superman and the Mole People .

His loved ones never had the chance to fully express how much they cherished him. At the time, George hoped to be celebrated for his exceptional abilities, unaware of the accolades he would have received if he had only lived a bit longer.

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George Brewer was born on January 5, 1914, in Woolstock, Iowa, to Donald Carl Brewer and Helen Lescher when they were still newlyweds. Shortly after his birth, his parents split up, and George and his mother moved to Illinois. Eventually, they settled in California, where George's mother married Frank Joseph Bessolo and later adopted him in 1927, and George took his adoptive father's last name, Bessolo. However, their marriage only lasted 15 years before they got divorced, and things moved quickly after George returned from a family visit; he was told upon his return that his stepfather had taken his own life.

George found himself solely cared for by his mother, who was frequently known to spoil and overly worry about him. It wasn't until he enrolled at Pasadena Junior College that he learned Bessolo wasn't his real father.

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George Reeves in 1940

Growing up in Pasadena and attending its community college, it's likely that George became aware of the drama students who went on to attend the renowned Pasadena Playhouse. After deciding to pursue acting, he enrolled there and continued to hone his craft. Hollywood talent scouts regularly attended performances, and after a few years of gaining experience, he landed his big break.

George was a high school boxer with a promising career in the Golden Gloves. According to what I've gathered, his mom advised him, "You have too pretty a face to keep up with this boxing." Instead, he decided to pursue acting by enrolling at the Pasadena Playhouse and taking classes. As a result, he secured a job as secretary to the director, which gave him a taste of traveling.

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Reeves was a social person who enjoyed staying active physically. When boxing didn't pan out, acting became a good way for him to stay physically active and utilize his charisma. Additionally, he had a remarkable ability to remember lines easily.

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It's worth noting that the one aspect of George Reeves' life that seems to have been somewhat overlooked is his marriage to actress Ellanora Needles.

I interviewed Ellanora several times and she consistently spoke very positively about George. In fact, she often praised him excessively. According to Ellanora, they had a happy marriage for most of the time they were together, but she left him after they suffered a financial loss due to a bad investment. At that point, she got involved with someone wealthier, as she described, and was swept off her feet. She expressed regret about what happened. George was greatly hurt by the experience and didn't want to discuss Ellanora afterwards.

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George Reeves made his film debut in the 1939 film Gone with the Wind .

For the next couple of years he acted in smaller parts in some of the larger films at the studio, and starred in a few smaller films. Despite this, those couple of years didn't do much to advance his career, and he was still relatively unknown in the industry. He let his contract with Warner expire by mutual agreement, and then signed a new one with Fox, which resulted in a few more roles, although none of them were particularly notable.

George had a leading man's looks in a style associated with Warner Bros. I say that because he initially signed a contract with them and appeared in a series of shorts, which were later followed by a string of James Cagney films. With his strong jawline and nose - the result of a broken nose sustained during his boxing days - he fit right in with the Warner Bros stable of tough guys, including Cagney and Bogart as well as George Raft and others.

George Reeves starring in Argentine Nights With the Ritz Brothers and the Andrews Sisters in 1940.

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George Reeves and Claudette Colbert standing out on the deck in a scene from the film So Proudly We Hail, 1943.

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George didn't join the infantry, instead he chose the entertainment corps and traveled with different performances. However, things took a change for him when he returned three years later. The film industry had undergone a transformation - people were no longer hiring on contract. As a result, he often found himself in B movies, taking on roles as both villains and heroes, feeling like a step backward in his career.

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Behind-the-scenes look at George Reeves on the set of "The Adventures of Superman" starring George Reeves. Adventures of Superman .

Adventures of Superman

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It was likely a challenging situation for him, playing the dual role of Clark Kent and Superman on a daily basis. He likely spent his workdays donning the Superman suit, leaping off ladders and escaping from windows, apprehending criminals, and frequently rescuing the city of Metropolis from perilous situations. The working hours were exhausting, and although he was saving lives, the financial compensation was low, making it an unfulfilling profession.

Being on set and bringing smiles to the kids who got to meet Superman was a genuine highlight for George Reeves.

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One of Reeves' main interests was connecting with children, and during the show, he worked with underprivileged kids and teamed up with friends Henrietta and Nativdad Vacio to sponsor something called the Mambo Club.

George Reeves dressed as Superman with Quinn Martin and Nati Valdes

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George Reeves appears at a Milwaukee parade wearing a Superman costume.

During the early and middle of 1955, Reeves started making more personal appearances. In addition to riding in a number of parades, he visited many children's hospitals and orphanages.

As he started making personal appearances, he thought to himself, "Alright, this is my career path. Unless I transition into directing or working behind the scenes, I probably won't land significant acting roles again." So, to supplement his income, he took on personal appearances, and eventually, he landed the opportunity to direct three episodes of the show when production was wrapping up. He was doing what he needed to do to ensure he had stable employment.

George Reeves and Judy Nugent from an episode of the show "The Growing Consciousness"

There were times he'd agree to dress up in costume, and other times he simply preferred to be Clark Kent. If he was on stage and away from a large crowd, he was comfortable being Superman, as he felt more in control of the situation. However, when surrounded by children, he preferred to be Clark, as he didn't want to feel pressured to put on a certain show.

In later interviews, Art Weissman, Reeves' manager, stated that if the fans were too young, they would ask and expect Superman to fly, which would be disappointing when he couldn't. As a result, he would appear as Clark Kent. For an older audience, he would show up as Superman and explain how the flying equipment worked.

Superman (George Reeves) readies himself for flight in this behind-the-scenes image.

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It generated more income for him, unfortunately I never got to meet him in person, but I've been able to see many photos and you can just see the happiness in his face and the joy he brought to the people he interacted with.

George is hanging out at home with his friend Sam.

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Actor George Reeves at home, playing the guitar.

By 1956, Reeves' frustration with the Superman role and how he was treated by others, particularly the press, was beginning to show. This was evident in incidents like the car accident he had in May of that year, which made headlines such as, "Superman Sues for Damages After Wreck" and "Superman is Hurt Like Other Mortals."

Los Angeles Times

George Reeves posing in his backyard in the role of Superman.

If you recall those early "Hoppy" movies, I used to be the kid who would look at Hopalong Cassidy and exclaim, "Gee, Hoppy, what are we going to do now?"

I haven't done much else. That's why I was happy to land this spot with Tony Bennett. It gave me a chance to prove again that I'm not always the best guy for every part. After the series, it's like Hopalong Cassidy trying to get a job in a fancy dinner tuxedo. Producers wouldn't hire me. They'd take one look at me and say it was impossible.

American actor George Reeves, best known for his role as Superman in the popular television show Adventures of Superman Standing alongside a train at approximately the mid-20th century, circa the 1950s.

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It all sounded a lot more promising than it actually was, and Reeves looked at things a lot more positively than people often thought of him as doing at the time.

During pauses between scenes, George Reeves is shown in conversation with the mother of series producer Whitney Ellsworth.

In August 1957, right before the sixth and final season of the Superman series was filmed, George Reeves put together and took "The Superman Show" on tour to several state fairs. The show featured Reeves performing as Clark Kent with music, singing Spanish folk songs, playing the guitar and string bass with a Mariachi band. He also acted as Superman in a segment where he would wrestle a costumed villain named "Mr. Kryptonite". Noel Neill appeared as Lois Lane and also sang some songs with Reeves and the band, who were joined by various other acts and made many charitable appearances at children's hospitals and orphanages.

Unfortunately, many of those shows were poorly attended, partly due to Art Wiseman, George's manager, not doing a good job of publicizing them. George lost a significant amount of money on that tour, as he had invested his own funds into it.

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As a guitarist and singer, he also made a name for himself as Superman, albeit with a more formal wardrobe choice, trading in the cape and leotard for a tuxedo. I'm told he sank his own money into this venture, expecting significant returns, but one particular show at a venue had a measurably sparse crowd, with no more than a handful of patrons in attendance.

The final 13 episodes of Adventures of Superman were started being produced in September of 1957 at ZIV Studios, and the last three - "The Brainy Burro," "The Perils of Superman," and "All That Glitters" - were directed by George Reeves.

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Adventures of Superman

In the first week of June 1959, Reeves was in a car accident and sustained a severe head injury. He was given several pain medications, but also drank a lot to try and alleviate his pain.

In addition to his professional turmoil, Reeves was also struggling with his relationship with his longtime lover, Toni Mannix, whose husband was Eddie Mannix, the vice president of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. In 1958, Reeves started a romance with Leonore Lemmon, a young woman from New York's high society. When he ended things with Mannix, she was furious and began causing trouble for the new couple, leading Reeves to file for an order of protection. On June 16, 1959, Reeves was found dead in his bedroom with a gunshot wound to the head. He was 45 years old. The police decided that his death was a suicide, but rumors quickly spread that he had been murdered. Lemmon and Mannix were both suspected of the crime, but no one was arrested or convicted. The circumstances surrounding his death remain unclear to this day.

Lenore Lemmon, the fiancée of TV Superman actor George Reeves, leaves his home after his suicide on June 16th. Miss Lemmon, an actress, had planned to marry Reeves on June 19th. The man next to her remains unidentified.

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Producer Whitney Ellsworth said he had been in a car accident wasn't long before. He liked to drink a lot, but Whitney said he was on painkillers at the time and didn't really know what he was doing. That was the story I believed for a long time, and I think Jack Larson generally agreed with it. But then Jack said, "No, no, no, I think he didn't take his own life."

The events remained centered on the story of suicide, and despite my doubts about the claim that Toni Mannix had confessed at her deathbed, one particularly memorable instance that made an impact on me was George Reeves' passing. I remember the headlines after George's death and going to school the next day, and everyone was shocked. The headlines were like a punch in the gut, "Superman Kills Self."

(Nancy Lescher Bessolo, mother of the late George Reeves, leaves his funeral service with attorney Jerry Geisler and an unidentified funeral attendant)

I went through the same process everyone typically goes through and the sequence of events went something like this: you hear initially that George Reeves shot himself in the head. You then go back and review the past news articles, looking at old microfilm and newspapers, which is what I did. After that, you begin to see news reports about there being no fingerprints on the gun. Following that, you come across a news article mentioning the discovery of two additional bullet holes. And, as expected, you'd think, "Why wasn't this information shared with me before?"

As for George's behavior, he had hit the road, and a blood test revealed that his blood-alcohol level was just shy of the legal limit at the time.

Behind the scenes on the episode "The Unlucky Number." With George Reeves as Superman, starring Noel Neill as Lois Lane.

* It's not polite to point ....to thy face or acre ( Mr. churchyards half Defrost- April 1891

I've come to accept that suicide is the most likely explanation for his death based on the forensic evidence and accounts from people who knew him well late in his life. Being deeply upset and intoxicated likely played a role in his actions, although that isn't how he usually was. He had a history of acting impulsively while under the influence of alcohol. I've been told by trusted sources about a couple of situations where he made attempts or gestures to harm himself. This doesn't necessarily mean that's what happened to him, but it suggests that the most straightforward explanation is usually the most likely one.

George Reeves and Art Linkletter.

What he had in mind to accomplish. So at 45, what does he have to look forward to, but just another season of falling off ladders and things like that? While everyone respects that, it may not have been what George wanted for himself. In the end, it was ruled a suicide and there's nothing concrete to argue against that being the case.

Along with the lasting impression of George Reeves as the original Superman on television and the quintessential Man of Steel for several generations of TV viewers.

For decades, George Reeves was the embodiment of Superman.

When I was a kid, I was completely amazed by him. You would watch the episodes when you were a kid and see the scene where he takes off his glasses and hides in the storage room, and it would give me goosebumps. It's the same thrill that most kids feel when they're watching something really exciting. So in that sense, it's a lot of what has stuck with me. And as a kid, my imagination was pretty vivid, so I would like to pretend that I was Superman. I even looked forward to getting the Superman costume every year and wearing it practically all year. I went so far as to get cheap toy sunglasses and take out the lenses so that I could be Clark Kent like him.

For kids, he was the personification of a dream, someone who seemed to say that no matter what happened during the day, we could imagine and pretend we could do something amazing. We could be the heroes, rescue our friends, or take down bullies who maybe we were afraid of in real life. All we had to do was take off our glasses, wear a special suit, and nobody would recognize us, so we could do the impossible. I think Superman represented the idea that we could be capable of great things, things we never thought possible. He was the embodiment of the fantasy that was always in the back of our minds, something we wished we could experience.

is his legacy.

This looks like a job for the Man of Steel!

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