Adventures of Superman
"Faster than a speeding bullet. More powerful than a locomotive. Able to leap tall buildings at a single bound!" A mild-mannered reporter for the "Daily Planet" is really the greatest superhero of them all who "fights a never-ending battle for truth, justice, and the American way!"
- 1952-1958
- 6 seasons
- MPTV
- Action & Adventure, Suspense, Family, Science Fiction
- TV-G
"Faster than a speeding bullet. More powerful than a locomotive. Able to leap tall buildings at a single bound!" A mild-mannered reporter for the "Daily Planet" is really the greatest superhero of them all who "fights a never-ending battle for truth, justice, and the American way!"
Season 3 Episode Guide
13 Episodes 1955
Episode 1
Through the Time Barrier
Sat, Apr 23, 1955 30 mins
The notorious gangster, Turk Jackson, has decided to turn himself in - not directly to the police, but to Clark Kent, a fine, upstanding citizen who might act as a buffer between the crude gunman and the cops. After Turk signs a confession in Perry White's office, he and Clark - accompanied by Perry, Jimmy Olsen and Lois Lane - file into the elevator. Intruding on this group is a nutty professor professing to have invented a time machine. No sooner do the others scoff than a small explosion from Prof. Twiddle's little box sends them all back to prehistoric times. Turk decides he likes living in an era with no cops, and so he steals the time machine and hides it. Clark is eager to take action as Superman, but how can he explain Superman's presence in 50,000 B.C.? Meanwhile, Perry suffers the attention of an over-affectionate cave woman, as he, Lois and Jimmy get used to their new "cave duds."
Episode 2
The Talking Clue
Sat, Apr 30, 1955 30 mins
Inspector Henderson's son, Ray, has a keen hobby: collecting various sounds on spools of tape. He has a lion's roar, a cannon firing, even the sound of bullets bouncing off Superman's chest. Meanwhile, Henderson is searching for a dangerous criminal known as Muscles McGurk. He is shocked and dismayed to find that Ray may be the gangster's accomplice. It seems that McGurk has been making use of Ray's sound recordings for his own nefarious purposes. After Ray is kidnapped by McGurk, it's up to Clark Kent to interpret a cryptic clue the young man left behind; and then it's up to Superman to rescue him from the gunman's clutches.
Episode 3
The Lucky Cat
Sat, May 7, 1955 30 mins
Clark Kent and Jimmy Olsen, on duty as reporters, visit a club that is devoted to thumbing its collective nose at any and all superstitions. Members must walk under a ladder after entering the rented meeting house. Pins are left all over the floor, and members are forbidden to pick any up. The chairman calls the meetings to order by breaking a mirror. Their mascot, of course, is a black cat. But bad things begin to befall members. The floor nearly caves in during Kent and Olsen's visit. Later, a member's chemical company catches fire. None of these things are put down to bad luck: they are clearly the work of a saboteur. Suspicion falls on the meeting house's raving, superstitious landlord. It's up to Superman, however, to find the true culprit.
Episode 4
Superman Week
Sat, May 14, 1955 30 mins
While Metropolis gears up to honor its most popular "citizen" during Superman Week, gangster Si Horten (Herbert Vigran) tries to figure out a way to rid the town of the Man of Steel. Taking reporter Jimmy Olsen (Jack Larson) into his confidence, Horten gives Jimmy a milkshake laced with truth serum, whereupon the boy reveals the location of some hidden Kryptonite--the only substance that can render Superman helpless. Meanwhile, the ever-suspicious Lois Lane (Noel Neill) eagerly anticipates the awkward situation awaiting Clark Kent (George Reeves), who has been assigned to interview Superman on TV.
Episode 5
Great Caesar's Ghost
Sat, May 21, 1955 30 mins
Everybody knows that the favorite expletive of "Daily Planet" reporter Perry White is "Great Caesar's Ghost!" With this in mind, imagine White's shock and dismay when he is confronted with the ghost of Julius Caesar. Before long, all of Metropolis is seriously questioning White's sanity--which is precisely the intention of a gang of crooks who hope to discredit Perry's testimony at a criminal trial. Looks like Superman is going to have to do some ghostbusting in this one.
Episode 6
Test of a Warrior
Sat, May 28, 1955 30 mins
Aging Indian Chief Great Horse (Francis McDonald) is in danger of being exiled by his tribe because of his inability to bring rain to his drought-stricken people. Superman (George Reeves) lends a helping hand by guiding Great Horse through a grueling gauntlet--a test of strength and courage--that will enable him to maintain his power. And as for the rain? Well, fear not: Superman may have something up his sleeve to solve that problem as well.
Episode 7
Olsen's Millions
Sat, Jun 4, 1955 30 mins
After rescuing a cat owned by eccentric Mrs. Peabody (Elizabeth Patterson), cub reporter Jimmy Olsen (Jack Larson) is given a reward--of one million dollars! Much to the dismay of his friends Clark (George Reeves) and Lois (Noel Neill), Jimmy begins throwing away his money on useless creature comforts, including a butler named Herbert (Leonard Carey), who turns out to be in cahoots with con man Stacy Tracey (Richard Reeves). First attempting to defraud Jimmy, Stracy ends up locking the neophyte millionaire and Lois in a safe--whereupon the pair is forced to incinerate "Olsen's millions" in order to create smoke signals that will summon Superman to their rescue.
Episode 8
Clark Kent, Outlaw
Sat, Sep 10, 1955 30 mins
Fired by editor Perry White (John Hamilton), disgraced reporter Clark Kent (George Reeves) joins a gang of diamond thieves. Unbeknownst to fellow reporters Lois (Noel Neill) and Jimmy (Jack Larson), Clark's criminal career is but a sham, a scheme cooked up between Kent and White to trap the real crooks and turn them over to the law. Even so, Clark is forced to prove his loyalty to the gang by "eliminating" Lois and Jimmy, binding the hapless duo to a chair which is then set afire! Isn't it about time for Clark to sneak into that closet and change into Superman?
Episode 9
The Magic Necklace
Sat, Sep 17, 1955 30 mins
Lois (Noel Neill) writes a story about the discovery of an ancient necklace with alleged magic powers. It is said that whosoever wears the necklace will be protected from all harm. Gangster boss Jake Morrell (Lawrence Ryle) decides to kidnap Lois as part of a scheme to find out if necklace is all it is cracked up to be--but Morrell has reckoned without the intervention of Lois' fellow reporter Clark Kent (George Reeves), who happens to have an alternate identity as a flying superhero.
Episode 10
The Bully of Dry Gulch
Sat, Sep 24, 1955 30 mins
Visiting the quaint Old West community of Dry Gulch, Jimmy quickly runs afoul of town bully Gunnar Flinch, who has an eye for Lois. Not necessarily a job for Superman, who nonetheless provides a still timely lesson on bullying.
Episode 11
Flight to the North
Sat, Oct 1, 1955 30 mins
Future TV western star Chuck Connors appears in this classic episode as a gangly hillbilly who happens to be named Sylvester J. Superman. Arriving in Metropolis to seek his fortune, the clueless Sylvester answers a classified ad for the "real" Superman (George Reeves), and before long has been hired by a woman named Marge (Marjorie Owens) to deliver a lemon meringue pie to her fiancé Steve (Richard Garland), stationed at a remote Air Force weather base in Alaska. Meanwhile, gangster Leftover Louie (who else but Ben Welden?) has wagered $25,000 that he can convince his schoolmate Marge to bake him a fresh lemon meringue pie, even though she can't stand the sight of him. Inevitably, these two plot strands are intertwined, as a hopelessly confused Steve welcomes the vacuous Sylvester, a gun-toting Louie, and the honest-to-goodness Superman into his tiny snowbound shack!
Episode 12
The Seven Souvenirs
Sat, Oct 8, 1955 30 mins
A curio dealer named Mr. Willy (Phillips Tead) is enjoying a brisk business selling dozens of souvenir daggers that he claims have been bent out of shape by "man of steel" Superman (George Reeves). Of course, Superman's alter ego Clark Kent knows that the daggers are phony. Why, then, is someone willing to steal every one of the daggers that have been sold in Metropolis? Well, it seems that a con man named Jasper (Arthur Space) is hoping to dupe Superman into using his X-Ray vision to transform two of the worthless daggers into valuable radium!
Episode 13
King for a Day
Sat, Oct 15, 1955 30 mins
Cub reporter Jimmy Olsen (Jack Larson) is mistaken for Prince Gregori of Burgonia (Chet Marshall), who has been targeted for assassination. Putting his life on the line, Jimmy agrees to impersonate Gregori, the better to bring the would-be killer out in the open. Once the not-so-well-hidden culprit is revealed, things look mighty bleak for our boy Jimmy--but never fear, Superman (Clark Kent) is dashing to the rescue.
