This Day in Pop Culture for December 10

1978: Christopher Reeve Debuts as Superman

The very first live action Superman movie to appear in theaters was the 15-part serial by Columbia Pictures in 1948 which starred Kirk Alyn and Noel Neill as Superman and Lois Lane. It was followed up with Atom Man vs. Superman in 1950 (another serial) and the stand-alone Superman and the Mole-Men in 1951. 27 years passed before we got Superman: The Movie.

The movie starred Christopher Reeve as the “man of steel”, but he almost didn’t get the role. Those who were considered for the part included Robert Redford, Burt Reynolds, Sylvester Stallone, Paul Newman, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Lyle Waggoner, Nick Nolte, Christopher Walken and even Neil Diamond…Neil Diamond!

Director Richard Donner chose to go with an unknown actor. Out of the 200 “unknowns” who auditioned, Reeve was picked even though Donner thought that he was too young and too skinny.

The movie told the story about how Kal-El was sent from his home of Krypton to Earth as an infant, how he grew up as Clark Kent in Smallville and his eventual work saving the city of Metropolis. The movie also starred Jackie Cooper as Perry White, Margot Kidder as Lois Lane, Gene Hackman as Lex Luther, Ned Beatty as the bad guy’s assistant and Marlon Brando as Superman’s biological father. The movie also featured Alyn and Neill in cameo roles as the parents of Lois Lane.

Superman set a new record for Warner Bros. for their best opening day and three-day weekend. The movie also received mostly positive reviews by critics. It was nominated for four Academy Awards and won one Oscar for Best Visual Effects.

Reeve continued to play Superman three more times in Superman II (1980), Superman III (1983) and Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987). (Image: Warner Bros.)

1955: Mighty Mouse is Here to Save the Day

It was on this day that Mighty Mouse Playhouse first appeared on Saturday mornings on CBS. Mighty Mouse was Paul Terry’s Terrytoon’s most popular character, but by 1955, cartoon shorts were becoming less popular in movie theaters.

He sold his company to CBS and the new show helped to propel the mouse to stardom more than they did when playing in movie houses. Tom Morrison was the voice of the rodent, Carol Lawrence voiced Pearl Pureheart and the theme TV theme song was performed by The Sandpipers.

1901: First Nobel Prize is Awarded

The very first Nobel Prizes for physics, chemistry, medicine, literature and peace were awarded on this day in 1901 in Stockholm, Sweden. The date is significant because it was the fifth anniversary of Alfred Nobel’s death who was the inventor of dynamite. In his will, he directed that much of his fortune be spent on a fund to give awards to deserving people. No one knows for sure why he even created these awards, but it has been speculated that he created them over his regret of creating lethal uses of his inventions in war.

1962: ‘Lawrence of Arabia’ Becomes a Best Picture

Based on the book, Seven Pillars of Wisdom by T.E. Lawrence, the film Lawrence of Arabia told tales of Lawrence’s adventures in the Ottoman provinces of Hejaz and Greater Syria during World War I. The movie depicted his struggles with violence as well as his relationships with both Britain and the Arabian tribes.

Directed by David Lean, the movie starred Peter O’Toole as Lawrence and Alec Guinness as Prince Faisal. It also starred Jack Hawkins, Anthony Quinn, Omar Sharif, Anthony Quayle, Claude Rains and Arthur Kennedy.

The movie was nominated for ten Academy Awards and won seven Oscars for Best Picture, Director, Art Direction, Cinematography, Film Editing, Music Score and Sound.