American comics: I drew Superman during the Great Depression

Orson Welles was never one to follow the rules, and this can be seen from his broadcasting style at CBS.

In fact, the most talked about thing during Orson Welles' time at CBS was actually the subsequent "Martian Invasion" incident.

At that time, in order to achieve a realistic effect, Orson Welles deliberately changed the address of the Martians in the radio drama, changing it from England in Herbert George Wells' "Star Wars" to New Jersey. state, and all place names and streets in the play have real names.

Orson Welles's purpose in doing this was to create more of a sense of presence in radio dramas.

Unexpectedly, it accidentally triggered panic among the people. It is said that many listeners who turned on the radio at that time fainted next to the radio. A large number of people took to the streets and did not forget to bring handkerchiefs because the radio mentioned that "Martians" would release poisonous gas.

Although, in the arrangement, at the beginning, forty minutes and at the end of the story, Orson Welles, who served as the announcer, made a reminder: "This is a radio drama, and everything is fictional."

But the vast majority of the panicked American people did not hear this sentence.

On the night of the "Martian Invasion" incident, a large number of American families stayed up all night and spent a difficult night in panic.

It wasn't until the next morning that I learned the truth from the headlines on the front page of the New York Times and understood that it was all a radio drama.

The "Martian Invasion" incident ended with an apology from host Orson Welles.

Afterwards, this incident became a classic example of American communication studies, and it also made Orson Welles famous. He used this as a stepping stone to successfully enter Hollywood, and produced classics in film history that were known to the public in later generations. Work - "Citizen Kane".

Orson Welles became a household name as a film genius because of Citizen Kane.

However, this genius' later years were not as beautiful as he imagined, especially his struggle with Hollywood.

…

Putting away the memories of Orson Welles in his mind, Colin raised his head and looked at the slightly green-looking but already high-spirited man in front of him.

"I am not a professional voice actor. If I appear in a radio drama rashly, it may affect the atmosphere of the entire script."

Faced with the concerns raised by Colin, Orson Welles seemed particularly confident: "Mr. Colin Looper, you don't need to pay too much attention to this, you just need to be yourself in the radio drama. In fact, The guidance you just gave to the actors in the troupe is very consistent with the appearance of Superman in the script. "

"What's more, as the creator of Superman, all the dubbing is just to fit your idea of ​​this work."

It can be seen from the dialogue here that Orson Welles is obviously creator-oriented.

This may have also contributed to his later performance in movies, more than 90% of which were written and directed by himself.

"Okay, if you insist."

Colin is actually somewhat interested in participating in the dubbing role in "Adventures of Superman".

Therefore, under Orson Welles's persuasion, he only shied away a few times before nodding his head and agreeing.

At the same time, he also slightly apologized to the other actor who originally served as the voice of Superman in the opening scene. The latter obviously did not have the courage to pursue Colin's actions.

In addition, Colin's dubbing in "Adventures of Superman" was more like a guest appearance than a starring role. The subsequent dubbing work was still performed by the actors, so it did not cause too much controversy. Lots of questions.

Standing in the CBS radio dubbing room, Colin made a little gesture to Orson Welles outside, looked down at the script in his hand, and then read out what he had written in his own hand in the play, "Superman" The first opening lines of the radio play: "Good morning, Jonathan, good morning, Martha..."

…

At eight o'clock on Tuesday night, countless Americans turned on their radios as usual and listened to the radio drama program from CBS Radio.

Announcer: "He has incredible adventure characteristics. He is faster than a flying bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, and even exploding bombs cannot penetrate his tough skin."

Passerby A: "Look at the sky!"

Passerby B: "Is that a bird? (Is that a bird?)"

Passerby C: "Is that a plane? (Is that a plane?)"

Passerby: "That's Superman! (That's - Superman!)"

"It's Superman!"

In New York, in a small apartment with only one bedroom and one living room.

Stanley and his newborn brother Larry were crowded in the only living room, listening to "The Adventures of Superman" being played on the radio, and exclaimed.

Beside him is his brother Larry, who still doesn't understand anything. His father is sitting on a folding couch, cutting clothes, and his mother is buttoning buttons.

Affected by the Great Depression, Stanley's father's income as a tailor dropped sharply, and the family worked hard but could barely make ends meet.

As the eldest son of a poor family, Stanley loved reading mystery and adventure stories since he was a child.

The radio drama "Adventures of Superman" broadcast by CBS has become his favorite program.

Even after the radio drama was broadcast, Stanley wrote several short stories about Superman, which were circulated among his classmates.

The description of Superman in the radio drama left a deep impression on Stanley's young mind.

At the same time, he also learned the name superhero for the first time in "The Adventures of Superman".

For some reason, even though it was his first time knowing the name superhero, Stanley could not forget it for a long time.

Announcer: "...on an ordinary farm in Smallville, Kansas, USA, our Kryptonian baby has grown up healthily and become an ordinary young man. However, we all know that in fact he is not Ordinary, even if this young man looks no different from us."

In a radio drama, the announcer lays out the background of the story.

"Stanley, take the button and come over here..."

"Okay, Mom."

Hearing his mother's call, Stanley reluctantly left the radio, walked to the cabinet and dug out some buttons, and handed them to his mother who was sewing the buttons, but his ears were firmly locked in the direction of the radio drama.

Then, in Stanley's anticipation, Clark's voice came from the radio play.

Clark Kent: "Good morning, Jonathan, good morning, Martha..."

Jonathan Kent: "Good morning."

Martha Kent: "Good morning, how did you sleep, Clark."

Clark Kent: "I always slept well, Mom."

The third episode of the "Adventures of Superman" radio series opens with a heartwarming family conversation, showing the deep relationship between Clark and his adoptive parents on Earth.

Although, there is no thrilling sense of disaster like Krypton in the story.

It surprisingly makes people feel calm. However, the calmer it becomes, the more curious people become about the subsequent development of the story.

After all, everyone knew Clark Kent was destined to become Superman.

In the radio play, after experiencing a warm breakfast conversation, Clark and his adoptive father Jonathan began to work on the farm. In the story, Clark's abilities as Superman are also demonstrated for the first time.

Amid the heavy transportation in the background, Jonathan's breathing seemed a little labored, but Clark seemed to be extremely relaxed.

Jonathan Kent: "Hoo, ho, let's take a break, Kent."

Clark Kent: "You know, Jonathan, I have endless power, so leave the rest to me."

Rejecting his adoptive father's offer, Clark took on all the remaining farm work himself.

"The sound is a little different?"

In this radio drama, Clark's extraordinary powers are mainly described. However, Stanley noticed that there seemed to be some changes in Clark Kent's voice, which was a little different from the beginning.

Although he noticed something different in his heart, Stanley didn't know the reason behind it. Coupled with the attraction of the radio drama, he could only hide this idea in his heart and continue to listen carefully to the content of the radio drama.

Jonathan Kent: "Clark, you have to remember that there are many things that can't be solved by just relying on strength."

Clark Kent: "At least on the farm, most things can be solved with force."

Jonathan Kent: "Maybe it's my fault that I limited your abilities. I shouldn't have just trapped you on the farm."

Clark Kent: "What?"

Jonathan Kent: "Nothing, let's finish the rest of the farm work."

Clark Kent: "No problem!"

Announcer: "That evening, Jonathan Kent and Martha Kent had a profound conversation."

Jonathan Kent: "I think it's time for Clark to go out and have his own adventure."

Martha Kent: "Why, wouldn't it be nice to have Clark living with us?"

Jonathan Kent: "I know, but we all know that Clark is destined not to be an ordinary person. This has been destined from the time he sat in the spacecraft and landed. He has abilities that are different from ordinary people, but I will not be ordinary people because of selfishness." He stayed on the farm, which is not what a father should do."

Martha Kent: "It's not your fault, Jonathan. The truth is, we all love Clark, no matter where he comes from."

In the background of the broadcast, sounds of sobbing could be heard.

Jonathan Kent: "It's time to make a decision, Martha, we should tell Clark the truth!"

Martha Kent: "Jonathan, is that what you want?"

Jonathan Kent: "Yes, Martha, we should tell the truth about Clark's parentage. We are not his biological parents."

Martha Kent: "But, Jonathan, what if Clark left us, what if he went to find his parents."

Jonathan Kent: "Believe me, Martha, Clark would not do this. He is a good young man. Have you forgotten the teachings we have taught Clark over the years? We raised him to be a good young man, so how could he do it?" Something like that happened.”

Announcer: "Jonathan Kent and Martha Kent were discussing carefully, but they never thought that the content of their conversation had already been heard by Clark. In the next bedroom, listening to the conversation of his adoptive parents, Clark whispered in his heart replied.

Clark Kent: "Yeah, I wouldn't do that. You are my parents to me."

…

Jonathan Kent: "Clark, I have something to show you."

Announcer: "The next day, Jonathan and Martha stopped Clark in a heavy tone. Under the leadership of their adoptive parents, the three of them came to the farm's warehouse. Jonathan opened the plywood of the warehouse, revealing a deep After entering the basement where he had been hiding for many years, Clark saw a spaceship."

Background sound: clang, clang--

Clark Kent: "This?"

Jonathan Kent: "Clark, this is the spaceship you flew on when you were a child. In fact, we are not your biological parents."

Martha Kent: "I'm sorry, Clark, we've been hiding this from you."

Background sound: Sobbing.

Announcer: "Clark came to the spacecraft. Looking at the scarred spacecraft, he could imagine the difficulties he would encounter while riding it in the universe."

Poof——

Announcer: "Clark stretched out his palm and lightly touched the spaceship in the basement. With a start-up sound, the spaceship that had been sleeping on the farm for a long time slowly opened, revealing a large shield-shaped logo on the chest inside." S"-marked Kryptonian uniform. At this point, Clark's career as Superman has also begun..."

As the popularity of the radio drama grew, the episode length also increased from the previous twelve minutes to nearly forty minutes of full-length radio drama. Although the length of the series has increased, the compact story development still firmly attracts the audience's attention.

By the time they came to their senses, the third episode of "The Adventures of Superman" "Clark on the Farm" had come to an end.

On the radio, the closing words began to sound.

Passerby A: "Look at the sky!"

…

Passerby: "That's Superman! (That's - Superman!)"

Announcer: "'Superman' is a copyrighted work that is serialized in newspapers and magazines published by The Courier. In addition, special thanks go to Mr. Colin Looper who voiced Superman in the opening scene and is also the original author of Superman."

At the end of the broadcast, accompanied by Superman's iconic slogan, Orson Welles, who served as the announcer, expressed his gratitude to Colin, and also made Stanley understand why he felt that Superman was dubbed differently.

"It turns out that the person who originally dubbed the voice was the author of Superman!"

This situation of the creator appearing in the work is undoubtedly a quite novel experience for Stanley. He even began to imagine that one day in the future, if he could appear in his own work like Colin, , what kind of scene it would be.

Thanks for the 500 starting coin reward for going to do with all your strength.

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