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Robert (Butch) Day
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Location: Arlington, WA USA
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Pow
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Joined: 27 Sep 2014
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Location: New York
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 Posted: Mon Sep 21, 2015 7:49 pm Post subject: |
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Jack Larson told this story in an interview about a chance meeting with Sir Lawrence Olivier.
Olivier had watched The Adventures of Superman. He told Jack what a marvelous actor he was & how impressed he was with him in the role.
Jack was stunned. He said it told him that you really don't know who might be watching you as an actor. |
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Custer
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| Posted: Tue Sep 22, 2015 7:00 am Post subject: |
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Here's a nice appreciation of his talent from sfsite.com:
| Quote: | | Since his is the sort of acting that rarely earns awards or critical analyses, it may be difficult to articulate the skills that made Larson's work so memorable. Certainly, there is the quality identified by no less than Sir Laurence Olivier in a personal conversation with Larson, the undeniable "energy" of his performance. One also notes a determination to treat his material with the utmost respect and a constant attentiveness to what the actors around him are doing. Finally, while the other Jimmy Olsens may be tempted to occasionally endow their characters with a bit of maturity and gravitas, Larson wholeheartedly embraced his role as a stupid bumbler and all-around nice guy and made himself the emotional centerpiece of the series; viewers could respect George Reeve's Superman or Noel Neill's Lois Lane, but the character they really loved was Jimmy Olsen. No other performer has ever had a greater impact on the entire Superman saga, for Larson single-handedly transformed what was originally a minor character (first created only to give the radio Superman somebody to talk to) into a central figure of the mythology who became the star of his own long-running comic book and an essential presence in all subsequent Superman adventures. |
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Bud Brewster
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| Posted: Tue Sep 22, 2015 11:49 am Post subject: |
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I was born in 1948, so I grew up watching The Adventures of Superman. I ran around my backyard with a towel pinned to my neck, leaping tall dandelions at a single bound.
I have the box set of the Superman series, and I think it's time to watch them again. Bulldogtrekker and I often share movies and shows (despite living in two different states) by synchronizing videos and chatting on Facebook.
He and I might do this soon with the Superman series, and if anyone would like to join us, let us know.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958) |
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Krel
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| Posted: Tue Sep 22, 2015 12:19 pm Post subject: |
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| Custer wrote: |
Larson wholeheartedly embraced his role as a stupid bumbler and all-around nice guy and made himself the emotional centerpiece of the series; |
I never thought of Larson's Jimmy as stupid, or even much of a bumbler. Na??ve maybe, but he was suppose to be young and learning. I can remember two episodes where Jimmy saved Superman. Once by sealing a piece of kryptonite in a lead pipe, and by climbing out of a pit to move a raygun that was firing down at Superman. Jimmy may have been a bit of a bumble, but he could always be counted on when needed.
He was a good role model for children. We could certainly use more like him today.
David. |
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Custer
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| Posted: Tue Sep 22, 2015 1:35 pm Post subject: |
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Well, I was only quoting that other site's appreciation, which wasn't a recent obituary page. I'd agree that calling Jimmy a "stupid bumbler" is a bit harsh, but he was a nice guy, and did, in a way, become an emotional centrepiece for the series.
He must have been the inspiration for some very successful comics over the years - add those to the tv shows and he has left us quite a legacy. |
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Bud Brewster
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Location: North Carolina
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| Posted: Tue Sep 22, 2015 3:20 pm Post subject: |
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Guys, let's face it -- none of the characters ever figured out that Clark was Superman, despite the uncanny resemblance, so Jimmy wasn't exactly surrounded by geniuses.
Just to put things into perspective, if Jimmy Olsen and Barney Fife had to think they're way out a tough situation, I'd have call Jimmy the brains of the organization! 
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958) |
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orzel-w
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Joined: 19 Sep 2014
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| Posted: Tue Sep 22, 2015 6:24 pm Post subject: |
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| Bud Brewster wrote: | | Guys, let's face it -- none of the characters ever figured out that Clark was Superman, despite the uncanny resemblance, so Jimmy wasn't exactly surrounded by geniuses. |
Maybe we're being too harsh. After all, Supe might have also had a hitherto undisclosed power over his breath fragrance. When disguised as Clark, he could alter his breath to smell differently, thereby convincing those close to him that they were two entirely different people.
Maybe even body odor as well!
Eye color? (Hey, if you can shoot laser beams out yer eyes...)
Then, too, there's this...
http://www.slate.com/blogs/quora/2015/09/21/superman_clark_kent_how_does_he_disguise_his_identity_with_only_glasses.html
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Custer
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Joined: 22 Aug 2015
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| Posted: Wed Sep 23, 2015 9:32 am Post subject: |
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There has been a suggestion of (perhaps unconscious) super-hypnosis on Superman's part, but there's certainly, as has been mentioned, a lot more to the change than a pair of glasses - a different hairstyle, a different timbre of voice, and a different posture.
Mind you, Superman always knew he had to be careful - when there was a suggestion that his face would be appearing on a postage stamp, he worked hard to nix the idea, in case the stamp got cancelled at a sorting office with a double "O" in its name, and those got accidentally placed over his eyes on the stamp... |
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Bud Brewster
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| Posted: Wed Sep 23, 2015 5:18 pm Post subject: |
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Lois: Clark, I think it's rather odd that whenever Superman is around, you're always conspicuously absent.
Clark: Oh, come on, Lois! You can't possibly think I'm Superman. I'm not, and I can prove it.
Lois: How?
Clark: Remember that woman Superman saved from the burning building last week? The article in the Daily Planet stated that the woman said Superman's breath was minty fresh. Smell my breath, Lois. Is it minty fresh? Well, is it?
Lois: No, but . . . . Clark, you wrote that article in the Daily Planet!
Clark: Right! And have you ever known me to lie? Well, have you?
Lois: Gosh, Clark, ya got me. What was I thinking?
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958) |
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Custer
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| Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2015 9:27 am Post subject: |
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There was a time when Superman had a number of Superman robots based at the ol' Fortress of Solitude, which meant that Clark could point up at a passing "Superman" like anyone else... and on one occasion he even asked JFK to pose as Clark.
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Krel
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| Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2015 11:36 am Post subject: |
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Well. Now we know who REALY assassinated JFK. How does it go? Two people can keep a secret, as long as one of them is dead.
I'm kidding of course. "Red Dwarf" showed us who really assassinated JFK. It was JFK.
David. |
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orzel-w
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Joined: 19 Sep 2014
Posts: 1876
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| Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2015 1:08 pm Post subject: |
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| Superman wrote: | | After all, if I can't trust the president of the United States, who can I trust? |
Ah, those were the days... 
Like it says down in the corner, "THE END".
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WayneO
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bulldogtrekker
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Joined: 14 Dec 2013
Posts: 1024
Location: Columbia,SC
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| Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2015 5:01 pm Post subject: |
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| That 2-panel comic of Superman and JFK certainly brought back memories. I am sure I owned that comic. |
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Custer
Space Sector Commander
Joined: 22 Aug 2015
Posts: 932
Location: Earth
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| Posted: Fri Sep 25, 2015 1:29 pm Post subject: |
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It's probably quite valuable now - as long as the condition is good!
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