Superman vs. Hollywood: How Fiendish Producers, Devious Directors, and Warring Writers Grounded an American Icon (Cappella Books) (Paperback)

~ (Author), Mark Millar (Foreword)
Key Phrases: nuclear man, girl power, flying effects, Man of Steel, Ilya Salkind, Warner Bros (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Replete with scams, lawsuits, megolomaniacal egos, and neurotic actors, with plenty of juicy gossip.  —Library Journal

"Essential for pop-culture collections."  —Booklist

"Solid research and crisp prose make this Superman book a winner."  —Kirkus Reviews

"The best book yet about the powerful and profitable relationship between superheroes and Hollywood."  —Devin Faraci, critic, Cinematic Happenings Under Development

"Fast, smart and uncompromising."  —Tom Mankiewicz, screenwriter, director, and creative consultant on Superman and Superman II

"Superman fans, take warning—you will not want to know any of the gut-churning facts contained herein. And you will not be able to stop reading. Good luck."  —Patton Oswalt, actor and comedian

"It's a wonderful and often scary look at the silver screen and how it has tried so hard to defeat the Man of Steel."  —Ain't It Cool News

"There is so much to discover that Rossen's book should be required reading for all fans of Superman in any medium. . . . It is a film lover's history book that delivers all that we'll ever need to know about the man of steel and his battle against Hollywood."  —Mania.com

Product Description

Superman has fought for nearly seven decades to conquer radio, television, and film—but his battles behind the scenes have proved a far greater threat than any fictional foe. For the first time, one book unearths all the details of his turbulent adventures in Tinseltown.

 

Based on extensive interviews with producers, screenwriters, cast members, and crew, Superman vs. Hollywood spills the beans on Marlon Brando’s eccentricities; the challenges of making Superman appear to fly; the casting process that at various points had Superman being played by Sylvester Stallone, Neil Diamond, Nicolas Cage, Ashton Kutcher, and even Muhammad Ali; and the Superman movies, fashioned by such maverick filmmakers as Kevin Smith and Tim Burton, that never made it to the screen.

See all Editorial Reviews

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Product Details Paperback: 352 pages Publisher: Chicago Review Press; First Printing edition (February 1, 2008) Language: English ISBN-10: 1556527314 ISBN-13: 978-1556527319 Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.7 inches Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies) Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews) Amazon.com Sales Rank: #220,517 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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› Visit Amazon's Jake Rossen Page

Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!

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Inside This Book (learn more)

Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
nuclear man, girl power, flying effects, flying sequences, film franchise, titular character

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Man of Steel, Ilya Salkind, Warner Bros, Clark Kent, New York, Lex Luthor, Star Wars, Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen, The Movie, Jon Peters, Richard Donner, Tim Burton, Daily Planet, Superman Returns, Richard Lester, Alex Salkind, Lana Lang, Super Friends, Bruce Wayne, George Reeves, Flights of Fancy, Pierre Spengler, Perry White, Noel Neill

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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!

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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

	89% buy the item featured on this page: Superman vs. Hollywood: How Fiendish Producers, Devious Directors, and Warring Writers Grounded an American Icon (Cappella Books) 4.9 out of 5 stars (9) $12.71
	3% buy Flights of Fantasy: The Unauthorized but True Story of Radio & TV's Adventures of Superman 5.0 out of 5 stars (7) $26.95
	3% buy Superhero: The Secret Origin of a Genre 4.8 out of 5 stars (5)
	3% buy Superman: The Complete History 4.1 out of 5 stars (18) $12.89

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Customer Reviews

9 Reviews 5 star:  (8) 4 star:  (1) 3 star:    (0) 2 star:    (0) 1 star:    (0)           Average Customer Review 4.9 out of 5 stars (9 customer reviews)		Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews 38 of 42 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars The Never-Ending Battle For Ego, Avarice, And The Hollywood Way!, February 5, 2008 By  Joshua Chipman (Shelby, IA USA) - See all my reviews Sweet merciful Rao, where do I begin? SUPERMAN VS. HOLLYWOOD paints a bizarre tapestry centering on one of the world's most enduring fictional icons, with "enduring" being the operative word: under the smart and thorough pen of Jake Rossen, the book chronicles the behind-the-scenes ineptitude, cheapness, lack of creativity and flat-out viciousness that has provided more degradation to the Superman legacy than its various radio, film and TV permutations did creative contributions. And we're not talking about simply Donner vs. the Salkinds here, folks...this book covers almost every dirty little self-driven machination that ever embedded itself into Superman's non-print pursuits, going all the way back to the 1940s radio show. The film branch of the Superman brand takes up the lion's share of the book, but preceding it are some truly fascinating accounts, including the Superman radio show writers taking cues on an episode attacking the Ku Klux Klan by having an infiltrator of their own in attendance at Klan meetings, as well as the professional struggles of George Reeves as a result of donning the cape, and the lurid goings-on that almost certainly led to his demise, from whatever viewpoint you choose to look at the circumstances of his death. This early portion of the book also contends with the myriad efforts of the producers of "The Adventures Of Superman" to cotton to sponsorship - including the curious exclusion of Lois Lane from any Kellogg's commercials, which in one instance had Clark, Jimmy AND Perry at a breakfast table - and their wild attempts to revive the Superman TV franchise in the wake of Reeves' death (I'd also recommend viewing the 2006 Superman documentary "Look! Up In The Sky: The Amazing Story Of Superman" for more on this - seriously, you have to see a clip from "The Adventures Of Superpup" to [dis]believe it). Why do Superman programs and films always seem to generate such calamitous circumstances? Some have attributed it to a bona-fide "Superman curse" made manifest in George Reeves' apparent suicide and the crippling of Christopher Reeve (No relation, folks - the movie Superman's surname has no S on the end, if I may be allowed one wee little nitpick), but as Rossen illustrates in his laborious text on matters, some of it may have to do with the general stigma of comic books as little more than fare for juveniles, an attitude that seemed to be shared by many who were involved in the production of the various Superman TV series and films, including the much-maligned director Richard Lester, who's taken his share of shots by fanboys for his campy approach to the sequels to the 1978 film; in Lester's case, Rossen fortunately retains an air of non-bias, opting to let personal anecdotes speak for themselves on this oft-targeted figure for fan venting. Ditto the Salkinds, who now share the unflattering light with Richard Donner and his increasing temperament at their intrusions. Who was in the right? Who deserved the real blame? As Ilya Salkind himself recently described the problematic shoot of "Superman: The Movie": "It was everybody's fault, and nobody's." He's not far off at all. As pointed out in the tome, Superman seems to have suffered more creative blundering than any other superhero due to the increasing difficulty of others to relate to him as a character; his powers make him nigh-omnipotent, and as a result his rogues' gallery outside of Lex Luthor has never been able to make the memorable impact left by the likes of Batman's foes. Even his dual identity as a mild-mannered reporter dedicated to his job works against him in a world that has become more receptive to seeing Spider-Man get soundly thrashed by Dr. Octopus and then hobble home to discover that his sweet old Aunt May can't pay her medical bills, he's six months behind on his rent, and J. Jonah Jameson has plastered another libelous headline branding Spidey a murderer and thief across the front page of the same paper Peter Parker works for. Marvel's characters, for all their nonsensical origins, at their highs thrived on the accessibility of real-life situations; for that reason, Superman has perpetually suffered from a sense of antiquity that has propagated many a half-hearted attempt to "revitalize" the character, a fact which is very much in evidence in this book without necessarily needing to provide further elaboration on it. For DC Comics, and especially for Warner Brothers, their flagship character has been largely treated as little more than a gravy train; the Superman comics themselves have never really been very good in recent years, evidenced by the constant chain of "stunts" DC initiated in the early 1990s beginning with the "Death Of Superman" storyarc that provided the spark for the bulk of controversial attempts made since Reeve's last bow as the Man of Steel to jump-start the Superman film franchise. Such attempts provide some of the more amusing fodder for Rossen's account, in particular producer Jon Peters and his outright dispassion for Superman's two most visible signatures: his costume and his ability to fly. Reading Rossen's descriptions of the various story pitches and casting choices for the part, it's easy to see why none of these radical revamp efforts never materialized and almost compels one to sigh in relief as a result. And make no mistake, Rossen's writing style is hard and unfettered by personal affections or preferences: considered an idol by many a Superman fan for his portrayal, Christopher Reeve is accounted for as a young actor trying to take the part seriously, but also blinded by that responsibility in the process (more than a few cast and crew members didn't think particularly highly of him). Likewise, Richard Donner, who receives much adulation for directing the only palpable Superman film in the bunch, is as finely skewered as Alexander and Ilya Salkind ever were. Rossen doesn't pull any punches on anybody, really; from Robert Shayne's near-dismissal from "The Adventures Of Superman" for allegations of Communism to Superman creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster's beyond-the-grave legal battles with DC Comics for a piece of the pie that could acutely affect the "Smallville" TV series (still in production as of this writing) to Tim Burton's apparent dislike for Nicolas Cage (the latter of whom, to his credit, lobbied for more reverence for comics lore in light of all the weirdness Burton and Peters wanted to throw into their Super-package), Rossen opens up areas that I think even the most ardent Superman fan will find surprising. The book is as thorough as necessary in its exploration of every non-comics venture into Superman lore or any smattering of it, from the Salkinds' ill-conceived endeavor to refresh their comic-book palette with a Supergirl film after the nonsensical notion to toss Richard Pryor into the Superman film series cost moviegoers and comic fans the chance to see Brainiac take on our caped hero, to the various Fleisher-influenced and comics-faithful animated series produced by Bruce Timm of the mid-1990s that, with sad curiosity, has enjoyed a success and resonance with younger AND mature fans that Warner Brothers, for whatever reason, has chosen to ignore. If there's any one real criticism I have for this book - though it doesn't detract from me giving it a five-star rating; IMO it's still an absolute must-read for comic-book fans, film buffs, or any filmmaker who thinks that reimagining a classic character beyond all recognition is a good idea - it's that the meager handful of photos it does contain don't sufficiently enhance the impact of most of the book's content. Rossen would have been better served by screen-caps from the Superpup pilot, pictures of Helen Slater's unused and more comic-accurate (to the time) Supergirl suit, and even some of the outlandish concept art from the unproduced Superman film attempts of recent years, just to show how absolutely misguided the filmmakers have been in trying to breath three-dimensional life into Superman's world. But really, I can't do any justice to this book. You have to read it for yourself, to see just how messed up Hollywood has been - and potentially still is - in its treatment of one of America's greatest pop-culture contributions. 10 of 10 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars Fun and fascinating read , February 22, 2008 By  ComicFanGirl57 - See all my reviews I was so engaged that I read the book in a day instead of stretching it out. Lots of interesting info. The backstage in-fighting was fascinating and so were the accounts of the evolution of various Superman TV shows and movies. Since the other reviewers have hit a lot of the high points, and at the time that I purchased the book, no table of contents was attached, here's a breakdown of the subjects covered. The first couple of chapters cover Bud Collyer,Kirk Alyn, and George Reeves, as you might expect. The middle section deals largely with the Salkinds, Richard Donner, Richard Lester, and Christoper Reeve; the making of Superman I-III. There's an excursion by one chapter into the Salkinds' Supergirl movie and it's effect on the Superman franchise. There are also scattered references throughout the book to the Batman TV shows/movies and that franchise's effects on Superman. Spiderman and other superhero movie/shows are referenced, but Batman gets the most page time. The Cannon Group and Superman IV are also discussed. Then we move onto the Superboy TV show and more on the Salkinds. The next bit covers Lois & Clark and there's a brief visit to Bruce Timm's animated version of Superman. Smallville is also dealt with. Most of the latter portion of the book is about with the scripts, producers, and actors contemplated for various possible versions of a new Superman movie before Superman Returns was decided upon. Bryan Singer and the making of Superman Returns are also discussed. On the whole, this is a very intriguing look. I wish the author had been less cursory in the discussions of Smallville and had gone into more detail with the animated versions of Superman, but I would recommend this book to any Superman fan. 10 of 10 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars Highly Entertaining, January 2, 2008 By  AlabasterDisaster (Los Angeles, California) - See all my reviews I was blown away at how much fun "Superman vs. Hollywood" was to read. The author did an outstanding job of collecting the myriad ways the Man of Steel has been abused (and more rarely, dignified) by producers, ad men, corporate sponsors and harried writers, directors and animators. Writer Jake Rossen captures the zeitgeist of each Super-era, from the family values-obsessed 50s to the campy 60s and beyond. This book is not just for Superman fans, but for anyone who is interested in the absurd, infuriating and hilarious machinations of Hollywood. Definitely one of the most readable pieces of non-ficton I have come across in a long time.		Ad feedback   Most Recent Customer Reviews 5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book Author does a great job of telling the story of the struggles and successes of bringing Superman to TV, radio and the movies. Read more Published 10 months ago by Larry A. Good 5.0 out of 5 stars Superman Returns Hands down the most interesting 'behind the scenes' book I have ever read. Despite my thinking I knew alot of the background to the controversial development of the Superman... Read more Published 17 months ago by Daniel Court 5.0 out of 5 stars A very informative and tragic look at Hollywood's treatment of Superman This was a great book and a very quick read! It is also a very scary and eye-opening look into the world of Hollywood in general, not just with Superman. Read more Published 18 months ago by grifter78 5.0 out of 5 stars If you read one book ....( make it this one) This was one of the most enjoyable books about a comic icon that I have ever read. I won't bore you with what I liked as others posting reviews have done so already and much more... Read more Published 20 months ago by John Bezold 4.0 out of 5 stars You would believe a man could (almost) fly I was expecting a picture laden history of the large scale Superman movies from the 70's and eighties when I first thought about buying this book and was a little put out by the... Read more Published 20 months ago by Kevin Wilson 5.0 out of 5 stars A Joy to Read. Buy it right now! This is by far the best non-fiction book on Superman. It comes close to best non-fiction I EVER read. Read more Published 21 months ago by A. A. Ozok Search Customer Reviews Only search this product's reviews

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Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Chicago Review Press; First Printing edition (February 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1556527314
• ISBN-13: 978-1556527319
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #220,517 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Never-Ending Battle For Ego, Avarice, And The Hollywood Way!, February 5, 2008

By	Joshua Chipman (Shelby, IA USA) - See all my reviews

Sweet merciful Rao, where do I begin? SUPERMAN VS. HOLLYWOOD paints a bizarre tapestry centering on one of the world's most enduring fictional icons, with "enduring" being the operative word: under the smart and thorough pen of Jake Rossen, the book chronicles the behind-the-scenes ineptitude, cheapness, lack of creativity and flat-out viciousness that has provided more degradation to the Superman legacy than its various radio, film and TV permutations did creative contributions. And we're not talking about simply Donner vs. the Salkinds here, folks...this book covers almost every dirty little self-driven machination that ever embedded itself into Superman's non-print pursuits, going all the way back to the 1940s radio show. The film branch of the Superman brand takes up the lion's share of the book, but preceding it are some truly fascinating accounts, including the Superman radio show writers taking cues on an episode attacking the Ku Klux Klan by having an infiltrator of their own in attendance at Klan meetings, as well as the professional struggles of George Reeves as a result of donning the cape, and the lurid goings-on that almost certainly led to his demise, from whatever viewpoint you choose to look at the circumstances of his death. This early portion of the book also contends with the myriad efforts of the producers of "The Adventures Of Superman" to cotton to sponsorship - including the curious exclusion of Lois Lane from any Kellogg's commercials, which in one instance had Clark, Jimmy AND Perry at a breakfast table - and their wild attempts to revive the Superman TV franchise in the wake of Reeves' death (I'd also recommend viewing the 2006 Superman documentary "Look! Up In The Sky: The Amazing Story Of Superman" for more on this - seriously, you have to see a clip from "The Adventures Of Superpup" to [dis]believe it).

Why do Superman programs and films always seem to generate such calamitous circumstances? Some have attributed it to a bona-fide "Superman curse" made manifest in George Reeves' apparent suicide and the crippling of Christopher Reeve (No relation, folks - the movie Superman's surname has no S on the end, if I may be allowed one wee little nitpick), but as Rossen illustrates in his laborious text on matters, some of it may have to do with the general stigma of comic books as little more than fare for juveniles, an attitude that seemed to be shared by many who were involved in the production of the various Superman TV series and films, including the much-maligned director Richard Lester, who's taken his share of shots by fanboys for his campy approach to the sequels to the 1978 film; in Lester's case, Rossen fortunately retains an air of non-bias, opting to let personal anecdotes speak for themselves on this oft-targeted figure for fan venting. Ditto the Salkinds, who now share the unflattering light with Richard Donner and his increasing temperament at their intrusions. Who was in the right? Who deserved the real blame? As Ilya Salkind himself recently described the problematic shoot of "Superman: The Movie": "It was everybody's fault, and nobody's." He's not far off at all.

As pointed out in the tome, Superman seems to have suffered more creative blundering than any other superhero due to the increasing difficulty of others to relate to him as a character; his powers make him nigh-omnipotent, and as a result his rogues' gallery outside of Lex Luthor has never been able to make the memorable impact left by the likes of Batman's foes. Even his dual identity as a mild-mannered reporter dedicated to his job works against him in a world that has become more receptive to seeing Spider-Man get soundly thrashed by Dr. Octopus and then hobble home to discover that his sweet old Aunt May can't pay her medical bills, he's six months behind on his rent, and J. Jonah Jameson has plastered another libelous headline branding Spidey a murderer and thief across the front page of the same paper Peter Parker works for. Marvel's characters, for all their nonsensical origins, at their highs thrived on the accessibility of real-life situations; for that reason, Superman has perpetually suffered from a sense of antiquity that has propagated many a half-hearted attempt to "revitalize" the character, a fact which is very much in evidence in this book without necessarily needing to provide further elaboration on it. For DC Comics, and especially for Warner Brothers, their flagship character has been largely treated as little more than a gravy train; the Superman comics themselves have never really been very good in recent years, evidenced by the constant chain of "stunts" DC initiated in the early 1990s beginning with the "Death Of Superman" storyarc that provided the spark for the bulk of controversial attempts made since Reeve's last bow as the Man of Steel to jump-start the Superman film franchise. Such attempts provide some of the more amusing fodder for Rossen's account, in particular producer Jon Peters and his outright dispassion for Superman's two most visible signatures: his costume and his ability to fly. Reading Rossen's descriptions of the various story pitches and casting choices for the part, it's easy to see why none of these radical revamp efforts never materialized and almost compels one to sigh in relief as a result.

And make no mistake, Rossen's writing style is hard and unfettered by personal affections or preferences: considered an idol by many a Superman fan for his portrayal, Christopher Reeve is accounted for as a young actor trying to take the part seriously, but also blinded by that responsibility in the process (more than a few cast and crew members didn't think particularly highly of him). Likewise, Richard Donner, who receives much adulation for directing the only palpable Superman film in the bunch, is as finely skewered as Alexander and Ilya Salkind ever were. Rossen doesn't pull any punches on anybody, really; from Robert Shayne's near-dismissal from "The Adventures Of Superman" for allegations of Communism to Superman creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster's beyond-the-grave legal battles with DC Comics for a piece of the pie that could acutely affect the "Smallville" TV series (still in production as of this writing) to Tim Burton's apparent dislike for Nicolas Cage (the latter of whom, to his credit, lobbied for more reverence for comics lore in light of all the weirdness Burton and Peters wanted to throw into their Super-package), Rossen opens up areas that I think even the most ardent Superman fan will find surprising. The book is as thorough as necessary in its exploration of every non-comics venture into Superman lore or any smattering of it, from the Salkinds' ill-conceived endeavor to refresh their comic-book palette with a Supergirl film after the nonsensical notion to toss Richard Pryor into the Superman film series cost moviegoers and comic fans the chance to see Brainiac take on our caped hero, to the various Fleisher-influenced and comics-faithful animated series produced by Bruce Timm of the mid-1990s that, with sad curiosity, has enjoyed a success and resonance with younger AND mature fans that Warner Brothers, for whatever reason, has chosen to ignore.

If there's any one real criticism I have for this book - though it doesn't detract from me giving it a five-star rating; IMO it's still an absolute must-read for comic-book fans, film buffs, or any filmmaker who thinks that reimagining a classic character beyond all recognition is a good idea - it's that the meager handful of photos it does contain don't sufficiently enhance the impact of most of the book's content. Rossen would have been better served by screen-caps from the Superpup pilot, pictures of Helen Slater's unused and more comic-accurate (to the time) Supergirl suit, and even some of the outlandish concept art from the unproduced Superman film attempts of recent years, just to show how absolutely misguided the filmmakers have been in trying to breath three-dimensional life into Superman's world.

But really, I can't do any justice to this book. You have to read it for yourself, to see just how messed up Hollywood has been - and potentially still is - in its treatment of one of America's greatest pop-culture contributions.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fun and fascinating read , February 22, 2008

By	ComicFanGirl57 - See all my reviews

I was so engaged that I read the book in a day instead of stretching it out. Lots of interesting info. The backstage in-fighting was fascinating and so were the accounts of the evolution of various Superman TV shows and movies. Since the other reviewers have hit a lot of the high points, and at the time that I purchased the book, no table of contents was attached, here's a breakdown of the subjects covered.

The first couple of chapters cover Bud Collyer,Kirk Alyn, and George Reeves, as you might expect. The middle section deals largely with the Salkinds, Richard Donner, Richard Lester, and Christoper Reeve; the making of Superman I-III. There's an excursion by one chapter into the Salkinds' Supergirl movie and it's effect on the Superman franchise. There are also scattered references throughout the book to the Batman TV shows/movies and that franchise's effects on Superman. Spiderman and other superhero movie/shows are referenced, but Batman gets the most page time.

The Cannon Group and Superman IV are also discussed. Then we move onto the Superboy TV show and more on the Salkinds. The next bit covers Lois & Clark and there's a brief visit to Bruce Timm's animated version of Superman. Smallville is also dealt with. Most of the latter portion of the book is about with the scripts, producers, and actors contemplated for various possible versions of a new Superman movie before Superman Returns was decided upon. Bryan Singer and the making of Superman Returns are also discussed.

On the whole, this is a very intriguing look. I wish the author had been less cursory in the discussions of Smallville and had gone into more detail with the animated versions of Superman, but I would recommend this book to any Superman fan.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly Entertaining, January 2, 2008

By	AlabasterDisaster (Los Angeles, California) - See all my reviews

I was blown away at how much fun "Superman vs. Hollywood" was to read. The author did an outstanding job of collecting the myriad ways the Man of Steel has been abused (and more rarely, dignified) by producers, ad men, corporate sponsors and harried writers, directors and animators. Writer Jake Rossen captures the zeitgeist of each Super-era, from the family values-obsessed 50s to the campy 60s and beyond. This book is not just for Superman fans, but for anyone who is interested in the absurd, infuriating and hilarious machinations of Hollywood. Definitely one of the most readable pieces of non-ficton I have come across in a long time.