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After the
establishment of DC Comics' Multiverse in the 1960s, it is
established retroactively that the Golden Age version of Superman
lives on the parallel world of Earth-Two and is named Kal-L, while
his Silver Age counterpart lives on Earth-One and is named Kal-El. On
Earth-One, the Galaxy Broadcasting Station and its president, Morgan
Edge, purchase The Daily Planet, Edge subsequently naming Clark Kent
as the lead anchorman for its Metropolis television station, WGBS-TV.
Later in the 1970s, childhood friend Lana Lang joins Clark in his
newscasts as co-anchor.
A series of
stories in the 1970s establish that the Earth-Two Superman had
married his version of Lois Lane in the 1950s (Action Comics #484,
(1978)) and had become the editor-in-chief of the The Daily Star. In
the early 1970s, Kal-L discovers a Kryptonian rocket that contains
his cousin Kara Zor-L. After acclimating to Earth, Kara becomes the
superheroine Power Girl. Kal-L also continues to serve with the
revived Justice Society; he is revealed as a founding member of the
group in the team's origin story in DC Special #29. In the early
1980s, Kal-L is also shown as a member of the All-Star Squadron
during World War II. Despite a changing market, Superman's stories
remained similar to those which defined the Silver Age for quite a
while. However, by the seventies, it became apperant that even the
Man of Steel needed some polishing.
Superman entered
the Bronze Age in 1970 under famed artist Jack Kirby. Kirby chose to
revamp the spin-off Superman's Pal, Jimmy Olsen, using it as a
platform for his Fourth-World concept. Among the creations first
appearing therein was Darkseid, an alien warlord powerful enough to
pose a great threat to Superman himself.
In the same year,
editor Mort Weisinger left and was replaced by Julius Schwartz, while
up-and-coming talents such as Neal Adams, Denny O'Neil, Elliot S!
Maggin and Ross Andru added new dimensions to the character in both
writing and artwork, it was the evolution of veteran Superman artist
Curt Swan which provided a transition from the fantasies of
yesteryear to the more modern illustration style.
 Also
Superman's Earth-2 counterpart married the Lois Lane of his world,
and new rivals such as Terra-Man and Parasite appeared. In 1978
Superman: The Movie was released. The film featured groundbreaking
special effects under the direction of Richard Donner, and stars such
as Marlon Brando and Gene Hackman, but it was the performance of
newcomer Christopher Reeve that made the film come alive in the eyes
of many critics.
With his stunning
good looks and tall stature at 6 ft 4 in, Reeve is said to have drawn
eyes when walking into auditions. This paid off when he beat out
thousands of others for the role of Superman in the 1978 film
directed by Richard Donner. This film was an enormous success and
inspired three sequels. Coincidentally, Christopher Reeve's good
friend Robin Williams also became a star that same year with the
television show Mork & Mindy. Contrary to myth, Christopher Reeve
is not related to George Reeves, who played Superman on television in
the 1950s. George Reeves' real name was, in fact, George Brewer, and
the similarity in their names is only coincidental.
 Although
he was certainly tall enough for the role, Reeve's build was
decidedly unmuscular, and he began a training regimen under former
British weightlifting champion Dave Prowse, who, a short time later,
would gain fame as the man who would give physical form to Darth
Vader in George Lucas' immensely popular Star Wars films.
Superman was the
kind of part Reeve usually disdained. He once said, "I want to
challenge myself in my roles, not run around on screen with a machine
gun." However, Reeve did find that he could play the character
with depth and challenge himself with the role. He said that there
had to be something more to the Clark Kent character, otherwise you
just had a "pair of glasses standing in for a character."
He successfully split the Superman and Clark Kent roles into two
completely different characters. Christopher Reeve essentially
redefined Superman — no small feat, considering what a global
icon the character was and still is. To this day, Reeve's portrayal
of Superman is still considered the definitive on screen
interpretation by many fans.
In 1995, Reeve was
rendered a quadriplegic during an equestrian competition and was
confined to a wheelchair for the remainder of his life. Christopher
Reeve became a spokesman for disabled people and a vocal supporter of
stem cell research. He also appeared in television movies after his
accident. In 1998, he appeared in a remake for TV of the famous film
Rear Window and on February 25, 2003, he appeared in the television
series Smallville as Dr. Swann, who provides young Clark Kent with
insightful clues as to his origins. On October 25, 2004, two weeks
after Reeve's death, A&E aired Reeve's second directorial
project, The Brooke Ellison Story. The film, starring Lacey Chabert
and based on a true story, is about an 11-year old girl who becomes a
quadriplegic in a car accident and goes on to be the first
quadriplegic to graduate from Harvard University. Christopher Reeve
died on October 10, 2004 after suffering cardiac  arrest.
By the time of his death, Reeve had regained partial movement in his
fingers and toes as well as feeling throughout his body, claiming he
could feel pin pricks anywhere and could again differentiate between
hot and cold temperatures. Even before his death, Reeve's efforts to
spread awareness for spinal cord injuries had won him the cultural
status of a real life hero, not unlike his cinematic counterpart,
Superman. Reeve humbly insisted that there was nothing truly heroic
about him or what had happened to him, but that he was merely another
human being dealing with an obstacle that life had placed in his
path. Nevertheless, fans and admirers have taken to calling him
"the real Man of Steel" and "the real Superman."
He is survived by his parents, Barbara Lamb and Franklin Reeve, and
his three children, Matthew (born 1979), Alexandra (born 1982) and
Will (born 1992). His wife, Dana Reeve died of lung cancer on March
6,  2006.
She was a non-smoker. After Christopher Reeve died, a number of
political cartoons drawn to commemorate him were Superman themed,
with many depicting Reeve flying away from his wheelchair in his
Superman costume. One cartoon showed a boy in a wheelchair talking
about how Reeve had incredible vision, that he used his power to help
others, that nothing could stop him, and, on a final note, added that
before that Reeve starred in the Superman films. Another picture
showed Batman, Spider-Man and Captain America arriving at Reeve's
grave, with Batman commenting "He really was a super man..."
In another picture, a sad Superman is shown arriving at Reeve's
grave with flowers, while in another a grief stricken Superman looks
to the reader with a newspaper in his hand, having just read the news
of Reeve's death, tearfully saying "He was my hero..." Two
more depicted Reeve arriving in heaven dressed as Superman, one of
which had him telling Gabriel to keep the wings. In another, Reeve
was shown as a regular angel, still declining the wings, saying
"No thanks. I'd rather walk."
 Superman
- The Movie film engendered a series of sequels throughout the
eighties. Meanwhile, the comics continued to sell, yet DC Comics
decided that Superman and all of their properties needed a vast overhaul.
During the 1985
limited series Crisis on Infinite Earths, the various parallel Earths
are combined into one, retroactively eliminating some of Earth-Two's
heroes from existence. DC Comics retired the Silver Age version of
Superman in 1986, after the publication of Crisis on Infinite Earths.
Just before the character's revamp, the Silver Age Superman was given
a sendoff in the two-part story "Whatever Happened to the Man of
Tomorrow?", written by Alan Moore with art by Curt Swan.
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