Look! Up in the sky!
- Jun 28, 2025
- 2 min read
The Adventures of Superman radio serial ran from 1940 to 1951. The series started as a syndicated show on New York’s WOR on February 12, 1940. In 1942, the show moved to the Mutual Broadcasting System, an American radio network that was also home to the very popular The Lone Ranger. The Adventures of Superman was broadcast in the afternoons as a 15-minute serial, three or five times a week. In 1949, the show moved to ABC Radio and switched to Saturday evenings, then returned to the afternoons twice weekly. The show never ran a repeat and broadcast 2,088 original episodes on American Radio. The Adventures of Superman’s long-running sponsor was Kellogg’s Pep Cereal.
Voice actor and game show host Bud Collyer portrayed the voice of Clark Kent/Superman on The Adventures of Superman radio show. Collyer was also known for hosting the TV game shows Beat the Clock and To Tell the Truth.
Actress Joan Alexander portrayed the role of Lois Lane. Alexander also voiced roles on other radio shows, such as Perry Mason.
The opening introduction to the radio show was one of the most popular radio openings in the 1940s.
Up in the sky! Look!
It’s a bird!
It’s a plane!
It’s Superman!
Yes, it’s Superman – strange visitor from the planet Krypton who came to Earth with powers and abilities far beyond those of mortal men. Superman, who can leap tall buildings in a single bound, race a speeding bullet to its target, bend steel in his bare hands, and who, disguised as Clark Kent, mild-mannered reporter for a great Metropolitan newspaper, fights a never-ending battle for truth and justice.
The opening changed in 1945:
Faster than a speeding bullet. More powerful than a locomotive. Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound.
Look! Up in the sky!
It’s a bird!
It’s a plane!
It’s Superman!
In 1945, “and the American way” was added to the end of the opening, to be heard as, “for truth, justice, and the American way.” This is the opening that was copied for The Adventures of Superman television show in 1952, which I will cover in tomorrow’s blog.
Thanks for tuning in!
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