Readers rarely saw Superboy in the tub, or were informed that his myriad abilities included a lovely singing voice.
But that’s what happened in Superboy’s Amateur Hour (Superboy 4, July-Aug. 1949).
The story includes some charming touches that recall a bygone era.
Ma Kent must let out Clark’s costume because he’s a growing super-being. Clark calculates Pa Kent’s income taxes plus deductions in an instant. The Kent home is heated by coal, and their dealer has missed a delivery. Luckily, Clark can compress wood into coal in a jiffy (even though he apparently can’t sew).
Pa records Clark’s bath-time balladeering and brings him to the attention of radio’s Amateur Hour. Advised that Clark needs vocal coaching, Pa sends him to a new local talent school, but it turns out to be run by Harold Hill-type crooks.
A job for Superboy, who not only corrals the criminals but salvages the hopes of the disappointed young performers at the school.
And Smallville’s bobby-soxers get a thrill when Clark Kent croons the Australian bush ballad Waltzing Matilda for them.
By the way, in 1949, The Original Amateur Hour was already an American institution. The program was Major Bowes’ Amateur Hour from 1934 to 1945 when Edward Bowes left. The show continued with Ted Mack and went on to television.
Like Superboy himself, the crowd-pleasing concept remains with us, giving rise to Star Search, American Idol and America’s Got Talent.
Bruce Kanin wrote:
ReplyDeleteSome things that would later fall by the wayside: Ma Kent calling Clark "Superboy" at home (she would later call him "Clark"); his uniform would stretch (not need to be expanded) because of its "super-fabric"; Ma Kent calls Pa "Dad"; and finally, instead of the Kiddy Hour, Pa Kent would eventually say, "America's Got Talent".
OK, that last one wasn't real. 😉
Michael Fraley wrote:
ReplyDeleteWere they still pretending that everything in Superboy was kinda sorta in the present, or are we back in the mid-30s chronologically?
I replied:
I was thinking about that. It's really hard to say. They fudge it. The radio show started in 1934, so you MIGHT argue that this story was set earlier. But really, it was contemporary.
Brad Pitts wrote:
ReplyDeleteEvery mention of his uniform that I have ever seen has mentioned that the fabric stretched as Kal/Clark grew. Until you posted this. Earth 2 Superboy perhaps?
I replied:
Even that is problematic. He could have been an Earth 2 Superboy, of course, but remember that the Earth 2 Superman HAD NO Superboy career.
It seems to me that these must be the adventures of young Clark Kent on what we would later call Earth-2...which, of course, hadn't been thought of at the time, along with the idea that there *was no* E-2 Superboy. You know, they're just making it up as they go.
DeleteLarry Feldman wrote:
ReplyDeleteTactics to make the crooks talk are more reminiscent of Batman than Superman these days.
I replied:
The Superman feature still had some of the no-nonsense attitude left over from the 1930s.
Cheryl Spoehr wrote:
ReplyDeleteI think this story is a prototype for all that made Superboy popular. The whole idea of "Super" Man/Boy/Baby is that he is YOU with magic abilities. He does what YOU do, dreams what YOU dream, has the same problems YOU do.
Paul Zuckerman wrote:
ReplyDeleteThankfully, we did not get to see Superboy singing in the bathtub very often! 🙂
So, Pa Kent recorded Superboy singing through a closed door using 1930s (or even 1940s) technology? And people could hear how good his voice was despite all those limitations? I know that these stories are science fiction, but really!!! 🙂
Why shouldn't Superboy be able to sing beautifully? What couldn't he do? In any case, I am sure he got it from his mom, who was not yet Lara, or was she? Whatever. Lara must have sung Kryptonian lullabies to baby Kal-El.