Did Superman Kill Himself? The Mysterious Death of George Reeves
Was he his own Kryptonite or was there more to his death?
The world best knows Superman as the fictional character with superhuman powers who chose to wear his stylish read briefs on top of his tight blue pants.
Yet, one of the first actors to make the character truly a household name with his depiction on screen was a man who did it in black-and-white, before the era of color.
George Reeves, the first Superman on television, played the part for most of the 1950s — starting in 1951. He is often believed to be the “Original Superman” who turned the superhero into an icon and paved the way for many actors and production houses after him to portray the character on television and movies and turn it into a household name.
However, there is a bit of a curse that comes with playing an extremely famous character. You lose your own personal identity and come to be known more as the character, than your own self.
And what this means for actors is that they often struggle to find work beyond their iconic character, because it is extremely hard for film producers to make their audience take them seriously as any other character.
