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May 13, 2013: Ageless and Timeless - Superman at 75

Superman: The High-Flying History of America's Most Enduring Hero By Larry Tye

Superman, who this spring turned 75, has always been ageless as well as timeless.

In the 1930s he was just the crime fighter we needed to take on Al Capone and the robber barons. In the forties he defended the home front while brave GIs battled overseas. Early in the Cold War he stood up taller than ever for his adopted country, while in its waning days he tried singlehandedly to eliminate nuclear stockpiles. Over the decades the Man of Steel evolved more than the fruit fly, but his changes were anything but random. For each era he zeroed in on the threats that scared us most, using powers that grew or diminished depending on the need. So did his spectacles, hair style, even his job title. Each generation got the Superman it needed and deserved. Each change offered a Rorschach test of the pulse of that time and its dreams.

So what about now, when our still-teetering global economy, terrorist attacks at sacred sites like the Boston Marathon, and political vitriol leave us craving a hero as much as we ever have?

Some say what we need is an avenger, which would explain the roaring success of the last summer's Marvel Studios movie The Avengers. Others insist we need a dark knight like Batman or a fraught champion like Spider-Man, both of whom got their own big-budget movies last year. I say balderdash. Vengeance and darkness are precisely what we are trying to escape. The superhero for our age - whether it's a release we need, or inspiration - has to be a beacon of light, and none shines nearly as bright as the Last Son of Krypton.

His irresistible allure lies partly in his powers: the strength to lift boulders and planets, the speed to outrun a locomotive or a bullet, and, coolest on anyone's wish list, the gift of flight. Part of it is the seduction of the love triangle connecting Clark Kent, Lois Lane, and Superman, which has a side for everyone, whether you are the boy who can't get the girl, the girl pursued by the wrong boy, or the conflicted hero. Part of it is that he is forever 29 years old, which lets us feel like we are 10 again.

So what if the upshot of his adventures is as predictable as with Sherlock Holmes: the good guy never loses. That is reassuring. So is his uniform. His tights and cape, in radiant primary colors, make Superman as instantly recognizable as Santa Claus - and as comforting. That familiarity would help his handlers keep him relevant for three-quarters of a century and counting, moving him from the printed page to the airwaves, then from the small screen to the big. No need to explain who he was. Everyone knew as soon as they saw him. A costume also could be elevating, the more so when it didn't come with a mask. Just ask Robin Hood and Elvis Presley. His endurance would make him the envy of mortal heroes like Jack Kennedy and Joltin' Joe DiMaggio, Batman and Jerry Seinfeld, all of whom were inspired by him.

But there is one more factor that explains Superman's appeal: his crystal-clear sense of right and wrong. He is an archetype of mankind at its pinnacle. Like James Bond, he sweeps in to solve our problems. No thank-you needed. Like Jesus Christ, he descended from the heavens to help us discover our humanity. And he does it all - as we are likely to be reminded in the soon-to-be-released Man of Steel film - while staying true to the ethical guideposts that have defined him since Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster dreamed him up in the 1930s: No killing, even when the victim deserves to die. No forgetting that means matter as much as ends, no matter how clunky a concept that sometimes seems. No wavering as guardian of the 99 percent, however tempting the offerings of the benighted 1 percent.

The more that flesh-and-blood role models let us down, the more we turn to fictional ones who stay true. With them, and especially with Superman, it is about the possibility - of getting the girl, saving the world (or least Lois and Jimmy), and having it our way. Our longest-lasting hero will endure as long as we need a champion, which should be until the end of time.

Larry Tye

[Larry Tye's latest book, Superman: The High-Flying History of America's Most Enduring Hero, will be released in paperback this month by Random House. Pre-order it from the Superman Homepage Online Store.]


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