Superman on Television

Adventures of Superman: Episode Reviews

Season 5 - Episode 5: "The Man Who Made Dreams Come True"

Original Broadcast Date: April 05, 1957

Writer: David Chantler

Director: George Blair

Guest Cast:
Cyril Delevanti as King Leo of Sartania
Keith Richards as Rutherford Jones, The Dreamer
John Banner as Bronsky
Laurie Mitchell as Ruby
Sandra Harrison as Nancy Boyd
Hal Hoover as Mike Thompson, the Ice Cream Shop Owner

"The Man Who Made Dreams Come True"

King Leo of Sartania has come to Metropolis for a visit, and Daily Planet editor Perry White wants reporters Clark Kent, Lois Lane and Jimmy Olsen to get an exclusive interview with him. Leo believes that his dreams tell of things to come. As a result, his decisions for ruling his country are governed by them. This could come in handy for Rutherford Jones, a confidence man who has called himself the Dreamer. He has placed a classified advertisement claiming to make anyone's greatest desires come true and prevent events in nightmares from occurring. Rutherford Jones could soon cross paths with King Leo. However, he may also get an unexpected visit from Superman.

We now go to 819 Half Moon Road, Apartment 115 in Metropolis. This is the residence of the Dreamer. Thanks to lighting effects, microphones, a crystal ball and a mystic's costume, Jones has created what he considers the greatest scam of his career. In spite of Sartania having one of the most powerful small foreign armies, the racketeer intends to use King Leo's belief in dreams to trick the monarch into making him the new ruler of the country. For his plan to succeed he will require the aid of an unsuspecting customer to give Leo a testimonial of the Dreamer's powers. Once that happens, Rutherford Jones can begin to take steps to become the next king of Sartania.

High school student Nancy Boyd has come to the Dreamer. In her dream, she is getting Superman's autograph in a white place full of glass. Jones claims to see an ice cream shop that Nancy frequents, one that she says is on the corner of Elm and Maple Streets. She is to wait for Superman there in an hour. After Nancy leaves, Jones goes to see Clark Kent using the name Thompson. He claims that Nancy is a lonely girl who would do anything to meet Superman. However, when the Man of Steel encounters her to give her his signature, he learns from her and Mike Thompson that she is one of the most popular girls in her class. Once Nancy accidentally mentions the Dreamer, Superman becomes more curious. As he returns to Clark Kent's office, Nancy wonders how she can thank Jones. He says that her needs her to give a message to someone that needs his services. We know that this person is King Leo of Sartania, and Rutherford Jones will stop at nothing to take the superstitious monarch's throne.

As Lois agrees to help Clark investigate the Dreamer, King Leo has arrived at the confidence man's apartment. He has convinced monarch that his powers are legitimate. Leo recounts to Jones a dream in which he was swallowed by the ocean. Seaweed was pulling him into the murky depths, where funny, bright little fish swam around him. Jones makes Leo believe that he is in danger of falling from his throne. His nephew William, who is next in line to rule Sartania, will bring about his downfall. Leo is to sign a document which appears out of nowhere. It will make the person whom he trusts the most at that moment the new king. The eccentric man chooses Rutherford Jones to be his successor. Poor King Leo may soon live to regret this rash decision if Superman doesn't do something to stop the Dreamer's evil plot soon.

Leo has just given the Dreamer his signature and the royal signet ring. The racketeer has now told him that there is a way for Leo to retain Sartania's throne. He is to stand in a pool of water while holding a live electric wire full of sparks that are the fish from the king's dream. Jones claims that the current will pass through King Leo harmlessly. In reality, Leo is about to literally get the shock of his life, one that could kill him should Superman not act fast.

As King Leo leaves the Dreamer, Lois Lane enters the apartment. The monarch recognizes the star reporter even those she doesn't know who he is without his royal robes at first. Lois could interfere greatly with Rutherford Jones' plans to take over Sartania. Now, Ms. Lane is a captive of the racketeer who would be king. It looks like Superman will need every power and ability at his disposal if he is to save the king and Lois from certain death.

Clark is worried about Lois when he receives a call from King Leo's bodyguard Bronsky. He tells the mild mannered reporter of his employer's unintentional attempt on his own life. Superman has raced at top speed to Leo's hotel room. Having absorbed the electrical power from the live wire in the bath tub with his bare hands, the Man of Steel urges Sartania's leader to be more careful. However, he may not be able to do so once Rutherford Jones learns that the king is still alive, for the criminal has a plan to make another deadly dream come true. This time, the Dreamer may yet succeed in murdering King Leo and usurping his throne.

Clark is in the office of Metropolis Police Inspector Bill Henderson when a call comes in. Someone is driving backwards on the Old Cliff Road in the Palisades District, and they are about to go over the nearby precipice. As Henderson goes to the radio room, Clark changes into Superman. The Metropolis Marvel has arrived in the nick of time to stop the automobile and its driver from falling to their doom. However, he shocked to see King Leo behind the wheel. Realizing the Leo is quite a handful, he makes the ruler of Sartania promise to go home and stay there. He intends to do so, but Rutherford Jones will be forced to take drastic measures now that two of his plots on Leo's life have been foiled by Superman. Can the Last Son of Krypton prevent the death of a world leader at the hands of the evil Dreamer, or will the confidence man 's aspirations of kingship come true?

As Jones forces his girl Ruby leave with him to take the direct approach with King Leo, Superman has untied Lois. She reveals that she became suspicious when the monarch came to see the Dreamer. Now, things make more sense to the Man of Tomorrow. All he needs to do is move as fast as he can to prevent Leo's murder. If he doesn't, Rutherford Jones could be sitting on Sartania's throne ruling the country with an iron hand.

The Dreamer has his gun pointed at Bronsky and King Leo. The bodyguard is to open the window while the king jumps to his death. However, the timely intervention of Superman prevents any harm from befalling the leader of Sartania. The Man of Steel is about to punch the racketeer, but he allows Bronsky the pleasure of knocking him out. Now, the only dreaming Rutherford Jones will be doing will occur in a prison cell thanks to Superman and Bronsky. King Leo Of Sartania can rule his country justly and fairly without fearing for his life.

Rating - 2 (out of 5): Cyril Delevanti played printer Lucius Coin in the television series Jefferson Drum and Book #4 in Soylent Green. Watch for him also in episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents and The Twilight Zone.

Keith Richards will return for season six's "The Mysterious Cube".

John Banner has portrayed a multitude of characters in film and television, but he will always be fondly remembered as the bumbling Sergeant Hans Georg Schultz that always "Knows Nuzzing" in Hogan's Heroes.

Laurie Mitchell can be seen in such films as 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Queen of Outer Space and Attack of the Puppet People.

In addition to this episode, Sandra Harrison would play another Nancy in 1957. She was Nancy Perkins in Blood of Dracula.

Hal Hoover can be spotted in Highway Patrol and Ring of Terror.

There are scenes throughout this episode in which the Dreamer's mustache is slightly crooked.

Even though the Dreamer later forces Ruby to come with him to the hotel to kill King Leo, she is nowhere to be seen when the crook is threatening Leo and Bronsky with his gun in the next scene.

After saving Lois, Superman makes a slight jump as if to fly until George Reeves realizes he is in front of a door instead of a window. He then walks through it normally.

To paraphrase Maxwell Smart, "The Man Who Made Dreams Come True" missed a three by that much. The story itself is fairly good, but It does have some moments that make no sense to me. Plus, King Leo makes George W. Bush look like Albert Einstein. Even George Reeves seems to shake his head in disbelief sometimes in this episode.

What was the point of the character Ruby? Sure, she says some things to try to preventing the villain from carrying out his plans. However, she takes no active part to stop him. It feels like she was added to the story at the last minute as a favor to the actress. This, unfortunately, makes Ruby seem completely useless in the finished product.

Okay, I get that Rutherford Jones needs to get the message to King Leo about his dream powers in order to make his scam work. The thing I have trouble swallowing is this. How exactly can a teenage girl contact the leader of a foreign country so easily? Bronsky is supposedly Leo's bodyguard Yet, he allows a high school student to talk to his employer. "The Man Who Made Dreams Come True" would have probably made more sense if an American ambassador, an aide to the king, Bronsky and/or Leo himself had learned of the Dreamer through the classified advertisement in the Daily Planet.

I realize that the Dreamer is trying to dupe King Leo into giving him his throne. However, King Leo himself is extremely inept. He has qualities in him that make Frank Drebin from Police Squad and The Naked Gun films look like a member of Mensa. I found myself shaking my head in shame during many of Cyril Delevanti's scenes. At the very least, Leo and Bronsky should have checked Rutherford Jones' credentials or something before allowing him to have an appointment.

Speaking of Bronsky, he really doesn't do much when one considers that he's the bodyguard for the most idiotic king in the history of fiction. He really only calls Clark Kent and throws one punch to protect his boss. A toddler on a tricycle could have approached King Leo without problems, and they're more dangerous than any gangster or racketeer. It's a pity John Banner didn't get to be more active in this episode. He's an incredible actor.

All complaining aside, "The Man Who Made Dreams Come True" gives us a half way decent criminal that feels like he could even be part of The Adventures of Superman radio program from 1941-1951. One thing I loved about that show when I reviewed it was the villains in the serials. Anyway, bad guys in season five have really been lacking something that I cannot quite put my finger on, that is until the Dreamer came along. They were poorly written. Rutherford Jones doesn't make up for foes in previous episodes, but he's better than them in that department.

All in all, "The Man Who Made Dreams Come True" will leave the audience feeling a sense of shame as they wonder why certain things were not changed in the final product. Still, it has some entertaining moments even though it isn't as good as "The Tomb of Zaharan". However, you can still have fun watching parts of it just the same.

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