Superman on Television

Adventures of Superman: Episode Reviews

Season 6 - Episode 6: "The Superman Silver Mine"

Original Broadcast Date: March 10, 1958

Writer: Peggy Chantler

Director: George Blair

Guest Cast:
Dabbs Greer as Harrison Pebble/Dan Dobey
Charles Maxwell as Boris

"The Superman Silver Mine"

Having struck it rich in his thirty years as a prospector, Harrison Pebble wishes to give to those in need. Both the Daily Planet and Superman are actively involved in the Children's Camp Fund, and Pebble has some land that would be perfect for the charity's use. Money for the site will come from a silver mine that Pebble has named Superman Silver Mine in honor of the Man of Steel. This news could most certainly make the youngsters of Metropolis very happy.

Gangster Dan Dobey and his henchman Boris have been in a slump lately. However, Lois Lane's article on Harrison Pebble and the Superman Silver Mine in the Planet give them an idea. Dobey is a dead ringer for Pebble. The only differences are Dobey has no mustache, and he has a metal plate in his head from an injury to his skull in an automobile accident. Dan Dobey could pass himself off as Pebble without any problems. Should he be able to do so, the Superman Silver Mine and its wealth could fall into the criminal's greedy hands. Dan Dobey may get more than he bargained for if Superman discovers his evil plot.

Boris has gone to Harrison Pebble's new apartment in the Brentwood suburb of Metropolis. Having not seen television before, Pebble wishes to watch it to see what is on. However, Boris and Dan Dobey have other plans. Pebble has been taken to the hills and locked in a cave with a steel door. If he doesn't give Dobey the location of the Superman Silver Mine, the prospector will meet a horrible end. Pebble will not get any food or water until Dobey has the mine. The philanthropist could spend weeks trapped in the secluded hideaway. Can Superman find him before thirst and hunger force Harrison Pebble to give in to Dan Dobey's demands?

Nobody at the Daily Planet knows where the Superman Silver Mine is as Mister Pebble has not told them yet. Lois has called him to ask, but she is suspicious. Pebble has told her that he's been watching his favorite shows. However, Lois knows that he's never seen television before moving to Brentwood. Clark Kent dismisses Pebble's behavior as eccentric. Lois, on the other hand, still has doubts as she leaves Kent's office. She does well to have them, for she was really talking with Dan Dobey. Both he and Lois may cross paths before this adventure is over. Let's hope Superman can assist her in solving this mystery of switched identities.

The Children's Camp Fund has yet to see any proof of the donated land and the Superman Silver Mine. Metropolis Police Inspector Bill Henderson tells Jimmy Olsen, Lois and Clark of Harrison Pebble's resemblance to Dan Dobey. Henderson also knows of the metal plate in Dobey's head. While there is no photo of Boris in police records, it is known that the henchman is an associate of Dobey's. In addition to that, Dobey's fingerprints are not on file. All this information leads Lois and Jimmy to go to Mister Pebble's Brentwood home. Little do they realize that they are walking into the jaws of yet another deadly trap.

Having removed the crooked false mustache from Dobey's face, Lois and Jimmy are wise to the criminal's schemes. Now, both reporters are locked in with Mister Pebble. Pebble still refuses to tell Dobey anything about the Superman Silver Mine. The result is weakness from lack of food and water. With Superman unaware of his friends' predicament, there may be no way for Lois, Jimmy and Harrison Pebble to get out of Dan Dobey's trap alive.

Nobody has heard from Lois and Jimmy since they left the office to talk to Harrison Pebble yesterday. Clark Kent has just paid a visit to Pebble, only to discover Dan Dobey's metal plate with his X-ray vision. Now, he must wait for Dobey and Boris to leave, for it may be the only way for Superman to find Lois, Jimmy and Mister Pebble before it's too late to rescue them.

Superman has managed to follow Bois and Dobey. They are losing patience with Pebble. If he doesn't tell them where the Superman Silver Mine is, they will kill him. Superman arrives just in time to stop Boris and his bullets. As Dobey makes his getaway, the Metropolis Marvel frees Mister Pebble, Lois and Jimmy. He then bends a large pipe into a horseshoe shape. His powerful eyes magnetize the object, allowing Superman to capture Dan Dobey with the force of the object. The metal plate in his head may have saved his life after a car crash, but it could not save him from Superman.

With Pebble, Lois and Jimmy now safe, Superman must ask the philanthropist prospector where the Superman Silver Mine is. Pebble reveals that if Dobey and Boris had started digging instead of trying to starve him, they would have found it. The Superman Silver Mine is on the very land where Superman, Pebble, Lois and Jimmy are standing. With that, everyone shares a laugh. Another adventure ends as another one awaits Superman and his friends.

Rating - 2 (out of 5): In addition to being in the first episodes for seasons one and two of The Adventures of Superman and playing Reverend Robert Alden on Little House on the Prairie, character actor Dabbs Greer can be seen as Norrie Coolidge in The Ghost & Mrs. Muir, Eric Royce in It! The Terror from Beyond Space and Old Paul Edgecomb in The Green Mile.

Charles Maxwell played Special Agent Joe Carey in I Led 3 Lives and Virgil Earp in the Star Trek episode "Spectre of the Gun". He also provided the voice for the radio announcer on Gilligan's Island.

While he is merely credited as Mister Pebble in Flights of Fantasy and the Internet Movie Database, Dabbs Greer introduces himself as Harrison Pebble in Perry's office.

As Dan Dobey, Dabbs Greer accidentally calls Harrison Pebble "Mister Peeble" at one point. In addition to that, Lois calls Dobey "Toby" when she's trapped in the mine.

This episode originally aired exactly fifteen years before I was born.

This one's a bit of a mess. It gets its point across and tells a story, but it's a tale that could have been told in probably half the time. Many scenes throughout "The Superman Silver Mine" drag to the point of crawling at a snail's pace. This is one of the things that really makes this half hour one of the longest in the history of The Adventures of Superman.

In addition to being slow, "The Superman Silver Mine" feels like a mediocre retread of "Jimmy The Kid" and the excellent "The Face And The Voice". Everyone in the main cast except for John Hamilton and Noel Neill got to play their own doubles. Sure, Inspector Henderson's served no real purpose in "Peril in Paris," but Robert Shayne got to play a Henderson look alike nonetheless. There were no such stories for Perry and Lois. This makes the audience feel cheated as it would be fun to see an aged crime boss impersonate Perry or a gun moll pretend to be Lois. The evil twin plot may have been done to death. Still, it would have been nice to see something with Lois and Perry. That would be a lot better than what we see in "The Superman Silver Mine".

Admittedly, I'm not a huge fan of Dabbs Greer. Perhaps this is because I've mainly seen him in Little House on the Prairie, which was not my favorite show growing up in a small town with only three television channels (four on a sunny day). However, he did superbly in "Superman On Earth" and "Five Minutes to Doom". "The Superman Silver Mine" gives us twice the Greer with half the performance. This is most likely due to the wardrobe and make-up troubles during filming. In every case, two Greers are not better than one in this episode.

There is a positive thing about "The Superman Silver Mine" that does prevent it from getting a lower rating. Superman seems super in it in spite of his not just grabbing Dan Dobey to take him to jail. Between X-raying Doby's head and creating the giant magnet to pull Dobey to him, the Man of Steel feels more true to form than he did in season five's run. Plus, the metal plate that saved Dobey causes him to get what he deserves in the end, giving the audience a sense of poetic justice. All of this added some fun elements to what was otherwise an extremely tedious episode.

The location of the Superman Silver Mine comes out of nowhere while, at the same time, being a bit too obvious. Had hints or nuggets of information been given throughout the episode, perhaps I wouldn't feel cheated by the revelation at the end. As it is now, the conclusion is a ham fisted attempt to give "The Superman Silver Mine" a twist by spoon feeding the audience, and that's a shame.

In the end, "The Superman Silver Mine" fails to impress the audience. Yet, it is not a complete dud. While it cannot compare to "The Magic Secret" or "Divide and Conquer" it does have bits and pieces that will definitely put a smile on one's face, particularly when Dabbs Greer is rolling toward Superman's magnet. The entire thirty minutes does move slowly, but aside from that Greer's so-so acting, the cast and crew really try their best to perform as well as possible given the mediocre material used.

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