Bob Holiday, Broadway's First Superman
Bob Holiday's Publicity Portfolio

"It's a Bird It's a Plane It's Superman©" Was Recreated on the Small Screen

Though played as a spoof, the stars took the show very seriously!

In 1975, the team that brought the original "It's a Bird It's a Plane It's Superman©" to Broadway re-imagined the show for television. Airing on February 2, 1975 on ABC's late night Wide World of Entertainment, this version of the story was played as a spoof on the original material. Villains were changed, songs were cut, and the plot eliminated characters.
This writer, having seen and loved the original Broadwy show, always thought that this television special was mocking the show. It wasn't until hearing an interview with the stars of the TV Special, David Wilson and Lesley Ann Warren, that I learned the characters had been taken seriously. The interview took place on Comic Book Central, hosted by Joe Stuber. It's a great listen and demonstrates that this production simply had a different outlook on how the show should be played.

We hope you enjoy these excerpts from Joe Stuber's Comic Book Central interview with the ABC TV Lois Lane and Superman/Clark Kent from the ABC TV 1975 version of "It's a Bird It's a Plane It's Superman©"!

The Stars

A three-minute introduction to the Broadway show and to David Wilson and Lesley Ann Warren, who played Superman/Clark Kent and Lois Lane in the ABC adaptation of "It's a Bird It's a Plane It's Superman©".

A three-minute clip of Lesley Ann Warren discussing her approach to playing Lois Lane, with some fascinating trivia about filming in the original Selznick Studios. We also hear Ms. Warren's experience of auditioning for Lois Lane in Superman: The Movie.

 Lesley Ann Warren as Lois Lane
David Wilson as Superman

A four-minute clip of David Wilson's experience playing Superman. Was David a Superman comics fan (the way Bob Holiday was)? How did David's blue eyes lead to the develpment of green-screen filming? You'll also learn about David's background as an actor and, most interesting of all, David's friendship with Christopher Reeve!

It's time to spill the tea. During the interview, there were a number of comments implying quite a connection between Lesley Ann Warren and David Wilson. We've distilled them down for you. I guarantee that you'll be interested in this five minute clip!

David Wilson as Superman and Lesley Ann Warren as Lois Lane
Bob Holiday 2010

We close out this interview with a message that Bob sent to Comic Book Central. It's quite moving to hear the message he sent. Though his health was failing, he never forgot his fans.

We hope you enjoyed these clips from Joe Stuber's interview with the stars of the 1975 television version of "It's a Bird It's a Plane It's Superman©".
Listen to the entire interview at Comic Book Central!

Photos Courtesy of the Estate of Bob Holiday
and the personal collection of the webmaster
Many thanks to Joe Stuber of ComicBookCentral.net
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Text © 2024 Toni Collins
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Bob Holiday as Superman Bob Holiday as Clark Kent