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Kevin Smith Week continues here on RazorFine.  Today we’ve set aside just for the Clerks.  We’ll have reviews for Clerks II on Friday, but before we get to where we’re going it’s always a good idea to look back where we’ve been.  So let’s look back at the the film that made Kevin Smith a star and the short lived cartoon that hardly anyone saw…

Clerks
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Depending on your view Clerks was either a breath of fresh air, as a new and unique voice was discovered, and heard, for the first time, OR you wondered to yourself, who gave that foul mouthed fat man a camera anyway?  I’m among the former.  Kevin Smith’s low budget flick (the film was made for $27,575, paid for mostly by maxing out credit cards) is just plain fun, and it holds up quite well over ten years later..

“I’m not even supposed to be here today.”

Clerks – The Story Begins

Dante Hicks (Brian O’Halloran) is a lovable loser who works the counter at the Quick Stop.  His extroverted vulgarian best friend Randal (Jeff Anderson) works next door at the video store.  Their lives seems stuck in neutral as Dante dreams of a better life while debating Randal on pop culture issues while dealing with customers, inciteful bubblegum salesmen, and stoners Jay (Jason Mewes) and Silent Bob (Kevin Smith).  During the course of the day Dante talks to his current gilfriend (Marilyn Ghigliotti) about her sexual history while daydreaming of his former girlfriend (Lisa Spoonhauer), takes time off to play hockey with his buds on the roof, and disrupts the funeral of a high school friend. 

This low budget black and white film may not have great cinematic scope, but its heart is in the right place.  It’s look and style help to jump you into this world of luckless losers – one who dreads his life, and one who is quite happy with living day-to-day.

There are plenty of good moments to enjoy.  Some of my favorites include the discussion of Imperial contractors in Return of the Jedi, Dante’s argument with his girlfriend over the magic number 37 – and Randal’s hilarious reaction, and Randal’s unique customer service skills.

For a low budget film with a small cast the chemistry works well, and both O’Halloran and Anderson are able to make these roles their own, while other, more experienced, actors have struggled in Smith’s later films.

Does he go too far?  For some perhaps, but for this group of characters the conversations and situations seem quite natural.  Not for everyone to be sure, as the film jokes about many issues including necrophelia, oral sex, pornography, and under-age smoking.  Though to be fair to Smith he is careful to always paint the extreme view or action as extreme, crazy, and having consequences.

Clerks on TV

The lives of Dante and Randal continue at the Quick Stop in six half-hour animated adventures.  They fight off billionaire Leonardo Leonardo (Alec Baldwin) who tries to put the Quck Stop out of business by opening “The Quicker Stop” across the street, Randal is responsible for “accidentally” poisoning Leonardo Leonardo and causing an outbreak scare.  They get caught in a freezer and remember past adventures, go to court, coach a little league team, get lost in anime, and have to escape from a Temple of Doom.  They also deal with a number of celebrities that show up with their own issues such as Charles Barkley and Gwenyth Paltrow.

Only two of the episodes ever made it to air, but here you can see all of this short lived, and quickly cancelled, odd little slice of history.  It’s strange to see the strong R-rated View Askew Universe be painted into a PG or PG-13 corner.  Example: we got odd changes like Jay and Bob selling fireworks instead of drugs.

Though it takes a little getting used to, the show does have a unique style and voice that was just starting to emerge when it was cancelled.  Perhaps more of a novelty than anything else, but still there are quite a few reasons to check it out including an anime finish to an episode (way before South Park did it), and a great parody episode that shows off the near limitless avenues for these characters to explore.

My favorite parts of each episode are the ending sequences such as “Safety Tips with Jay and Silent Bob,” “Rainy Day Fun with Jay and Silent Bob,” and “Science Sez with Jay and Silent Bob.”  In each the pair try and teach an important lesson to children, while also making sure Charles Barkley (who provides his own voice) is sent packing – sometimes quite violently. 

In many ways these little segments capsulized the appeal of the entire series which was maybe a little too smart or relied too much on in-jokes for the larger audience that ABC wanted.  The extras on the set including commentary for every episode help balance out some of the weaknesses of the show and provide some insight in how hard it is to get, and keep, a show on network television.

It’s nice to see Kevin Smith return to these characters once again in Clerks II.  From the first film and these half-dozen animated episodes these characters have grown, much like the View Askew Universe, into something bigger than themselves.  Smith’s first work, and his need to continue to return to it, show that there are stories about these characters still left untold.  I hope to see more.

The Love Boat.  Matt Houston.  Charmed.  Starsky and Hutch.  Fantasy Island.  The Mod Squad.  Beverly Hills, 90210.  Charlie’s Angels.  7th Heaven.  Hart to Hart.  Melrose Place.  T.J. Hooker.  Dynasty.  You probably watched one of those or one of countless others that sprung from the mind of TV producer Aaron Spelling.  Sadly Spelling died last Friday at the ripe old age of 83.  Spelling was a tiny man who had huge influence on the genre of television creating hit after hit (ok, and a few misses – anyone remember Models, Inc.)?  He was one of the most prolific producers in the history of television including a run in the 80’s where he had seven shows airing on one network the same year!  Spelling earned adoration from fans over the years but little critical praise, but that never bothered the man who when one show failed had at least two in development to take its place.  In a time where good new shows on television are becoming as scarce as good Democratic candidates for President a man like Spelling will sorely be missed

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The Love Boat.  Matt Houston.  Charmed.  Starsky and Hutch.  Fantasy Island.  The Mod Squad.  Beverly Hills, 90210.  Charlie’s Angels.  7th Heaven.  Hart to Hart.  Melrose Place.  T.J. Hooker.  Dynasty.  You probably watched one of those or one of countless others that sprung from the mind of TV producer Aaron Spelling.  Sadly Spelling died last Friday at the ripe old age of 83.  Spelling was a tiny man who had huge influence on the genre of television creating hit after hit (ok, and a few misses – anyone remember Models, Inc.)?  He was one of the most prolific producers in the history of television including a run in the 80’s where he had seven shows airing on one network the same year!  Spelling earned adoration from fans over the years but little critical praise, but that never bothered the man who when one show failed had at least two in development to take its place.  In a time where good new shows on television are becoming as scarce as good Democratic candidates for President a man like Spelling will sorely be missed

We’ll have our review for the new Super-flick tomorrow.  But before we see where we’re headed it’s always a good idea to look back to see where we’ve been.  So join us as we take a look back at the first four films – the good, the bad, and that one with Richard Pryor (ugh!).

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He’s the story so far:

The Saga Takes Flight:

Richard Donner gives us the first big comic book movie, and man is it good.  The film breaks down into two parts.  The first chronicles the politics and demise of Krypton and Jor-El (Marlon Brando) sending his only son to Earth who is raised by the Kents, Jonathan (Glen Ford) and Martha (Phylis Thaxter).  The second part of the film follows Clark (Christopher Reeve) in his new job at the Daily Planet with Lois Lane (Margot Kidder) and as Superman saving the day and stopping Lex Luthor’s (Gene Hackman) evil plans.

Superman Soars:

“Come to me, son of Jor-El; kneel before Zod.”  The second film involves the Kryptonian criminal Zod (Terrance Stamp) and his two followers breaking out of the Phantom Zone prison and travelling to Earth to rule and take vengeance on the son of their jailer.  While this is going on Lois discovers Clark’s secret and Clark decides to give up his powers to be with Lois , but has to give up his new life to become Superman again to stop Zod.

Crash and Burn:

Richard Pryor is the man who almost killed Superman.  The third entry into the franchise involves Pryor as a computer programmer, Robert Vaugn as a billionaire and Pamela Stephenson as his slut of a secretary, who together plan to use a computer to kill Superman.  Interesting only for the fact of casting Annette O’Toole (Smallville) as Lana Lang.  Horrendously awful entry that forever cursed every third film in comic book franchises.

Superman Stumbles Into Oblivion:

As Superman plans to rid the world of all nuclear weapons, Lex Luthor returns with a kinda’ clone of Superman (though it doesn’t look like him and his powers and weaknesses are a little different) called Nuclear Man.  Superman and Nuclear Man fight all over the planet and on the moon.  Subplots involve the Daily Planet’s new publisher (Mariel Hemmingway) and her crush on Clark.  Hard to imagine why we had to wait 19 years for another film.

Many men have played Superman.  How many can you name?  We’ve got the list and a little about each one of these Men of Steel.  Come on and take a peek at these actors who were faster than a speeding bullet and could leap tall buildings in a single bound.

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Bud Collyer

Perhaps best known for his role as host on game shows such as Beat the Clock and Break the Bank, Collyer also provided the voice for both Superman and Clark Kent on the radio show and the classic Fleischer Superman Cartoons and would go on to do the voice of Superman in the late 1960’s in various cartoons such as The Batman/Superman Hour, The New Adventures of Superman, and The Superman/Aquaman Hour of Adventure.

Danny Dark

Sadly Collier died in 1969 and was replaced by Dark who provided the voice for Superman on all of the various Super Friends shows in the 1970’s and early 1980’s which were made possible by the popularity of those original 60’s shows.  Dark was also known as the “voice” of NBC television for years as an announcer and did narration for comercials.

Kirk Alyn

Alyn donned the cape in 1948 in a fifteen-episode serial The Adventures of Superman and resumed the role in the sequel Atom Man vs. Superman two years later.  Some critics argue that despite lacking the size and muscularture of later actors that Alyn was the best ever cast in the role.  Alyn did several serials including Blackhawk: Fearless Champion of Freedom and guest roles in televison shows such as Naked City and the original Battlestar Galactica.  Richard Donner, in a very cool casting move, also cast him in the first Superman film in the cameo role as Lois Lane’s father (along with actress Noel Neill who played Lois Lane along side our next entry who Donner cast as Mrs. Lane).

George Reeves

Reeves became a national celebrity which led to personal appearances around the country and became a role model for millions of children.  Reeves was the first version of Superman many people saw and he became so sononomous with the role that it typecast him for years after the show ended.  His life ended tragically in an apparent suicide in 1959 just one year after the show ended though many including friends and family point to evidence that contridicts those findings.  Despite the tragic ending Reeves brought joy to millions during his life and his status as “the Superman” would persist for an entire generation until…

Christopeher Reeve

George Reeves was great, but for those of my generation there is only one Superman and his name is Christopher Reeve.  Reeve was chosen in 1978 by Richard Donner for Superman, and its success lead to one good sequel Superman II and two that we’d rather forget.  He was largely hailed for his ability to create two separate and interesting characters in Clark Kent and Superman and to this day remains the marker to which all future Supermen will be measured.  His good looks, his honest face and sense of depth and morality came across even in the silliness of the later films.  Reeve went on to star, direct, and produce many other films, and after his tragic accident became a vocal supporter for stem cell research.

John Haymes Newton & Gerard Christopher

The Superboys.  Newton was chosen for the title role in the 1988 show Superboy.  Newton left after the first season and Christopher replaced him for the final three seasons of the show.  Though the role wasn’t a breakthrough for either star, both continued acting on various TV shows in guest spots (oddly enough they both turned up in Melrose Place).

Beau Weaver

Weaver provided the voice of the Man of Steel for the short lived cartoon put out to celebrate Superman’s 50th Anniversary simply called Superman.  Weaver has worked steadily in voice acting and radio starring as the voice of Mr. Fantastic in the animated The Fantastic Four and The Silver Surfer, and providing the voice of Octane in the Transformers.

Dean Cain

A college football star whose NFL career was derailed by injury Cain popped up in various TV guest roles before he landed the coveted role of Superman in ABC’s new hour drama Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman co-staring with Teri Hatcher.  Since the show’s cancellation, after four years on the air, Cain has starred in the short lived Clubhouse and has made TV appearances in made-for-TV films such as The Perfect Husband The Laci Peterson Story and guest spots on Law & Order SVU and Hope & Faith, and also worked as the host for Ripley’s Believe it or Not. 

Tim Daly

Most remembered for his starring role as anal retentive pilot Joe Hackett on the sitcom Wings Daly has worked guest starring on several televsion shows (including a reunion of sorts with Tony Shaloub on Monk), starred in the TV remake of The Fugitive, and has worked in several films.  Daly is the younger brother of actress Tyne Daly (Cagney and Lacey).

George Newbern

When Daly was unable to do the voice for Superman on the new Justice League show Newbern took his place providing the voice of Superman for this new super team.  Newbern has worked in various films (Switching Channels, Adventures in Babysitting, Father of the Bride) and several guest roles on TV shows such as Chicago Hope, Providence, and Friends. 

Tom Welling

The only Superman on the list to never wear (or be drawn in) tights.  A construction woker turned model turned actor, Welling got his big break when he was cast to play Clark Kent on the new WB hour long drama Smallville which centers around Clark’s teen years in Kansas.  Welling has gone on to star in movies such as The Fog, Cheaper by the Dozen, and Cheaper by the Dozen 2.

Brandon Routh

The last of the Supermen (at least for this list).  A relative unknown before he was chosen by director Bryan Singer (who insisted on an unknown for the part)  for the title role in the new Superman Returns.  His early career involves an appearance in a Christina Aguilera music video and guest spots on shows such as Gilmore Girls and Will & Grace, and a short run on the daytime soap One Life to Live.  On screen Routh presents many of the qualities of the Christopher Reeve Superman including a vulnerability and earnestness that Singer believes is crucial to the character.  Routh has already signed on for two sequels; so if this Superman is a hit expect to see more of him in years to come.

Old Supes is about to hit the big screen once again, but over the years he’s been more at home on the small screen.  Let’s look back at the various incarnations of Superman in television shall we?  Indeed we shall…

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Fleischer Superman Cartoons – The original Fleischer cartoons are how many first viewed Superman.  The seventeen animated shorts were produced for Paramount Pictures in the early 1940’s; they still hold up remarkably well today.  The cost of each short was $100,000 dollars (remember that’s 1940’s cash you’re talking about) which was almost quadruple the amount of Popeye or what Disney spent on its shorts at the same time.  In terms of style and look it was vastly ahead of it’s time (and its look strongly influenced Batman: The Animated Series – half a centruy later).  In the series Superman fought an onslaught of sci-fi themed villains and creatures such as robots, dinosaurs, mad scientists, and meteors.  The last few episodes produced without Max and Dave Fleischer when Paramount took over the studio feature WWII themed stories with Superman fighting against America’s enemies.  Bud Collyer provided the voice of Superman and Joan Alexander played the voice of Lois Lane.

The Adventures of Superman and Atom Man vs. Superman – Kirk Alyn stars as Superman in this serial and it’s sequel.  In the first Superman battles the Spider Lady (Carol Forman) and in the second battles Lex Luthor (Lyle Talbot) who is using a teleportation device and holding Metropolis hostage while calling himself Atom Man.  Noel Neill plays Lois Lane, Tommy Bond is Jimmy Olsen, and Pierre Watkin plays The Daily Planet’s editor in chief Perry White.

Adventures of Superman – The popular syndicated television show brought Superman to an entire generation.  The show’s 104 half-hour episodes first premiered in 1952 and ran until 1958.  Despite a low budget, change in theme and mood of the show, and a dramatic change from black and white to color television during the series run, the show had charm and class that many enjoyed.  Geroge Reeves starred as Clark Kent and Superman, with Jack Larson as Jimmy Olsen and John Hamilton as Perry White, and Phyllis Coates and Noel Neill starred as Lois Lane over the series run.  Bill Kennedy provided the narration to the famous opening sequence “Faster than a speeding bullet!  More powerful than a locomotive!  Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound!  Superman.”  Of the 104 episodes a fan favorite “Panic in the Sky” (episode 38) stands out.  In fact future Superman show creators loved it so much that the plot was remade in two future shows (Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman and Superboy).

Superboy – The series followed young journalism students Clark Kent and Lana Lang (Stacy Haiduk) at Shuster University.  Superboy also helps out a government organization investigating unusual and parnormal disturbances while battling villains such as vampires,  Lex Luthor (Scott Wells), Metallo (Michael Callan), and Bizarro (Barry Meyers).  John Haymes Newton starred in the title role for the first season and when he left the show was replaced by Gerard Christopher.  Despite a limited budget the small syndicated show lasted four years and has earned itself a loyal following.

Superman – The short lived Saturday morning cartoon was created to coincide with Superman’s 50th Anniversary in the late 1988.  Episodes included Superman (Beau Weaver) saving the Earth from Lex Luthor (Michael Bell), aliens, robots, and helping Wonder Woman stop the Soceress of Time.  The series is notable for special “Superman Family Album” segments which chronicled Clark Kent’s life between his arrival on earth and his first appearance as Superman involving Clark Kent getting a driver’s license, a birthday party, and graduating from high school.  Ma Kent was voiced by Tess MacNeille (of Futurama fame).

Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman – The ABC hour long drama starred Dean Cain as Clark Kent/Superman and Teri Hatcher as Lois Lane.  The show focused much more on Clark than Superman and delved into his career as a reporter and his relationship with Lois.  The show kept to the John Byrne revamp version of the character and even worked out a tie-in campaign where Lois and Clark were married in the comic and on the show at the same time.  Other than focusing more on Clark, a few other notable differences from other adaptions include Jonathan Kent (Eddie Jones) alive and well, Superman didn’t support his trademark hair curl, and Lex Luthor (Jonathan Shea) had a full head of hair (at least for the first season).  The show ran for four seasons.

Superman: The Animated Series – After the success of Batman the Animated Series the creators moved onto a new Superman cartoon with a similar design but a lighter and cleaner look.  Tim Daly (of Wings fame) was tapped to play Superman and Dana Delany voiced Lois Lane.  Many of Superman’s rogues gallery appeared on the show including Lex Luthor, Braniac, Darkseid, Bizarro, Parasite, Toy Man, and new villains such as Live Wire.

Smallville – A new millenium take on Clark Kent’s teenage years in Smallville, Kansas.  The show centers around Clark Kent’s (Tom Welling) life on the farm and the odd events and occureances in Smallville due to “meteor rock” contamination from the meteor shower that brought Kal-El to Earth years ago.  The show’s “No Flights, No Tights” rule was a drastic change from other Superman/Superboy shows as creators agreed Clark would never fly (though he did once on the show, oops!) or ever don the Superman suit.  The relalitonships examined on the show include the friendship between Lex Luthor (Michael Rosenbaum) and Clark, Clark’s relationship to his father Jonathan Kent (John Schneider), and Clark’s love for Lana Lang (Kristin Kruek).  Though none of that got in the way of fighting all kinds of “meteor rock freaks” every week.  Recent seasons have Clark moving on to college, the introduction of Lois Lane (Erica Durance), the introduction of Jor-El (voiced by none other than Superman II bad guy Terrence Stamp), the end of the Clark/Lex friendship, and the arrival of Braniac (James Marsters) and the Fortress of Solitude.  Of interest to true Superman afecianadoes – besides Stamp, both Christopher Reeve and Margot Kidder also guest starred on the show.

Super Friends & Justice League – Superman also has played prominent roles in super-team shows.  Super Friends was a 1970’s and 1980’s Saturday morning cartoon show that focused on a band of heroes (Superman, Batman and Robin, Wonder Woman, and Aquaman) working together out of the Hall of Justice.  The shows different season sported different sidekicks such as Wendy, Marv and Wonder Dog, and later the Wonder Twins and Gleek.  Later incarnations involved the “Challenge of the Super Friends” which introduced the Legion of Doom and added heroes Green Lantern, Flash, and Hawkman.  Later shows added more multi-cultural heroes such as Samurai, Apache Chief, Black Vulcan, and El Dorado.  The final seasons introduced younger hereos such as Firestorm and Cyborg, and the villainous Darkseid.  Though often cheesy and full of bad coloring errors the show is fondly remembered for the narration provided by William Woodson and the overally campy fun of the show.  Cartoon Network’s Justice League was a much more serious teaming of heroes Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter, and Hawgirl.  The third season opened up the league to more heroes including Captain Atom, Booster Gold, Elongated Man, Green Arrow, the Question, Black Canary, Shining Knight, and the Atom.