Blistered and peeling Superman Museum sign
Just look at this beautifully faded sign for the Super Museum in Metropolis, Illinois. Four generations of Supermans, scorched by the yellow light of the Terran sun. Link (Thanks, Marilyn!)
Just look at this beautifully faded sign for the Super Museum in Metropolis, Illinois. Four generations of Supermans, scorched by the yellow light of the Terran sun. Link (Thanks, Marilyn!)
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During my student days at Southern Illinois University, near Metropolis, I had the rare honor to meet the very first Superman of Metroplis--the one on the left in this sign. As I recall, in real life he was a Baptist minister. His uniform was also unkind to his less than super physique. Such is the life of mere mortals.
"Tarzan wasn't a ladies man
He'd just come along and scoop em up under his arm
Like that, quick as a cat in the jungle
But Clark Kent, now there was a real gent
He would not be caught sittin around in no
Junglescape, dumb as an ape doing nothing
Superman never made any money
For saving the world from Solomon Grundy
And sometimes I despair the world will never see
Another man like him
Hey bob, Supe had a straight job
Even though he could have smashed through any bank
In the United States, he had the strength, but he would not
Folks said his family were all dead
Their planet crumbled but Superman, he forced himself
To carry on, forget Krypton, and keep going
Superman never made any money
For saving the world from Solomon Grundy
And sometimes I despair the world will never see
Another man like him
Tarzan was king of the jungle and lord over all the apes
But he could hardly string together four words: I Tarzan, you Jane.
Sometimes when Supe was stopping crimes
Ill bet that he was tempted to just quit and turn his back
On man, join Tarzan in the forest
But he stayed in the city, and kept on changing clothes
In dirty old phonebooths till his work was through
And nothing to do but go on home
Superman never made any money
For saving the world from Solomon Grundy
And sometimes I despair the world will never see
Another man like him
Superman is everywhere in and near Metropolis. I saw one driving a rusty pickup truck at a rest stop near Metropolis last summer:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/scifitwin/541138806/in/set-72157600351782200/
I didn't get the camera out soon enough to catch him and his posse but, for some reason, that one lycra-clad arm was enough.
((Looks at the far right of the poster))
Barack Obama is Superman now? Jeez, his supporters are really starting to push their luck....
I think this sign is actually located in Bizarro Illinois.
Anthony, all of Illinois south of Springfield is Bizarro Illinois.
4 generations of Bizzaro. I am hating these Bizzaro.
I really like this photo. The subject matter of Superman, but weathered and hardly readable, seems a little more than symbolic.
I think the one that's maybe supposed to be Christopher Reeves era Superman looks a little like C. Thomas Howell.
Ah, time to dredge up this nugget:
http://tinyurl.com/3mqqqd
#6:
"Anthony, all of Illinois south of, especially Springfield is Bizarro Illinois."
Everyone there works for the government, so they have to be bizarro versions of regular folk. I know, I live there.
Help me!
Oh, and while in Metropolis don't miss the big Superman statue.
Not that you can miss it.
Well, unless you miss the whole town by blinking as you drive by.
#4
When I first saw the photo I instantly thought, "hmmm, Barack Obama as Superman. Weird."
I thought anything NORTH of Springfield was Bizarro, Illinois...
/South of Springfield, God help me...
#2:
Hey, Takuan, being Lord of The Jungle ain't all it's cracked up to be. I don't think Supe would like it:
THE JUNGLE OF ENNUI
Jungle trails are deadly places,
carnivores destroy all traces
of those who falter there.
Leopards make great snarling leaps,
knocking bodies down in heaps,
eating everything, including hair.
Pygmies lurk behind small bushes,
shooting darts into white tushes,
although that seems unfair.
Gorillas huge as river barges,
rush in frenzied, sex-starved charges,
dragging women to their lair.
Rhinos chew all day on grass,
trampling any who dare to pass,
the chimps just sit and stare.
Jane has run off with a savage,
hoping that he'll choose to ravage
her body pale and fair.
Tarzan, alas, elects to slumber
(h
@#2
Hey, Takuan, the Lord of The Jungle's life isn't all it's ceacked up to be; I don't think Supe would like it.
THE JUNGLE OF ENNUI
Jungle trails are deadly places,
carnivores destroy all traces
of those who falter there.
Leopards make great snarling leaps,
knocking bodies down in heaps,
eating everything, including hair.
Pygmies lurk behind small bushes,
shooting darts into white tusches,
although that seems unfair.
Gorillas huge as river barges,
rush in frenzied, sex-starved charges,
dragging women to their lair.
Rhinos chew all day on grass,
trampling any who dare to pass,
the chimps just sit and stare.
Jane has run off with a savage,
hoping that he'll choose to ravage
her body pale and fair.
Tarzan, alas, elects to slumber
(h
Don't know why the last two lines are being cut ...
(his days are heavy, without number),
seeming not to care.
As a former resident of S. IL, I take offense to the derogatory comments about the residents there. S. IL gets a bad rap. But I know, I know...anybody who isn't you sucks.
Oooh. I went to high school in Southern Illinois, and it was bizarro.
In fact, the memory fuels my ongoing existential crisis...Be that good or bad.
Chicago was also bizarro, but in a much better way.
Southern Illinois has John Gardner and Lincoln, though. The spirits of.
There is a town where people dress as Superman on a regular basis?
...new life goal!
PS:If anyone wants to turn that lovely picture into a shirt let me know, I'll be your first buyer.
Wow! Thanks for the mention Cory! It was hard to get the whole billboard in the shot without including the soda machines on either side, hence the angle. But I loved the way the Supermen still came through clear despite all the weathering the sign has been through.
Thanks to all who've commented on it, too. If anyone cares, follow the link to the photo on my Flickr and you'll find links to more info on the Superman stuff in Metropolis.
As for the shirt idea...I'll think about it. I suppose I could donate profits to the Midwest flood relief. I'll let you know. :)
@21: Zengrrl, great photo, and it WOULD make a wonderful fundraising T-shirt for MIdwest flood relief. if you did that, I'd definitely buy one.