Earlier this week, we flagged a digital archive of comic books from the Golden Age. Now we stumble upon this nugget from the same era: A video archive that showcases the complete Superman animated cartoon series from the early 40′s, all in Technicolor. Based on the original DC Comics character, these 17 episodes appeared on American movie screens (before the showing of feature films) between 1941 and 1943. And they were taken seriously as an art form. The first episode, commonly known as “The Mad Scientist” (watch above), was nominated for an Oscar in 1942, and, in case you somehow missed it, it spells out the whole premise/backstory of the Superman saga. These episodes – all now in the public domain – can be viewed at www.SupermanWebTV.com, a service provided by Film Annex. Wikipedia provides some other options for watching/downloading these vintage bits of Americana media.
FYI. For a limited time, Barnes & Noble is running a big sale (50% off) 200 classic movies. On DVD, you will find everything from Gone With the Wind to One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest.
We got these on a $1 DVD a year or so ago. They’re great!