Original subtitles

NARRATOR: The Adventures of Superman.

Faster than a speeding bullet.

More powerful than a locomotive.

Able to leap tall buildings at a single bound.

MAN: Look! Up in the sky! MAN 2: It's a bird!

WOMAN: It's a plane! MAN 3: It's Superman!

NARRATOR: Yes, it's Superman,

strange visitor from another planet,

who came to Earth with powers and abilities

far beyond those of mortal men.

Superman, who can change the course of mighty rivers,

bend steel in his bare hands,

and who, disguised as Clark Kent,

mild-mannered reporter for a great metropolitan newspaper,

fights a never-ending battle

for truth, justice and the American way.

[♪♪♪]

[♪♪♪]

MAN [OVER RADIO]: Able Home Base calling Able Outside. Come in.

This is Able Outside.

Everything went like clockwork.

No trouble with the watchman.

That safe combination hit it right on the nose.

And how was business?

Better than we expected.

At least 100,000 in diamonds.

You're on the course I gave you?

Right. We're out in the country now.

Good. Double back according to plan

and meet me here at exactly 1:35.

You're sure you're not being followed?

Sure, I'm sure.

We made a clean getaway.

[♪♪♪]

[♪♪♪]

Okay, which turn do we take?

What difference does it make?

They both curve around and go back towards town.

Yeah, but one's shorter than the other.

Trouble is, I can't remember which one.

Who cares? Take one and let's get going.

[ENGINE REVS]

[SQUEALING]

We ain't moving.

Have you got it in gear?

Sure I got it in gear, but we still ain't moving.

We still ain't moving.

Look. The mirror.

It's...

It's Superman.

Run for it, you fools.

Gus. What's going on?

Answer me.

Answer me.

They won't be answering you for a long time,

whoever you are.

Because they'll be in jail, where you'll be sooner or later.

Get this, Superman.

Somehow, some way, I'm going to get you.

Meantime, you'll never get to me.

You'll never get to me.

[♪♪♪]

[COUGHING]

Whew.

Superman. [SIGHS]

That makes four times in a row

he's busted up your plans, Mr. Grizwald.

That's four times too many.

Something's got to be done about him.

And I'm going to do it.

Well, that's a good story you did, Kent,

on Superman capturing those two jewelry-store bandits.

And your coverage of the horse show,

Miss Lane, has been excellent.

Thank you, chief.

But you!

Wait a minute, Mr. White.

Whatever I did, I didn't do it.

What'd I do?

You know what you did.

When I sent you over to cover the new show

at the Orpheum Theatre, I meant for you to write a review.

Not devote the entire column to a cheap vaudeville magician.

But he isn't a cheap vaudeville magician. He's a miracle man.

Honest, Mr. Kent, you wouldn't believe

some of the things he did.

Why, he took one girl,

right there on stage, and he levita...

"Levitouchenated"... Levitated.

He levitated her.

He made her float right on stage.

That is a miracle?

What else? Well, he even passed hoops around her

to show there weren't any wires holding her up.

And not only that,

she was stretched out stiffer than iron.

Why, another girl even sat on her while she floated.

That's one of the oldest magic tricks in the book.

Didn't you used to belong to the Amateur Magic Society

and do this very same trick?

Did it all the time. Nothing to it.

You could do it again, couldn't you?

Of course.

Well, then, I don't see why you don't...

As a matter of fact, I don't think Miss Lane

would mind being the subject in this demonstration, would you?

Why, I'd love to be levitated.

Sounds like fun.

Well, of... Of course, it's been 10 years since I did it.

I... I might be a bit rusty.

Oh, I quite understand, chief.

You might be a little rusty, as you said, but, uh,

if you're afraid that she might fall and hurt herself...

Fall? When I levitate a person

they stay levitated until I un-levitate them.

Yes, sir.

But like you say, chief, you're a bit rusty and...

Rusty? Who's rusty?

Miss Lane, are you ready?

You... Well... Are you really?

[♪♪♪]

Right here.

Go on, Miss Lane. We'll catch you if you fall.

She's not going to fall.

[♪♪♪]

PERRY: So I'm rusty, am I?

You did it, chief.

Just like the guy in the show.

And it isn't a trick.

Of course it's a trick. Look here.

What happened?

You mean you don't know?

Mr. White levitated you.

I said I would, didn't I?

Golly, Mr. White, could you teach me that trick?

Now wait just a minute, Jimmy.

If he did that, he'd be expelled

from The Society of, uh, American Magicians.

That's exactly right.

And now I'll thank you all to go back to work.

The guy out there wants to see you, Mr. Grizwald.

He says it's about an enemy of yours.

Enemy?

What does he mean? Who is he?

Says his name is Von Bruiner.

Professor Von Bruiner.

Von Bruiner.

Oh, yes, I remember.

I did business with him before he was sent to prison

for selling laboratory secrets. Send him in.

You sure you wanna see him, Mr. Grizwald?

Send him in.

Gotcha, Mr. Grizwald.

Okay, come on in.

Good to see you again, professor.

What can I do for you?

Nothing.

The important thing is, what can I do for you?

What would it be worth to you if I would destroy Superman?

You mean, knock him off?

Precisely.

Professor, if I can find the man who can do that,

I'll make him a millionaire.

Only it just can't be done.

I can do it.

Just how much do we know of Superman?

We know nothing can hurt him.

You're wrong.

He's vulnerable to one thing, an element called kryptonite.

Everybody knows that. But what good does it do us?

Unless...

Have you got any kryptonite?

No. And I doubt if it could be found anywhere on Earth.

That is, not in sufficient quantities for our purpose.

Then what are you bending our ear for?

Superman came here when his planet, Krypton,

exploded into a supernova.

Correct?

That's right.

VON BRUINER: That explosion sent

a billion trillion particles of kryptonite into outer space,

particles so tiny they couldn't be seen with the naked eye.

Correct?

What are you gonna do?

Put on a space helmet,

fly out and gather them up in a butterfly net?

No. But I have perfected a way of gathering energy from them.

And I've already prepared two installations

necessary for the job at hand.

Would you like to come with me and, uh, see them?

Get the car, Eddie.

EDDIE: A square, concrete hole in the ground.

So what?

Sixty feet deep.

A fall sufficient to kill anybody.

Except Superman.

True.

But it's this which will destroy him.

You're gonna squirt water on him and drown him.

No, my friend.

Look.

[HUMMING]

That is the second installation, two miles away.

What is it, professor?

A radar pickup or a solar mirror?

Both guesses are close, Mr. Grizwald.

But instead of picking up radar signals or heat from the sun,

it's designed to collect

minute particles of kryptonite floating in space.

Sounds fishy to me.

It's harmless to ordinary humans,

but if I aim it at Superman,

it will first rob him of his super strength,

eventually destroy him.

How do you know without trying it on him?

I guarantee it.

But as for trying it on him, that's your job.

Fat chance of him standing still

while you aim a gadget full of kryptonite at him.

He wouldn't come within a mile of it.

I wouldn't bet on that, Eddie.

I think we can induce Mr. Superman

to come right where we want him.

Oh, yeah? How?

I've noticed he has a close connection

with a reporter on the Daily Planet named Clark Kent.

Kent is a close friend of two other reporters on the Planet,

Lois Lane and Jimmy Olsen.

Congratulations, Mr. Grizwald.

You are thinking exactly on the lines that I expected.

If we can trick Olsen and the girl into a position of danger,

and let Clark Kent know about it,

he might send Superman to the rescue.

How do we get Olsen or the girl in the first place?

By magic, Eddie.

Young Olsen is overboard about magic.

So we place an advertisement

in the columns of the Daily Planet.

An advertisement that will mean the end of Superman.

[♪♪♪]

[♪♪♪]

I've got it, Miss Lane. I've got it.

Simmer down, Jimmy. You've got what?

For a measly $5 I can be just like Mr. White.

You can?

Are you sure you wanna be?

No, you don't understand. Be a magician.

Look at this personal ad:

"Magic tricks revealed, professional secrets taught."

"Make people disappear. Saw a woman in half."

Ooh, there's a gruesome thought.

"Levitate any living subject."

Do you understand, Miss Lane?

Levitated. Just like Mr. White did to you.

"Complete personal instruction, only $5."

I don't see how they can teach you all that for $5.

Don't ask me. But I'm gonna take the course.

That is, if, uh, I can borrow $5 from you until payday.

Oh, that's it.

Oh, well.

Easy come, easy go.

Golly, thanks, Miss Lane.

Hey, wait a minute, Jimmy.

Aren't you gonna make an appointment?

Already did. I'm going now.

I'll go with you.

You will?

I have to protect my investment.

Come on.

Mr. Olsen, he's got an appointment.

Mr. Grizwald.

Miss Lane, no appointment.

You're welcome anyway.

Won't you sit down?

Thank you.

It says on your door, Mr. Grizwald,

that you're, uh, an investment counselor.

Doesn't say anything about magic.

Magic is my hobby.

I certainly couldn't make any money at only $5

for a complete course.

I don't know how you can do it anyway,

but I can hardly wait to get started.

In that case, let's leave for my place in the country.

Your place in the country?

What's the matter with here?

In my business office, Miss Lane?

I'm afraid some of my customers might consider that frivolous.

And besides, all my equipment's at the other place.

Of course.

Just the same, I still think this whole idea's ridiculous,

and I'm not going, Jimmy.

GRIZWALD: Oh, suit yourselves.

As I say, it's only a hobby. And at these prices,

I certainly don't have to beg for customers.

N... Wait a minute. I wanna go.

If Miss Lane doesn't... All right, Jimmy.

If you insist on making a fool of yourself,

hmm, I guess I'll just have to go along and help you.

Will you really teach me that levitation trick, Mr. Grizwald?

Absolutely, my boy. Absolutely.

[♪♪♪]

Well, this is a funny kind of a place to teach magic tricks.

I think it's great.

Nothing but a square, concrete hole in the ground.

Kind of gets you, don't it?

LOIS: Yeah, it sure does.

Oh, it's beautiful.

Just what is the idea, Mr. Grizwald?

You'd hardly expect me to conduct classes

on Main Street, would you, Miss Lane?

Well, hardly on Main Street,

but this isn't just one block away.

And... And what is this thing, for example?

A piece of apparatus for what I hope

will be the greatest trick of my career.

You could say that again.

A super trick, you might say.

Golly, Mr. Grizwald. Will you teach that one to me too?

You can be sure you'll be in on it, my boy.

Now, Mr. Grizwald, Jimmy is primarily interested

in the levitation trick.

Why don't we settle just for that?

Of course.

But I intend teaching Mr. Olsen how to do the trick

in the most spectacular way ever devised.

With you as his subject,

he will levitate you from the very bottom of this shaft

clear to the top.

Wow!

You mean, you expect us

to go down into that hole in the ground?

That's right, lady.

Well, I, for one, ain't gonna stand for it.

Come on, Jim. This has gone far enough.

Oh! Just a moment, Miss Lane.

I was hoping you wouldn't make it

any more difficult than necessary.

Some trick.

I told you this whole thing was ridiculous, Jim.

I'm sorry, Miss Lane.

The only excuse I can offer is I'm stupid.

The rope, Eddie. Miss Lane first.

You mean, you really are gonna put us down there?

I really am.

You know, of course, you can't get away with this.

I know I can't, Miss Lane. But I'm doing it.

And I'd advise you to cooperate.

It would be a nasty fall down that shaft.

Go on, Miss Lane. Go on.

Go on.

Help him there, Olsen.

Down with her. Go on.

EDDIE: Last stop. Take off the rope, lady.

That dame almost yanked me into the well.

Not a bad idea.

[♪♪♪]

[GRUNTS]

Hurry up, get the rope around him, Eddie.

Better to have him this way anyway. Easier to handle.

Now lower away. Lower away.

That's it.

Are you all right, Jim?

Yeah, Miss Lane. I guess so.

Well, so much for that.

Thing to do now is to go on up to the observatory

and join the professor.

And while in the observatory,

we will observe what kind of tiger our bait will catch.

[BOTH LAUGHING]

[GROANS]

I guess I've done it again, Miss Lane.

Oh, that's all right, Jim.

I've pulled some pretty silly ones in my day too.

Like coming here in the first place, huh?

[ENGINE STARTING]

Sounds like they've gone.

Yeah, but we're not going anywhere.

But why, Jim?

I can't figure out why anyone

would want to put us down here to begin with.

I don't know. I've been thinking,

the only enemy I've got in the world's Eddie Davis.

I owe him $3.

He wouldn't do this for $3, would he?

I don't think so. Besides, I don't owe him a cent.

Maybe it's a gag.

That's it, Miss Lane, it's a gag.

Wanna bet?

No.

[PHONE RINGING]

Clark Kent speaking.

What's that?

Jimmy and Lois kidnapped?

Uh, that's true, uh, Mr. Kent.

I was a partner to the scheme, but I decided to reform.

That's why I'm telling you where they are,

so you can do something to save them.

I see.

Will you please tell me exactly where this place is located?

Mm-hm.

Yes, I think I know where it is. Thank you.

But remember, Mr. Kent, if those criminals see the police coming,

Olsen and the girl will be in serious danger.

In fact, the only safe way to approach the place is,

say, perhaps by helicopter.

I-I'm sorry, that's all I can tell you.

Uh, goodbye, Mr. Kent.

[♪♪♪]

Very clever, Mr. Grizwald.

I think so myself.

Kent isn't going to send any policeman in a helicopter.

He's going to send Superman.

[CHUCKLES]

[♪♪♪]

So all we do now is wait.

If we're lucky.

And if that gadget of yours works.

Oh, it'll work.

Maybe we ought to give it another test blast, huh?

No. If Superman's anywhere around, it'll tip him off.

Anything cooking?

Not yet.

[♪♪♪]

[WHOOSHING]

That sound.

It's got to be Superman.

[♪♪♪]

It is Superman.

Professor Von Bruiner,

get ready.

I'm ready.

As soon as he's under the beam.

Well.

Superman!

Hey, get us outta here!

I see you've gotten yourself in a hole again.

It would serve you right if I left you in it this time.

LOIS: Oh, please, Superman.

Well. Now, what's all this about?

Superman, that's a long, embarrassing story.

But how did you find us?

Well, that's a long story too.

But right now I think we better concentrate

on getting you out of here.

Turn on the kryptonite.

[BEEPING]

Now.

[CRACKLING]

But it's harmless.

It's just like Fourth of July sparklers.

You mean that it's a gag of some sort?

Superman, what's the matter?

Golly.

Must be... kryptonite.

Some kind of a trap.

Help, Jimmy.

What can we do?

Do you think it got him?

Of course it got him.

Otherwise he'd be out of there with a boy and a girl by now.

Better leave it on anyway.

Finish him good. Right.

Press that third button, professor.

That'll really do the job.

For all of them.

Miss Lane, look, one of the walls is moving.

[♪♪♪]

LOIS: We'll be crushed.

I think that's the idea, Miss Lane.

And now not even Superman can help us.

Miss Lane,

stand up, please.

Turn and face

the moving wall.

Superman, you levitated her.

That's the trick I came here to learn.

Her... body rigid may stop the wall.

It's our only chance.

Yeah, but for how long?

Jimmy, go up and deflect those rays.

Yeah, the walls are close enough together now

to make that possible.

Hurry, please.

It ought to be all over pretty soon now, huh?

All over.

The wall's stopped moving in.

What do you mean? What's wrong?

There's nothing's wrong.

After all, you don't destroy a person like Superman

in just a moment.

Maybe his last ounce of strength

is holding the wall open for a little bit.

Maybe. Maybe that silly machine of yours isn't doing the job.

Of course it's doing the job.

If not, they'd all be out of there by now.

[♪♪♪]

The boy. He's out.

What do we do now?

EDDIE: The spark's coming. What do we do now?

[ALL COUGHING]

Police headquarters. Quick.

Police headquarters.

You're right, boss.

Better a million of those guys than Superman.

[♪♪♪]

JIMMY: Uh, Superman, a-are you all right?

Yes, I'm all right, Jimmy. Thanks to you.

You... You're all right?

Yes, Miss Lane, I'm fine.

And as long as you are too, if you'll excuse me.

Superman, get me out of here.

I'm afraid you'll have to get out

the same way Jimmy did, Miss Lane.

You'll have to climb out.

Superman, they went thattaway.

But I don't think there's any hurry.

[WHOOSH]

That's it, Miss Lane.

You just have to sorta inch up, like a caterpillar.

The least you could have done was thrown me a rope.

But I told you, Miss Lane, I didn't have one.

They took it with them.

I ache all over, especially the top of my head.

Well, perhaps the little raise you'll get for a good story

will help that ache a bit.

Golly, what great liniment. Do I get a little too?

Oh, I suppose so.

By the way, where were you when this story was breaking?

Who, me, chief? Why, um...

I was practicing the levitation trick.

Well, in that case maybe you should have come along.

Superman might have taught it to you.

Why, Lois, what a wonderful idea.

As a matter of fact,

I think he did.

[♪♪♪]

NARRATOR: Don't miss the next thrill-packed episode

in the amazing Adventures of Superman.

Superman is based on the original character

appearing in Superman magazine.