Superman and the Mole Men

Superman and the Mole Men is an independently made 1951 American black-and-white superhero film, produced by Barney A. Sarecky, directed by Lee Sholem, and starring George Reeves as Superman and Phyllis Coates as Lois Lane. The film was released by Lippert Pictures Inc. This is the first feature film based on the DC Comics character Superman. Previously, two live-action, multiple chapter Superman serials from Columbia Pictures (1948, 1950), starring Kirk Alyn and Noel Neill, had been shown in weekly installments in theaters. Superman and The Mole Mens original screenplay was by "Richard Fielding", a pseudonym for Robert Maxwell and Whitney Ellsworth, and was shot in a little more than 12 days on a studio back lot. The film was just 58 minutes long and served as a trial balloon release for the syndicated Adventures of Superman TV series, for which it became the only two-part episode, "The Unknown People".