George Reeves (born George Keefer Brewer; January 5, 1914 – June 16, 1959) was an American actor. He was best known for portraying Clark Kent/Superman in the television series Adventures of Superman (1952–1958).[1][2]
His death by gunshot at age 45 remains controversial. The official finding was suicide, but some believe that he was murdered or the victim of an accidental shooting.[1][2][3][4][5][6]
Early life
Reeves was born January 5, 1914,[7][8] as George Keefer Brewer in Woolstock, Iowa, the son of Donald Carl Brewer and Helen Lescher. Reeves was born five months into their marriage.[9] When the couple separated, soon after Reeves's birth, Reeves and his mother moved from Iowa to Ashland, Kentucky, to stay with relatives for a time[10] and then to her home in Galesburg, Illinois.[11]
Later, Reeves's mother,[12] who was of German descent, moved to California to stay with her sister. There, by 1920, she had met and married Frank Joseph Bessolo (according to that year's federal census).
Acting career
While studying acting at the Pasadena Playhouse, Reeves met his future wife, Ellanora Needles, great-great-granddaughter of John Robinson, who had been a circus magnate and founder of the John Robinson Circus.[15] They married on September 22, 1940, in San Gabriel, California, at the Church of Our Savior. They had no children and divorced 10 years later.[16]
Reeves's film career began in 1939 when he was cast as Stuart Tarleton (incorrectly listed in the film's credits as Brent Tarleton), one of Scarlett O'Hara's suitors in Gone with the Wind. It was a minor role, but he and Fred Crane were in the film's opening scene. (Reeves and Crane both dyed their hair red to portray the Tarleton twins.) After Gone with the Wind was filmed, Reeves returned to the Pasadena Playhouse and was given the lead role in the play Pancho. This part directly led to his being contracted to Warner Brothers.[17] Warner had him change his professional name to George Reeves.[13]
Death
Reeves died of a gunshot wound to the head, in the upstairs bedroom of his home at 1959 Benedict Canyon Drive[41] in Benedict Canyon between 1:30 and 2:00 a.m. on June 16, 1959, according to the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) report.
Leonore Lemmon and other party guests were in the home at the time. Lemmon told the police that she was in the living room with the guests at the time of the shooting, but hearsay statements from Fred Crane, Reeves's friend and colleague from Gone with the Wind, put Lemmon either inside or in direct proximity to Reeves's bedroom.[42] According to Crane (who was not present), Bill Bliss had told Millicent Trent after the shot rang out, while Bliss was having a drink, that Leonore Lemmon came downstairs and said, "Tell them I was down here, tell them I was down here!"[43]
A number of questionable physical findings were reported by investigators and others. No fingerprints were recovered from the gun. No gunpowder residue was found on Reeves's hands. (Some sources contend that it may not have been sought, as gunshot residue testing was not routinely performed at the time.)[44]
Filmography
Film
Television
Further reading
- Daniels, Les & Kahn, Jenette, DC Comics: Sixty Years of the World's Favorite Comic Book Heroes, Bulfinch, 1995 ISBN 0-8212-2076-4
- Grossman, Gary Superman: Serial to Cereal, Popular Library, 1977 ISBN 0-445-04054-8
- Henderson, Jan Alan, Speeding Bullet, M. Bifulco, 1999 ISBN 0-9619596-4-9
- Henderson, Jan Alan & Randisi, Steve, Behind the Crimson Cape, M. Bifulco, 2005 ISBN 0-9619596-6-5
- Kashner, Sam & Schoenberger, Nancy Hollywood Kryptonite, St. Martin's Mass Market Paper, 1996 ISBN 0-312-96402-1
- Neill, Noel & Ward, Larry, Truth, Justice and the American Way, Nicholas Lawrence Books, 2003 ISBN 0-9729466-0-8
External links
References
- George Reeves The New York Times, 2007^
- Dave Kehr. Luc Moullet and George Reeves The New York Times, January 2, 2007^
- Who killed Superman? The Guardian, November 17, 2006^