The 1940s Superman cartoons by the Fleischer Studios are being released in a complete 2-disc DVD set on April 7th.
The set will contain all 17 cartoons from 1941 to 1943, including the latter propaganda pieces like “The Japoteurs.” It will include two special features — a new featurette entitled “The Man, The Myth, Superman,” along with a re-used featurette (from the Superman II disc) entitled “First Flight: The Fleischer Superman Series”.
These cartoons are in the public domain, and available all over the place — including for free on the internet. But, I think I’ll be picking this up anyway, simply because this authorized edition is taken from the original master prints. I love the design of these cartoons, bordering between art deco, superhero and pulp.
The black-background emblem is a favorite of mine as well — forming the basis of my favorite interpretation of the character, Alex Ross’ ‘Kingdom Come’ version.