A Live Action History of Lois Lane
Superman's Girlfriend is Forever Needing Rescuing from Peril
Dec 17, 2008
When Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster needed to add a female presence as a love interest for their creation, they hired Joanne Carter to model for the physical form of the character. They decided that she should be a reporter working alongside Superman's alter ego Clark Kent and used a then popular woman reporter's character from a film series, Torchy Blane, as a template for the woman's personality. One of three actresses who portrayed Torchy Blane was named Lola Lane. Siegel tweaked the actress's name to create the name of the new character.
The Modern Era Begins
Superman flew onto movie screens around the world in 1978. Christopher Reeve would become The Man of Steel for a generation of children and adults. Margot Kidder was his Lois Lane. In a nod to fans everywhere, Noel Neill, who had played Lois on film and television in the late 1940's and through the 1950's, made a cameo as Lois's mother in the movie.
Kidder appeared in each of the four films in the series, although she only appeared briefly in the third film due to a dispute with the producers over the treatment of director Richard Donner during the filming of the second film.
In 1987, the fourth film in the series did poorly at the box office and would mark the end of the series. Margot Kidder (and Christopher Reeve) would stay far away from the Superman property until the Twenty-First Century and the emergence of Smallville as a cultural phenomenon. Both Kidder and Reeve would make multiple guest appearances on the show.
Returning to Television
In 1993, Superman and Lois Lane returned to television. The Superboy show, which had folded the previous year, had been cast in a similar tone to the Christopher Reeve films and Lois Lane had never appeared on the show. Lois and Clark - The New Adventures of Superman would bring a new warmth and humour to the characters, while providing an exciting adventure each week.
Teri Hatcher played a hip, career minded, street smart Lois Lane opposite Dean Cain's incredibly wholesome Clark Kent.
Phyllis Coates, who had played Lois Lane in the 1950's opposite George Reeves in both the movie Superman and the Mole Men and the first season of Adventures of Superman, returned to play Lois's mother in a single episode. The role was later recast when the character became a more regular part of the show.
Smallville
When Lois arrived in Smallville in 2004, the part went to little known actress Erica Durance. A guest star for the next few seasons, Durance is a cast regular in season eight. The romance between Lois and Clark is slowly burgeoning, but has yet to fully materialize.
Returning to the Silver Screen
In 2006's Superman Returns, Noel Neill once again made a brief cameo appearance, this time as the rich woman who leaves Lex Luthor the money he needs to restart his criminal empire.
Kate Bosworth played Lois Lane opposite Brandon Routh's Clark Kent/Superman. While Routh at times almost appeared to channel the presence of the late Christopher Reeve, Bosworth's Lois might well be the most forgettable incarnation of the character since her creation in 1938.
