George Reeves Death 67th Anniversary

Above, the home in Benedict Canyon where George Reeves died. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Today is the 67th anniversary of the death of the original television Superman, George Reeves in his bedroom in Benedict Canyon. 

Fans of the 1950s Adventures of Superman are familiar with the different theories of Reeves's death. The theories are suicide, murder and accident. Those theories were presented in the feature film, Hollywoodland (2006). I'll leave it to the viewer on which one to believe.

Above, Hollywoodland screenwriter Paul Bernbaum and yours truly in 2014.

Hollywoodland is a fictionalized account of the last days of George Reeves and the aftermath of his death. It was written by Paul Bernbaum and stars Ben Affleck as George Reeves. It is a film worth viewing. 

Above, George Reeves as Superman.

Justin Root posted two videos on the "Mysterious Life & Death of Superman George Reeves." Root goes through Reeves's life and death in detail. Both parts are presented below.

FireAid Hires Law Firm To Review Dispersal of Funds From Benefit Concert

Above, the famous Moonshadows restaurant before and after the fire.

It looks like those behind the FireAid benefit concert that raised over $100 million, purportedly to help those who were affected by the wildfires in January in Los Angles County, has hired a law firm to review the disbursements made. Many noted that organizations having nothing to do with the fires are getting the funds.

They have taken much criticism over the past few weeks by victims of the fires. They are also angry at the foot-dragging by Los Angeles and California officials over rebuilding permits. L.A. Mayor Karen Bass and Gov. Gavin Newsom had promised expedited permitting, but have failed to do so.

Variety posted an article on FireAid and it begins with:

FireAid has hired a law firm, Latham & Watkins, to review the dispersal of roughly $100 million in funds that were raised in conjunction with a massive benefit concert earlier this year, the charitable organization announced Monday. FireAid released a letter it sent to Rep. Kevin Kiley of California about the internal review, shortly after the congressman posted it on his X account.

Some congresspeople and journalists have hit the organization with questions in recent weeks about how the money was given out, with stories picking up particular traction among conservative-leaning news outlets. FireAid has every reason to take the skepticism seriously, as Kiley and others have brought their issues or questions to the attention of President Trump, who on Friday posted a message that began, “‘FireAid’ is a total disaster. Looks like another Democrat inspired scam.”

To read more, go here.

From Fox 11 News:

Roadside America: "The Tomb of Superman"

Above, George Reeves as Superman.

Roadside America "Your Online Guide to Offbeat Tourist Attractions" has a page devoted to "The Tomb of Superman."

Actually, Superman isn't in the tomb, but instead it is the niche of actor George Reeves, television's first Superman.

I happened to be perusing the website and noted that Reeves's niche was listed. When I went there, I noticed an ad for The Monster Movie Fan's Guide To Japan (no, I didn't plan that).

Here's some snaps of the page:

To go to "The Tomb of Superman" listing, go here.

The Caretaker of Mountain View Cemetery

Above, at the urn of George "Superman" Reeves.

In November 2005, actress Noel Neill celebrated her 85th birthday at the Beverly Garland Holiday Inn in Studio City. Fans from around the country converged to celebrate.

The next day, since everyone was in town, I led them on the first-ever George Reeves tour. Stops included his house in Benedict Canyon where Reeves died on June 16, 1959, his boyhood home in Pasadena and Mountain View Cemetery, where he now rests in the mausoleum between his mother and aunt (photo below). We had about 4-5 carloads of Adventures of Superman fans participate on the tour.



The Los Angeles Times has a story today on the caretaker of Mountain View Cemetery, "Between The Sacred and the Mundane." George gets a mention in the article.

To read the article go here.