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KRYPTONSITE
COLUMNS: THE MANY FACES OF...
The
Many Faces Of... Jor-El and Lara Written
by Russ Dimino
UPDATED OCTOBER 2007
As
the planet Krypton approached its final hour, the scientist
Jor-El and his wife Lara placed their infant son into
the rocket ship that would carry him away from certain
doom, across the stars, to his new home on the planet
Earth. There, he would have powers far beyond those of
mere mortals. He would become a god among men. With their
last act of love, Jor-El and Lara spared their only son
from an untimely fate, and in so doing, gave Earth its
greatest hero.
In
this edition of "The Many Faces of..." we take
a look at the actors who have brought Clark's biological
parents to life on screens big and small, and how these
characters have evolved along with the Superman legend.
The
Kents aren't the only ones who have gone through some
name changes since their initial appearances (as we saw
in a previous edition). In "Action Comics" #1,
in 1938, Superman's birth parents are not given names
at all. It's not until the following year, when Superman's
origin is retold in the newspaper comic strips, that the
original spellings of "Jor-L" and "Lora"
show up. In fact, the spelling "Jor-El" first
appeared in the George Lowther Superman novel, where the
Kents were first given their original names, Eben and
Sarah.
Clark's
Kryptonian parents made their on-screen debut in the 1948
movie serials. Nelson Leight played Jor-El, and Luana
Walters was Lara. Leight's other credits include a role
on "Perry Mason" and The Ghost of Christmas
Past in a 1949 version of "A Christmas Carol,"
and Walters was a leading lady in more than a dozen westerns.
In
the first episode of the 1950's "Adventures of Superman"
series with George Reeves, Jor-El was played by Robert
Rockwell, and Lara was played by Aline Towne. Rockwell
is the second Jor-El to include "Perry Mason"
on his list of credits, along with many other well known
sitcoms such as "Diff'rent Strokes," "Eight
Is Enough" and "Growing Pains." Sadly,
Mr. Rockwell passed away in January 2003.
Aline
Towne actually played a few other bit roles on "The
Adventures of Superman" throughout the course of
the series, before going on to appear on "Lassie,"
"Wagon Train" and "The Donna Reed Show."
She even crossed paths with another superhero when she
appeared in an episode of "The Incredible Hulk."
When
the Man of Steel hit the silver screen in 1978, Christopher
Reeve almost had a dual role. Early in the planning stages
for the film, the producers considered having Jor-El and
Superman played the by same actor, since otherwise the
star of the film would not appear until fairly late into
the movie (it's nearly an hour into "Superman"
before Reeve first appears). That
plan was ultimately scrapped, and Marlon Brando was cast
in the role of Jor-El, receiving top billing over even
Reeve and Gene Hackman.
Stories
of Brando's experience with the film indicate he was not
actually too excited about the role. In fact, he tried
to suggest to director Richard Donner that he just provide
a voice-over, and Donner film a "floating green bagel"
or a briefcase or other such object to be Jor-El, since
"no one knows what Kryptonians look like." Obviously
it was pointed out that they must look like humans, since
Superman looks like a human, so Brando lost that argument.
However, some sources credit Brando with the idea of having
Jor-El wear the "S" symbol on his chest, which
would imply the movie was the first time that the logo
was intended to be Superman's family crest.
Much
of "Superman II" was filmed in conjunction
with the first film, under the direction of Richard
Donner. However, when Donner was replaced and
Richard Lester brought in to finish the picture,
Marlon Brando did not return to film any new scenes
as Jor-El. Though the character figured strongly
into the plot as it was originally written, the
script was instead re-tooled to feature Lara in
the "Superman II" scenes that would
have featured Jor-El. Susannah York played Lara
in both films. In "Superman
II," Lara appears as a hologram in the
Fortress of Solitude, counseling her son on the
dangers of giving up his powers to be with Lois
Lane.
York
also provided the voice of Lara in a voice-over scene
in "Superman
IV: The Quest For Peace." Like Nelson Leight,
Ms. York also appeared in a production of "A Christmas
Carol," playing Mrs. Cratchit in a 1984 TV version.
For
many years, fans yearned to see the additional footage
that Donner had filmed for "Superman II" that
had never seen the light of day. They finally got their
wish in 2006, with the DVD release of "Superman
II: The Richard Donner Cut." This new version
of the film restored the lost scenes of Brando as Jor-El,
and expanded on many father/son themes that had been introduced
in the original. Brando's other screen credits are numerous,
including well known classics like "On The Waterfront,"
"The Godfather" and "Apocalypse Now."
Mr. Brando passed away on July 1st 2004, due to pulmonary
fibrosis. He was 80 years old.
When
Jor-El and Lara appeared on the "Superboy" TV
series they were played by George Lazenby and Britt Ekland,
who both have ties to another pop-culture icon. Lazenby
played James Bond in "On Her Majesty's Secret Service,"
stepping in for Sean Connery, and Ekland played Bond girl
Mary Goodnight in "The Man With The Golden Gun."
"Lois
& Clark" wins the award for having the most
Jor-Els... three different actors portrayed Clark's Kryptonian
father throughout the course of the series! First up was
David Warner in "The Foundling," the first season
episode where Clark learns of his heritage through a globe
that had been in the ship with him. Warner is probably
best known by today's audience for his role as Spicer
Lovejoy in the movie "Titanic." He is yet another
Jor-El to have "Perry Mason" on his resume,
and he played Bob Cratchit alongside Susannah York in
the same version of "A Christmas Carol." He
also lent his voice to the immortal Ra's Al Ghul on "Batman
The Animated Series."
Eliza
Roberts played Lara in this episode. Ms. Roberts' other
credits include "Doctor Who," "Diagnosis
Murder," and "National Lampoon's Animal House."
She is the sister-in-law of actress Julia Roberts.
The
second time Clark's Kryptonian parents appeared on "L&C"
was an uncredited cameo appearance in the third season
episode "Never On Sunday," when Clark has a
flashback to being put into the spaceship as a baby.
The
third Jor-El appearance on "L&C" was also
in the third season, in the episode "Through A Glass
Darkly." Here Francois Giroday played Jor-El, who
appeared to Kal-El as a hologram. Mr. Giroday has appeared
on several TV series, including "Alias," "Martial
Law" and "Frasier," and in the movie "Catch
That Kid." Lara did not appear in this episode.
The
first episode of Superman
The Animated Series, "Last Son of Krypton, Part
1," actually focuses entirely on Jor-El and his efforts
to save Krypton. Here, Christopher McDonald lent his voice
to Jor-El, and Finola Hughes was Lara. McDonald is known
for such movies as "Dirty Work," "Happy
Gilmore" and "Leave it to Beaver." A few
years later, McDonald would actually provide the voice
of Superman himself, in an episode of "Batman Beyond."
He also reprised his role as Jor-El in an episode of "Justice
League Unlimited." Ms. Hughes has had recurring roles
on "Charmed" and soaps like "All My Children"
and "General Hospital."
As
Warner Brothers prepared to bring Superman back to the
big screen, the project passed through many writers and
directors. At one point, Brett Ratner (the "Rush
Hour" films) was signed on to direct. At that point,
Sir Anthony Hopkins was slated to play Jor-El. Hopkins
was reportedly all set to do it, but, when Ratner ultimately
left the project, so did Sir Anthony.
The
director who eventually did come on board was Bryan Singer.
(Singer had left the "X-Men" franchise to do
"Superman Returns"... after leaving "Superman"
behind, Brett Ratner directed the third "X-Men"
movie.) With Singer's vision of "Superman
Returns" tying in closely with the original Reeve
films, it was decided that they should use the Marlon
Brando Jor-El. Though Mr. Brando had passed away by this
time, there was enough unused footage from the Donner
films that Singer and co. were able to digitally touch-up
and adapt it to their needs. The result is a startling
tie to the original films, and Jor-El's scenes as a hologram
in the Fortress take on an even eerier feel when you know
that Brando, like the character he portrayed, is essentially
speaking to us from beyond the grave.
"Smallville"
has put a different spin on the character of Jor-El,
and his motivation for sending his infant son
to Earth. As revealed in the second season episode
"Rosetta," it seems that this Jor-El
had the intention of Kal-El conquering this new
world. Though we don't see Jor-El's face on the
show, Terence Stamp has provided his voice in
many episodes, speaking to Clark via his spaceship,
the caves beneath Smallville, or the Fortress
of Solitude. The casting is as clever as it is
ironic: Stamp played General Zod in the first
two "Superman" movies, a Kryptonian
villain who Jor-El exiled to the Phantom Zone,
and who had his sights set on conquering Earth
and destroying Superman.
Stamp's
connection to comic book mythos continued in 2005, when
he played Elektra's mentor, Stick, in the "Elektra"
movie starring Jennifer Garner.
It
should be noted that Stamp isn't the only actor who has
played Jor-El on "Smallville," however. In the
episode "Relic," Tom Welling played a young
Jor-El, going by the name of "Joe" while on
Earth, in a flashback sequence. Also, John Glover's character,
Lionel Luthor, channeled Jor-El in the fifth season episode
"Hidden."
Lara
was not mentioned on "Smallville" until late
in the third season, in the episode "Memoria."
In a flashback sequence, Clark remembers being placed
into the ship as an infant on Krypton, and recalls his
mother for the first time. Like Jor-El, Lara's face is
not seen, and her voice is provided by an uncredited voice
actress.
"Smallville"
fans will soon be seeing much more of Clark's Kryptonian
mother. Helen Slater will play the role in the seventh
season episodes "Lara" and "Blue,"
both airing in November 2007. Slater is the latest "Smallville"
guest star with a pre-established connection to the Superman
mythology - she starred in the 1984 "Supergirl"
movie. The timing of her appearance on "Smallville"
seems appropriate, as the show just added its own Supergirl
to the cast this season, played by Laura Vandervoort.
Much
like what we saw with the history of Jonathan and Martha
Kent, Jor-El and Lara's importance in the Superman mythos
has grown considerably over the years. The characters
of Superman's birth parents started out with only a brief
mention in the initial telling of the Man of Steel's origin,
without even being given names. Over time, they have come
to symbolize where Kal-El comes from, providing a link
to his Kryptonian heritage. In many versions of the story,
they appear to him in holograms and dreams, teaching him
about his native planet. One thing remains clear though...
Earth is his true home. Though Jor-El and Lara would never
know just what would become of their infant son, they
sent him away from the dying Krypton in the hope that
he would find a better life. The life he found was as
the protector of his adopted homeworld, as a Superman
that would have made any parent proud.
Note:
The views of Russ Dimino don't necessarily represent the
thoughts and feelings of everyone at KryptonSite.
The
Many Faces Of... Jor-El and Lara
The
Kents aren't the only ones who have gone through some
name changes since their initial appearances (as we saw
in a previous edition). In "Action Comics" #1,
in 1938, Superman's birth parents are not given names
at all. It's not until the following year, when Superman's
origin is retold in the newspaper comic strips, that the
original spellings of "Jor-L" and "Lora"
show up. In fact, the spelling "Jor-El" first
appeared in the George Lowther Superman novel, where the
Kents were first given their original names, Eben and
Sarah.
In
the first episode of the 1950's "Adventures of Superman"
series with George Reeves, Jor-El was played by Robert
Rockwell, and Lara was played by Aline Towne. Rockwell
is the second Jor-El to include "Perry Mason"
on his list of credits, along with many other well known
sitcoms such as "Diff'rent Strokes," "Eight
Is Enough" and "Growing Pains." Sadly,
Mr. Rockwell passed away in January 2003. 
That
plan was ultimately scrapped, and Marlon Brando was cast
in the role of Jor-El, receiving top billing over even
Reeve and Gene Hackman. 
The
third Jor-El appearance on "L&C" was also
in the third season, in the episode "Through A Glass
Darkly." Here Francois Giroday played Jor-El, who
appeared to Kal-El as a hologram. Mr. Giroday has appeared
on several TV series, including "Alias," "Martial
Law" and "Frasier," and in the movie "Catch
That Kid." Lara did not appear in this episode.
The
first episode of 
Lara
was not mentioned on "Smallville" until late
in the third season, in the episode "Memoria."
In a flashback sequence, Clark remembers being placed
into the ship as an infant on Krypton, and recalls his
mother for the first time. Like Jor-El, Lara's face is
not seen, and her voice is provided by an uncredited voice
actress.
"Smallville"
fans will soon be seeing much more of Clark's Kryptonian
mother. Helen Slater will play the role in the seventh
season episodes "Lara" and "Blue,"
both airing in November 2007. Slater is the latest "Smallville"
guest star with a pre-established connection to the Superman
mythology - she starred in the 1984 "Supergirl"
movie. The timing of her appearance on "Smallville"
seems appropriate, as the show just added its own Supergirl
to the cast this season, played by Laura Vandervoort.
