"THE GREATEST CRIMINAL MASTERMIND OF OUR TIME!" |
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In 1931 Jerry Siegel met and befriended Joe Shuster. They became fast friends, in part due to Joe's interest in science fiction novels and also because Joe was a competent artist and Jerry loved his work.
In 1932, the pair put out a fanzine called Science Fiction. Filled with fantastic stories. In the third issue was a story entitled "Reign of the Superman", about a bald-headed villain bent on destroying the world (this original creation would eventually be a prototype of another villain, Lex Luthor). |
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Luthor was first drawn as possessing a full head of red hair, and only later (1941) did he appear as completely bald. Speculation is that an artist confused Luthor with the other major Superman foe of the time, the Ultra-Humanite (who was bald). At any rate, he's been bald ever since. Later writers explained the difference with the famous Earth-1, Earth-2 split.
Originally a benevolent scientist, Luthor attempted early in his career to develop a serum that would render Kryptonite harmless to his friend, Superboy. After developing the formula successfully, Lex accidentally started a lab fire, but was rescued by Superboy who used his super breath to extinguish the flames. The fumes from the burning chemicals caused Luthor's hair to fall out and he blamed Superboy for his loss. Luthor vowed to destroy the anti-Kryptonite formula and destroy Superman at any cost. Luthor possess no true super powers, however he is a master inventor and a criminal mastermind. Lex Luthor is Superman's greatest enemy, and has tried on many occasions to destroy The Man of Steel, always meeting defeat. |
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Like his pre-Crisis counterpart, this Luthor was also first depicted with red hair, though receding. Eventually, as his hair thinned, he shaved his head entirely. A scientist and corporate magnate, Luthor was the president, chairman, and principal stock-holder of Lexcorp, which seemingly had its finger in many pies. Luthor can best be described as a megalomaniac, absolutely convinced that he deserves ultimate power, and glorifying in being able to use it. He was well on his way to dominating Metropolis until Superman showed up - and when the Man of Steel proved incorruptible, Luther vowed to destroy him. He even began wearing a ring of kryptonite.
That proved to be his undoing; while not instantly lethal to humans, kryptonite radiation is ultimatly deadly. Luthor first lost his hand to radiation poisoning, then was diagnosed with inoperable cancer. But before the disease could take his life, he was reported killed in a plane crash. Only a few people - Clark Kent, Lois Lane, Perry White, amoung them - were aware of Luthor's perfidy; most saw him as a ruthless, but entirely lawful, corporate head. But Luthor wasn't dead; in reality, he faked his death, while his scientists grew a new, younger, healthier body for him. They eventually transplanted Luthors brain into the cloned young man, dubbed Lex Luthor II, and passed him off as Luthor's long-lost illegitimate son. Believed by most to be a good man, this Luthor romanced Supergirl and often worked in collaboration with the heroes of Earth when the need arose. Although Superman and a few others saw through him, Luthor has managed to keep his name squeaky-clean, so much so that he has now been elected president of the United States of America, a situation which many people find very worrying. However, thus far his leadership has been uncontroversial, and the entire world, in fact, looked to him in the midst of the recent Imperiex crisis. |
Lyle Talbot (Lex Luthor 1950) |
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Lex Luthor: "Before you depart for an eternity of endless wandering into the Empty Doom, what have you to say?"
Superman: "Just this, I'll be back!" (Atom Man Vs. Superman) "Atom Man vs. Superman", the second of the two Superman movie seriels marks the first on-screen appearance of that brilliant scientific villain, Lex Luthor. Luthor was played by an impressively stern Lyle Talbot, who says of the series "our approach was never to kid it - this had to be for real." Atom Man vs. Superman had much improved special effects, with animated bullets bouncing from Superman's chest and live-action scenes of Superman in flight. In this 15-chapter serial actionfest criminal genius Lex Luther in the guise of the diabolical Atom Man has Metropolis at his mercy. But can he bring Superman to his knees with his feindish inventions? With Kirk Alyn (Clark Kent / Superman), Lyle Talbot (Lex Luthor / Atom Man), and Noel Neill (Lois Lane). |
Jackson Beck (Lex Luthor 1966-1970) |
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| You may not know him by name or face, but you have certainly heard his distinct, versatile and sometimes booming voice. Jackson Beck has given life from everything to Popeye cartoons (he was Bluto), the old Superman and Tom Corbett radio and TV series (as the announcer), and numerous other cartoons. He was the voice of Perry White, Lex Luthor, and the announcer in "The New Adventures of Superman", and "The Batman / Superman Hour". He was the hilariously deadpan narration in Woody Allen's comic romp, "Take the Money and Run" . More recently, he has been heard in ads for Little Caesars Pizza, The NY State Lottery, and Gibraltar Securities. |
Stanley Jones (Lex Luther 1978 - 1979) |
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| In the best episodes of the Superfriends, the bad guys were the Legion of Doom. Lex Luthor, evil genius is the founder of the Legion of Doom as well as it's leader. Other members were Scarecrow, Sinestro (the anti-Green Lantern), Cheetah, Brainiac, Grod (the big hyperintelligent ape), Black Mantis, Toyman, the Riddler, Bizarro, Giganta, Solomon Grundy (the swamp zombie), and Captain Cold. The Legion of Doom hung out at the Hall of Doom, which bore a striking resemblance to Darth Vader's head and rested at the bottom of a swamp. |
Gene Hackman (Lex Luthor 1978 - 1987) |
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Lex Luthor: "... Doesn't it give you a shudder of electricity through you to be in the same room with me?" (Superman: The Movie)
Gene Hackman was cast in the role of Lex Luthor. Hackman had little interest in the role at first. He refused to shave his head for the part. In fact, he initially refused to shave his mustache until Donner pleaded with him to do so. Hackman's Luthor is one of the most controversial aspects of the movie. There is no doubt that Hackman played the villain for laughs. Some view his Luthor as silly and overly cartoony. But if you look closely, it's hard to deny the menace underneath Hackman's wisecracks. He may be a bit of a joke, but he's a joke who almost manages to kill Superman and blow up California. |
Michael Bell (Lex Luthor 1988) |
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Ruby-Spears Enterprises originally produced this series for CBS-TV in 1988, during Superman's fiftieth anniversary. The first one airing on September 17th. The stories combined elements of the movies and the post-Crisis Superman that John Byrne and Marv Wolfman had redefined. In fact, Wolfman was the story editor for the series. The format of the half-hour show consisted of a lead Superman adventure backed up by Superman Family Album, which started with Kal-El's arrival on Earth, and chronicled his eventual growth into Superman. Though critically acclaimed, it only lasted one season.
Michael Bell has worked on more than 200 cartoons including Rugrats, Superfriends, G.I. Joe, The Smurfs, and Opus. |
Sherman Howard (Lex Luthor 1989 - 1992) |
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Lex Luthor: "Cancel the life insurance folks, because in 6 hours you're all gonna be dead! Y'see your uncle Lex has put the finishing touches on a nationwide network of nuclear devices. So big! So powerful! It makes the pentagon warhead look like a cherry-bomb!" (The Adventures of Superboy)
Lex Luthor has always been considered Superboy's arch enemy. Back in Clark's college days, Luthor was a young genius (Scott Wells the first seson) who wanted to see Superboy humiliated. He had many schemes to use against Superboy. Kryptonite, sonic weapons, and various other ideas. But when Superboy accidentally caused Luthor's hair to fall out Lex was pushed over the edge. He now only wanted Superboy's death and he would do anything to get it. Lex aged himself (Sherman Howard the last three sesons) 15 years to take the appearance of a famous inventor, and he used that inventor's weapon, the Superboy gun, to try to kill Superboy. He didn't succeed. But he tried again and again to make Superboy's life miserable from then on. |
John Shea (Lex Luthor 1993 - 1997) |
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Lex Luthor: "Superman has morals. He has ethics, he is unrelentingly good . . . because of that, I will win. (Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman)
Lex Luthor continued to dupe the city, convincing them he was a goody goody in 1993's TV series LOIS AND CLARK: THE NEW ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN. In the Season Finale, Superman finally exposed Luthor's true nature to the world. In 1995, after commiting suicide in the first season Finale, Luthor was brought back to life and lost his hair in the process. He lost his power, his money and took refuge in the sewer. It was here that he would exact his revenge on Metropolis, Lois and Superman. |
Clancy Brown (Lex Luthor 1996 - ?) |
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Lois Lane: "Nice work, Smallville. You're only the second person I've ever seen get under Lex's skin."
Clark Kent: "Who's the first?" Lois Lane: "Me. When I dumped him." (Superman: The Animated Series) Lex Luthor is the undisputed master of Metropolis and lord of all he surveys. Yes, there is a mayor, a governor and a President of the United States, but Luthor is a law unto himself. In his mind there is no good or bad, except what's good and bad for Lex Luthor. If he wants something, he'll have it, either buying it outright, bribing someone to get it for him or systematically removing all obstacles between him and his goal. In a world where the corporate web weaves through everything in ever-spreading strands, Lex Luthor is emperor. Although he started life as a poor kid in poverty-stricken Suicide Slum, young Luthor's dangerously brilliant mind was already working to find a way out. When, at age fourteen, his parents were killed in a mysterious auto accident, their sizable insurance policy (which conveniently named Lex as sole beneficiary) brought Lex his first quarter-million and the chance to be the youngest student to ever enter MIT. The aggressive young inventor amazed all his teachers and graduated three years later with a master's degree in science. The money he soon made from patenting his inventions made him a billionaire by age twenty. Through his late twenties and thirties Luthor's pace continued unabated. Anyone who got in his way was crushed and swept away. To keep up a benevolent front, Luthor donated millions to Metropolis, buying the city hospitals, parks, opera houses and art museums, all named for him. He brought industry and prosperity to Metropolis, eventually employing two-thirds of the city's work force among his many companies. Now in his late forties, Lex Luthor is generally regarded as a hero. Thanks to his battery of lawyers and "pet" city officials, it would be nearly impossible to connect him to any crime. He's careful to keep his hands clean, delegating the dirty work to subordinates. And yet, there's one thing he craves above all else: the death of Superman. Because he cannot control or own Superman, Luthor is obsessed with destroying him. To Lex, Superman represents free will. Inspired by Superman's selflessness and nobility, the people of Metropolis could begin to think for themselves and turn against a self-styled demigod like Luthor. And above all, what really galls Luthor is that he had to buy the city's love and loyalty, and Superman got it for free. |
Michael Rosenbaum (Lex Luthor 2001 - ?) |
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Lex Luthor: "Our friendship will be the stuff of legend." (Smallville.)
Before Michael Rosenbaum was handed the role of a twenty something Lex Luthor on the WB's Superman saga Smallville, producers issued him a stern ultimatum. "They pretty much said, 'If you want to be Lex, you've got to shave your head,'" the chrome-domed actor tells TV Guide Online. "I tried on a bald cap, but I looked like a conehead. So I said, 'Alright. Let's be a man about it. Let's shave it.'" Truth be told, Rosenbaum — who previously worked for the WB as a star of the short-lived comedy Zoe, Duncan, Jack & Jane — would have gotten his bikini line waxed if the plum part called for it. "It took about a week for it to settle in," recalls the 29-year-old New York native of his first days playing one of pop culture's most famous bad guys. "I was on the set and saw a truck that said Luthor Corp., and the license plate on my Porsche said 'Lex Luthor'... I thought 'I'm [expletive] Lex Luthor!' I mean, that's a dream!" Of course, reality soon set in when the up-and-comer remembered that he'd be portraying a character originated on the big screen by two-time Oscar-winner Gene Hackman. However, that initial panic eventually gave way to a cool confidence. "How do I fill his shoes? I don't," he insists. "I just do my own thing." Luckily, aside from their memberships to the Hair Club for Men, Rosenbaum's Lex and Hackman's Lex share little in common. In addition to the obvious age difference, new Lex won't be as one-note rotten as old Lex (think Anakin Skywalker pre-Darth Vader). "We're going to follow Lex on his journey to becoming evil," explains Rosenbaum. "But as of now, he's just an ambitious, charismatic, misunderstood guy." And if Rosenbaum has it his way, you'll be able to add "hysterically funny" to that list. After all, given Smallville's dark tone, someone will have to lighten things up — and who better than the show's resident goofball/prankster. "I think you're going to be surprised by how much personality I bring to him," winks the sprightly thesp. "In a later episode, he might even throw a big party at his house." |
Kevin Spacey (Lex Luthor 2006) |
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Hollywood actor KEVIN SPACEY is confident he can match GENE HACKMAN's performance as megalomaniac LEX LUTHOR when he takes up the comic book role in SUPERMAN RETURNS.
Hackman played the legendary villain in the previous Superman movies, alongside the late CHRISTOPHER REEVE. The AMERICAN BEAUTY star admits his predecessor will be difficult to follow, but hopes to approach Superman's nemesis from a new angle. He says, "This is a very different Lex Luthor in the sense that it's not the same kind of character. This is a more bitter Lex; this is a Lex out for revenge. "It's funny but it's a little darker." |
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Return to Superman
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Superman created by Jerry Seigel & Joe Shuster.
This is an unofficial fan site. It is not sponsored, licensed, or approved by DC Comics. |
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