PBS has declared the evening of October 15, 2013, to be Superheroes Night. The publicly supported station will air a three hour Michael Kantor documentary entitled “Superheroes: A Never-ending Battle.” The program will be narrated and hosted by Liev Schreiber (neato!), and just take a look at this amazing list of interview teases:
Stan Lee; actors Adam West (TV’s “Batman”) and Lynda Carter (“Wonder Woman”); Geoff Johns (chief creative officer, DC Comics), Jeph Loeb (head of television for Marvel Entertainment); Pulitzer Prize-winning author Michael Chabon (The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay) and cartoonist/author Jules Feiffer (the long-running strip “Feiffer”), as well as appearances by the late comic book icons Joe Simon (co-creator of Captain America) and Jerry Robinson (who helped create the Joker).
The three hour series will examine the dawn of comics and the 75 year legacy these creators and characters have left. Part one focuses on “Truth, Justice and the American Way” and will feature titles and creators from 1938 – 1958. Part two “Great Power, Great Responsibility,” will recount 1959 – 1977, and the finale, “A Hero Can Be Anyone,” covers 1978 to the present. The program was initally planned to air on three separate evenings but the network has decided to give us one amazing three hour block instead.
“SUPERHEROES: A NEVER-ENDING BATTLE is one of the most comprehensive surveys of the vibrant comic book industry ever created; it explores cultural histories in an entertaining and educational way — just as PBS viewers have come to expect,” said Donald Thoms, Vice President, Programming and Talent Management for PBS.
Expect a thorough and educational examination of the genre; PBS will review the art and fun, but also the history, cultural impact, and persecution of our beloved funnybooks.
PBS just keeps rollin’ out the hits, y’all! What a great network to cover such wide and varied topics without the tragic manipulation that so many network reality programs dump all over us. I’m excited to see such a huge part of my life examined by a capable creative team. And I really encourage you to click through to the press announcement to check out other participants (Lynda Carter! The late Carmine Infantino!), and please tune in on October 15, and support your local station as much as you can!