"They can be a great people, Kal-El, if they wish to be. They only lack the light to show the way. For this reason above all, their capacity for good, I have sent them you - my only son."

Jor-El (Superman's father)

Personal Insights: This is a tremendous 16 fields cel, beautifully framed and matted. The colors are vivid and jump to life, and the scene is one of the best that could be picked. I have watched over and over again the Fleischer cartoons since I bought this cel, and I was amazed at the fluidity of the motion. His cartoon are a joy to watch, and are equal or even are higher quality than cartoon produced today. Unfortuantlly, not many cels are left from Fleischer's efforts, actually I only found one, and it was in the upper $20,000.

General Information: Limited Edition Cel titled "Superman Saves Lois"". Edition size: 500 with 50 artist proofs, and 10 hors de commerce, this cel numbered 62. This limited edition animation cel has been authorized by DC Comics & Warner Brothers Consumer Products with the co-operation of Fleischer Studios, Inc. represented by King Feature Syndicate. It is produced under license by The Tooniversal Company, Inc. and distributed by Warner Brothers Studio Stores and approved distributors.

Limited Edition Cel Information: This cel features the characters of Superman and Lois Lane as they appear in the episode "Mechanical Monsters" produced by the Fleischer Studios in 1941. Superman is shown shielding Lois Lane from molten metal. The drawing on which the cel is based was re-created using an actual individual frame from the film.
This cel is hand-inked and hand painted and bears the official seals of DC Comics and Fleischer Studios, Inc. attesting to its authenticity.
This cel is signed by Myron Waldman and mounted against a lithographic background. Mr. Waldman was a chief animator at the Fleischer Studios and enjoyed a long and distinguished career animation such characters as Betty Boop, Popeye and some of the best cartoons in the Superman series. This limited edition cel was created using the same methods that are used in preparing actual production cels.

Series Information: The Superman cartoons produced by Paramount Pictures and Fleischer Studios, and Famous Studios (last eight cartoons). Originally 17 cartoons were released in movie theaters from 1941-1943. The first cartoon cost $50,000 while the remaining were budgeted at $30,000 each. In 1943, Warner Bros. released a Bugs Bunny cartoon Super Rabbit as a parody of the Fleischer series.
Producers: Max Fleischer, Dave Fleischer
Directors: Dave Fleischer, I. Sparber, Dan Gordon, Seymour. Kneitel
Character Design: Joe Shuster
Music Arrangement: Sammy Timberg
Cast:
Superman/Clark Kent... Clayton 'Bud' Collyer
Lois Lane ... Joan Alexander
Perry White ... Jackson Beck

Episode Information: A mad scientist has used to create a fleet of mechanical monsters, Lois has stumbled upon his plan, and got caught (as usual) between Superman and his enemy.

About Max Fleischer: Max Fleischer is, or actually was, an unsung hero of the animation industry. His innovative and unique cartoons during 1930's had sparkle, humor, and cutting edge, innovative technology. A smart, witted individual, Mr. Fleischer was not a good promoter of businessman, hence his studio went bankrupt, but not before he made important contributions, both mechanically, and artistically to the cartoon industry.

Fleischer Studios & The Superman Cartoons:"Having enjoyed only moderate success with their many and varied short - subject endeavors, the Fleischers had their next series foisted on them by Paramount. The popularity of Superman, who had been created just a few years earlier by Jerry Siegel and Joe Schuster in Action Comics. The story goes that a Paramount representative proposed a Superman cartoon series to the Fleischers, and Dave Fleischer (Max's brother) replied that it would be virtually impossible to do. With the requirements of realistic animation and special effects, the cost of doing such a series would be prohibitive. When Paramount asked how much, Dave decided to quote such a high price that the studio would immediately say no. he said $100,000 - four times the cost of an average cartoon. Surprisingly, Paramount said yes - and the Fleischers were obliged to produce a Superman series.
The First cartoon appeared in September 1941, backed by a tremendous Paramount promotional campaign, including coming-attractions trailers, unheard of for a cartoon short. The Fleischers didn't disappoint anyone. Superman, as the first episode was titled, delivered exactly what the customers wanted to see: an exciting, dramatic, adventure with plenty of action and special effects."
"A tremendous amount of preparation went into the production of each Superman short. 'They were very carefully laid out ahead of time, because the cost was so tremendous,' says Waldman. 'The stories were very complete. Then we had to keep that tempo going, and pick it up for the climax. Each scene had to have a dramatic look about it. That required quite a bit of thought. There were many more scene cuts [than usual]. And you had modeling, too, on the character ... that meant somebody had to go back [and do it]. you'd indicate it on one or two drawings and then they would go back and put in all the modeling. you'd also indicate on your drawings where the light was coming from; all that was taken into consideration. In the settings, you'll notice, there's a lot of foreground stuff, to get different depths of perspective. We got an extra dimension that we didn't worry about too much in the other cartoons.'
Pencil tests were made on these productions, a rare luxury for Fleischer shorts, and much of the elaborate gimmickry was handled by an effects department the studio had established during production of Gulliver. Airbrush work, special paints and, double exposures were used to create some of the dazzling light rays and similar effects in the Superman series.
These cartoons are without question the most cinematically sophisticated the studio ever produced. The camera angles are indeed dramatic, and thoughtfully chosen. Each shot flows into the next, with a variety of pans, dissolves, and other linking devices. Effective use is made of shadows in practically every scene, and such qualities as speed, weight, and depth are vividly realized.
The biggest problems in conceiving the Superman series was striking a balance between animated realism and cartoon fantasy. In the first short, action scenes are well handled, and rotoscoping gives even some casual sequences at the Daily Planet a remarkably realistic look.But then Lois Lane takes off in an airplane to visit the hideout of a mad scientist, and the plane soars into space like a rubbery bird. The animators weren't accustomed yet to treating an entire cartoon in realistic fashion. In fact, the scientist has a 'comic relief' falcon that mimics his every move. But these flaws are overridden for the most part by the film's excellent visual effects, especially at the point when Superman repels the scientist's destruction ray by flying toward it and punching each lightning bolt in to oblivion.
Subsequent entries in the series hammered out a more consistent format, emphasizing larger than life villains, mechanical monsters, and futuristic equipment, all well suited to a stylized and atmospheric approach. These films are among the best fantasy cartoons ever produced and feature a gallery of spectacular and memorable highlights:the camera taking Superman's point of view as he leaps in to the air in The Bulleteers; the Man of Steel grabbing both ends of a disconnected wire and letting a surge of power flow through his body in The Magnetic Telescope; using his X-ray vision in Mechanical Monsters to find Lois trapped inside a robot; or rescuing a passenger train as it plummets off a trestle into a rocky canyon below in The Billion Dollar Limited."

-exert from "Of Mice and Magic" by Leonard Maltin