# How does Superman fly
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-superman-fly/705556
**Category:** Cafe Society
**Created:** [November 25, 2014, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-superman-fly/705556 "2014-11-25T03:28:02Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 3
### Author:  [@Dale\_Sams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dale_Sams)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2014, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-superman-fly/705556/41 "2014-11-26T03:34:10Z")
Same way Namor does? I mean…you don’t really think those teeney wings provide lift do you?
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### Author:  [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2014, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-superman-fly/705556/42 "2014-11-26T03:52:47Z")
The problem with telekinesis as an explanation for all of Superman’s powers is that it doesn’t explain all of them: He also has super-senses. The usual explanation for _that_ is that they’re based on clairvoyance, and that the true unifying factor is that all of his powers are psionic.
Except that “he’s psionic” doesn’t explain anything at all. “Psionic” is nothing but a label, and there’s no real reason why “sensing at a distance” should go along with “moving matter” as, in some sense, the “same power”.
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### Author:  [@Sir\_Prize](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_Prize)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2014, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-superman-fly/705556/43 "2014-11-26T04:00:50Z")
Maybe Superman stays still and lets the rest of the universe move relative to him.
The man has super speed. He is just flapping his arms and legs so fast that they look like they are keeping still.
All of Superman’s abilities are normal human abilities dialed up to the nth degree. We can all levitate but it is so weak that we don’t notice it. Same with emitting x-rays form our eyes.
He is projecting superbreath down and back, augmented by other gasses.
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### Author:  [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2014, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-superman-fly/705556/44 "2014-11-26T04:13:41Z")
Superman’s change from leaping top flying doesn’t seem to follow a smooth trajectory (Ha!) in the comics.
In October 1938 he covers “huge distances…with giant leaps”
In June 1939 he leaps from a rooftop holding a racketeer, who tries to stab him in mid-leap. The startled Superman lets go of him, and he falls to his doom, but Superman saves himself by grasping a window ledge.
In November 939 he’s still leaping, not flying.
In Sept/Oct 1940 he has to use his cape to direct his falling through the sky.
In March/April he “streaks through the clouds”, but it’s still described as a “leap”.
In May/June 19451 he seems to hover in the air
In July/Aug 1941 he can change course in midair and perform maneuvers. He’;s clearly not just jumping.
In December 1941 he’s holding a crippled airplane, and certainly seems to be flying.
But in 1942 and 1943 he acts as if he can’t fly – he climbs a skyscraper and swims to a destination, and transports Lois Lane in a rowboat to keep her dry. If he could fly, he’d do so in these cases. But in May 1943 Superman is referred to as someone “who can fly like a bird” (presumably not by flapping his arms)
By October 1943 Superman is unquestionably flying
On the other hand, despite his “leaping tall buildings at a single bound” in the opening, Superman is clearly doing more than simply leaping in the first Superman cartoon, which was released in September of 1941. You can’t say that he isn’t flying by the next carton, _Mechanical Monsters_ from November 1941. He has x-ray vision, too!
So if he was flying in 1940 on the radio, that would seem to be the earliest. I haven’t heard it myself, and it still seems weird to have him flying at first in a non-visual medium, where it wouldn’t be as striking. In any event, the onset of flying seems to take place at different times in different media. YUou get the impression that they were still figuring out what was canon and what wasn’t. People in one medium might do things not sanctioned in another, too. Superman married Lois Lane in the newspaper strip in the 1940s, for instance.
“The Great Superman Book” by Michael L. Fleisher pp. 346-349 (1978)
> **[Superman (1940s animated film series)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superman_(1940s_cartoons))**
>
> The Fleischer Superman cartoons are a series of 17 animated short films released in Technicolor by Paramount Pictures and based upon the comic book character Superman, making them his first animated appearance.
> They were originally produced by Fleischer Studios, which completed the initial short and eight further cartoons in 1941 and 1942. Production was resumed in May 1942 by Famous Studios, a successor company to Fleischer, which produced eight more cartoons in 1942–1943. Superman was the fina...
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### Author:  [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2014, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-superman-fly/705556/45 "2014-11-26T12:33:33Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#):
>
> So if he was flying in 1940 on the radio, that would seem to be the earliest. I haven’t heard it myself, and it still seems weird to have him flying at first in a non-visual medium, where it wouldn’t be as striking.
The [radio shows are public domain.](http://www.oldradioworld.com/shows/Superman.php) The flying sound effect is a wind-tunnel-like whooshing and actually _is_ pretty striking.
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### Author:  [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2014, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-superman-fly/705556/46 "2014-11-26T12:49:40Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#):
>
> The [radio shows are public domain.](http://www.oldradioworld.com/shows/Superman.php) The flying sound effect is a wind-tunnel-like whooshing and actually _is_ pretty striking.
I won’t argue that it isn’t the case; I just find it surprising for reasons I give. But evidently the folks responsible for the radio show (I’ve looked, and can’t find out who wrote the episodes) went off on their own extrapolating on Superman’s powers, which the other media wouldn’t take as canon until later. Possibly, if they were earlier, they pushed Superman in that direction.
Leaping heroes(and villains) go back much farther than Superman. I mentioned John Carter earlier, but Spring-Heeled Jack was much earlier. An urban legend by 1837, he eventually became a penny-dreadful character.
> **[Spring-heeled Jack](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spring-heeled_Jack)**
>
> Spring-heeled Jack is an entity in English folklore of the Victorian era. The first claimed sighting of Spring-heeled Jack was in 1837. Later sightings were reported all over the United Kingdom and were especially prevalent in suburban London, the Midlands and Scotland.
> There are many theories about the nature and identity of Spring-heeled Jack. This urban legend was very popular in its time, due to the tales of his bizarre appearance and ability to make extraordinary leaps, to the point t...
But here’s a question – before Superman did any such characters even _FLY_? Or is Superman the first?
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### Author:  [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2014, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-superman-fly/705556/47 "2014-11-26T12:53:06Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#):
>
> But here’s a question – before Superman did any such characters even _FLY_? Or is Superman the first?
Mandrake the Magician could hover in mid-air, floating well above the ground.
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### Author:  [@tonyfop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tonyfop)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2014, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-superman-fly/705556/48 "2014-11-26T13:00:16Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#):
>
> …
>
> In June 1939 he leaps from a rooftop holding a racketeer, who tries to stab him in mid-leap. The startled Superman lets go of him, and he falls to his doom, but Superman saves himself by grasping a window ledge.
>
> …
>
> By October 1943 Superman is unquestionably flying
>
> …
He wasn’t at full strength yet, he was still storing up solar energy?
But in all seriousness, I thought that they explained it when they tried to replace him after he died. I have a compilation edition of “The Death of Superman” at home, but IIRC, they said that there was a field that he generated that allowed him to fly. He would extend that field around things to lift them. The clone Superboy they created had an imperfect version of the field, so he didn’t have all of the powers.
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### Author:  [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2014, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-superman-fly/705556/49 "2014-11-26T13:09:39Z")
> [@Slade](#):
>
> If Superman’s so worried about killing people (as he says in that clip), then he might want to reconsider casually punching indestructible alien super-beings through three successive skyscrapers.
X-ray vision.
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### Author:  [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2014, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-superman-fly/705556/50 "2014-11-26T13:12:03Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#):
>
> Mandrake the Magician could hover in mid-air, floating well above the ground.
A possibility. Mandrake started in 1934, and apparently originally deceived people hypnotically, although he later had telekinetic powers. :
> [@](#):
>
> Mandrake is a magician whose work is based on an unusually fast hypnotic technique. As noted in captions, when Mandrake “gestures hypnotically”, his subjects see illusions, and Mandrake has used this technique against a variety of villains including gangsters, mad scientists, extraterrestrials, and characters from other dimensions. Mandrake also possesses psychic and telekinetic powers, can turn invisible, shapeshift, and teleport periodically. His hat, cloak and wand, passed down from his father Theron, possess great magical properties which in time Mandrake learns how to use.
>
> Mandrake and the Phantom Magician in Mel Graff’s The Adventures of Patsy are regarded by comics historians as the first superheroes of comics. Comics historian Don Markstein writes, “Depending on how you define the term, Patsy’s recurring rescuer, The Phantom Magician, may have been the first superhero in comics… Some people say Mandrake the Magician, who started in 1934, was comics’ first superhero.”[1][2][3]
> **[Mandrake the Magician](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandrake_the_Magician)**
>
> Mandrake the Magician is a syndicated newspaper comic strip, created by Lee Falk before he created The Phantom. Mandrake began publication on June 11, 1934. Phil Davis soon took over as the strip's illustrator, while Falk continued to script. The strip was distributed by King Features Syndicate.
> Mandrake, along with the Phantom Magician in Mel Graff's The Adventures of Patsy, is regarded as the first superhero of comics by comics historians such as Don Markstein, who writes, "Some people say ...
The operative question – was he hovering before Superman was doing it?
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### Author:  [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2014, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-superman-fly/705556/51 "2014-11-26T13:14:37Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#):
>
> A possibility. Mandrake started in 1934, and apparently originally deceived people hypnotically, although he later had telekinetic powers. :
>
> [Mandrake the Magician - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandrake_the_Magician)
> The operative question – was he hovering before Superman was doing it?
[Apparently.](http://scans-daily.dreamwidth.org/484990.html)
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### Author:  [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2014, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-superman-fly/705556/52 "2014-11-26T13:27:34Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#):
>
> [Apparently.](http://scans-daily.dreamwidth.org/484990.html)
Nifty!
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### Author:  [@CaptMurdock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaptMurdock)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2014, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-superman-fly/705556/53 "2014-11-26T17:26:43Z")
[The Sub-Mariner](http://marvel.wikia.com/Namor_McKenzie_%28Earth-616%29) could definitely fly, starting with his first appearance in 1939.
(although how _he_ flies is almost as much a mystery as Superman. Those little wings on his ankles couldn’t possibly produce enough lift… :rolleyes: Sorry, forgot we were discussing comic books for a second.)
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### Author:  [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2014, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-superman-fly/705556/54 "2014-11-26T17:35:07Z")
Hawkman was flying while Superman was still leaping – and with considerably bigger wings than the Sub-Mariner has, but you’d still better suspend that disbelief.
Oh, and Superman’s co-creators gave one of their _other_ caped crimefighters a belt that granted him the power of flight well before ACTION #1 hit the stands.
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### Author:  [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2014, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-superman-fly/705556/55 "2014-11-26T17:41:39Z")
Green Lantern was flying in his first appearance, back in 1940.
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### Author:  [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2014, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-superman-fly/705556/56 "2014-11-26T17:58:57Z")
Superman is a fictitious character, doesn’t exist and doesn’t fly. The better question is how does Michael Jordan fly? (First class). But seriously, when he was a player, how did he do that?
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### Author:  [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2014, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-superman-fly/705556/57 "2014-11-26T18:01:40Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#):
>
> [Apparently.](http://scans-daily.dreamwidth.org/484990.html)
WTF? He halts himself in mid-air after falling 15,000 feet - but Lothar has to gather a pile of snow for him to fall softly into? That’s \*easier \*to believe?
Superman is definitely flying in the 1942 novel _The Adventures of Superman_, by George Lowther. That was the first mention of Jor-El and Lara among other inventions.
We can’t appreciate how stunning the arrival of Superman was. Comics books were nothing at all in 1938 before Action Comics 1. By 1939 he had a second comic book, a first, one named after himself. There was a daily comic strip - much more prestigious - and a Sunday color comic strip, even more prestigious in a day when many strips were one or the other but not both. The radio show debuted in 1940. The Max Fleischer cartoons started in 1941, the first superhero cartoons, and got an Oscar nomination. And then a novel (or novelization) in 1942, also the first ever. That’s Beatles-level domination of the media and culture.
That’s why I find it weird these days when people talk about Batman being more famous than Superman. Sure, his latest movies have been better, but Superman is etched into worldwide culture in a way that Batman never can be.
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### Author:  [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2014, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-superman-fly/705556/58 "2014-11-26T18:58:23Z")
Exapno:
Good summing up, and excellent points. As Steranko put it in his History of Comic Books, Superman was the Superstar.
Back to my earlier question. Did anyone else fly before Superman? I mean, Mandrake may have hovered, but did anyone else dynamically fly. You know – going at high speed, poised-with-hands-outstretched-in-front-of-you fly?
I could easily see Superman being first in this, too.
Witches and ghosts don’t count
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### Author:  [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2014, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-superman-fly/705556/59 "2014-11-26T19:18:13Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#):
>
> Back to my earlier question. Did anyone else fly before Superman? I mean, Mandrake may have hovered, but did anyone else dynamically fly. You know – going at high speed, poised-with-hands-outstretched-in-front-of-you fly?
>
> I could easily see Superman being first in this, too.
>
> Witches and ghosts don’t count
As was said, the Sub-Mariner, and Hawkman, and Green Lantern all did.
IIRC, Captain Marvel also beat Superman to it.
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### Author:  [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)
#### Post date: [November 26, 2014, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-superman-fly/705556/60 "2014-11-26T19:24:25Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#):
>
> As was said, the Sub-Mariner, and Hawkman, and Green Lantern all did.
>
> IIRC, Captain Marvel also beat Superman to it.
Sorry – all those guys are post-Superman
Sub-Mariner – 1939
Hawkman – 1940
Green Lantern – 1940
Captain Marvel – 1940
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