The Encyclopedia of Superheroes on Film and Television

“A superhero is a character of extraordinary capabilities or powers who has a propensity to fight evil in all its forms, whether criminal, terrorist or demonic” (p. 6). For the purposes of this work, author John Kenneth Muir defines a superhero in the aforementioned manner. This encyclopedia is constructed in a straightforward format. Part I is an abbreviated history of film and television superheroes from 1938 to 2002, broken down by various eras of the superhero: Superheroes with Straight Faces (1938‐1957), Then There Was Camp: The Age of Batman (1966‐1975), The Age of Americana: Nostalgia Reigns Supreme (1973‐1985), The Dark...