Repairing a House With Superman Ties
In comic books, Superman was born on Krypton and rocketed to Earth on the eve of his planet’s destruction. In real life, the Man of Steel was born more than 70 years ago in Cleveland, a creation of the writer Jerry Siegel and the artist Joe Shuster.
But even Superman may not have been able to save the childhood home of Mr. Siegel, who died in 1996. The house, at 10622 Kimberley Avenue in the Glenville neighborhood of Cleveland, has fallen into disrepair, and an online charity auction begins Tuesday to raise money to restore its exterior.
Like Superman’s never-ending battle against evil, it has been a bumpy road to get to this point.
“I don’t know how many times I’ve written that we really ought to do something here in Cleveland to honor Superman,” said Michael Sangiacomo, a reporter who writes a column about comic books for The Plain Dealer. “It seemed to be snakebit. Whenever an effort would start, something would mess it up.”
Enter the novelist Brad Meltzer. At a book signing two years ago, Mr. Meltzer had a chance encounter with Mr. Siegel’s niece Marlene Goodman, who mentioned that Mr. Siegel’s father, Mitchell, died of a heart attack during a robbery in which he was held at gunpoint.
For a comic book fan like Mr. Meltzer, who has written “Green Arrow” and “Justice League of America” for DC Comics, the information put a new spin on the origin of Superman, whose adventures were first published in 1938 after a few years of failed pitches by his creators.
“America did not get Superman because it’s the greatest country on earth,” he said. “It got Superman because a little boy lost his father.”
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But even Superman may not have been able to save the childhood home of Mr. Siegel, who died in 1996. The house, at 10622 Kimberley Avenue in the Glenville neighborhood of Cleveland, has fallen into disrepair, and an online charity auction begins Tuesday to raise money to restore its exterior.
Like Superman’s never-ending battle against evil, it has been a bumpy road to get to this point.
“I don’t know how many times I’ve written that we really ought to do something here in Cleveland to honor Superman,” said Michael Sangiacomo, a reporter who writes a column about comic books for The Plain Dealer. “It seemed to be snakebit. Whenever an effort would start, something would mess it up.”
Enter the novelist Brad Meltzer. At a book signing two years ago, Mr. Meltzer had a chance encounter with Mr. Siegel’s niece Marlene Goodman, who mentioned that Mr. Siegel’s father, Mitchell, died of a heart attack during a robbery in which he was held at gunpoint.
For a comic book fan like Mr. Meltzer, who has written “Green Arrow” and “Justice League of America” for DC Comics, the information put a new spin on the origin of Superman, whose adventures were first published in 1938 after a few years of failed pitches by his creators.
“America did not get Superman because it’s the greatest country on earth,” he said. “It got Superman because a little boy lost his father.”