Superman Costume Comparative Analysis: Warner Bros. Archive, Authenticated vs. “Super Hollywood”

I started asking questions about Superman costumes in the marketplace, attributed to the Christopher Reeve films of the 70s and 80s, over two years ago. Since, I have published over 100 related articles, asking questions and sharing information and insights – all in an attempt to bring clarity to the marketplace and empower collectors and other interested parties with more information with which to make their own assessments and conclusions. This article will hopefully advance that objective significantly, in that I have had an opportunity to compare confirmed authentic costumes from Superman II, III, and IV with examples of those with “Super Hollywood” provenance and lineage.

NOTE: Click on any image in this article for a higher resolution image

Costumes & Sources – “Super Hollywood”

Brandon Alinger and Stephen Lane of the Prop Store of London were kind enough to help me coordinate borrowing costumes from Prop Store as well as other collectors, and allowed me to use their Los Angeles-based facilities to take photos of these pieces and costume components. Special thanks to Prop Store and those hobbyists who shared their costumes with me for the purpose of this analysis.

I brought three “Super Hollywood” costumes with me, all sent to me by collectors for the purpose of analysis. All three of these costumes have been photographed and archived in prior articles.

As noted in past articles, two of the three are nearly identical; the third is made of a different type and color of material.

“Super Hollywood” is the name under which Armando Alvarez has sold Superman costumes and costume parts over many years, frequently with “Super Hollywood” letters of authenticity, signed by “Ana Mungia”. These pieces are often characterized in these letters as “gifts” from the producers of the film, Ilya and Alexander Salkind. Many of these letters of authenticity have been recently archived in another article (see Super Hollywood “Gift” Letter of Authenticity Archive (Armando Alvarez, Ana Mungia)). To date, I have been unable to find any records of costuming and wardrobe credits in the industry by an “Ana Mungia”, nor have I been able to verify the claims of dozens of costumes and costume parts as gifts from the producers of the film.

Costumes & Sources – “Confirmed Authentic”

The of the three confirmed authentic costumes loaned for this analysis were acquired directly from Warner Bros., while the third was sold in a UK auction last year.

Superman II (1980): Superman top worn by Margot Kidder in the “Donner” cut of the film (owned by the Prop Store of London; acquired directly from Warner Bros. in 2007 with WB COA)
Superman III (1983): “Evil” Superman tunic, shorts, belt, tights, and cape (owned by private collector; acquired directly from Warner Bros. in 2008 with WB COA)
Superman IV (1987): Superman tunic, shorts, tights (owned by private collector; acquired from UK auction house Bonhams in 2008)

Note: The Superman II costume was custom made for wear by Margot Kidder as Lois Lane, and as such, analysis is limited to “like” comparisons (i.e. fabric, “S” shield comparisons, color, quality, etc.).

The Objective of This Article

All three of these borrowed original costumes share the very unique traits of confirmed authentic Superman costumes used in the films.

These traits, which have been explored in detail in past articles, will be summarized along with photos and analysis comparing these confirmed authentic examples with the “Super Hollywood” samples.

Because two of the three “Super Hollywood” costumes are nearly identical, one was used exclusively in the photo comparisons – the recently loaned one that was the last featured and sold on eBay by Armando Alvarez via his super38 eBay account in December 2007 (for details see “Super Hollywood” Superman III Costume Case Study: High Resolution Photo Archive & Analysis).

It is also important to note that many photos were taken in a short session, and minor adjustments in lighting and settings can produce varied results in the appearance of these pieces. As an example, the following two photos were taken one or two seconds apart, with one setting adjustment, and as can be seen, it can have an impact on the final image:

While different, both are accurate, depending on the lighting conditions.

None of the photos that appear in this article have been adjusted in Photoshop or any other program, apart from being resized and, in some cases, cropped, with the exception of blurring details on Bermans & Nathans asset tags.

I would also like to note that with this article, it is not my intention to publish a large number of photos – just enough to make select observations and to compare and contrast. There are also specific “tells” and details I am aware of which I will either maintain as confidential or limit in what I will share.

Size

As can be seen below, the “Super Hollywood” example is dramatically oversized compared with two of the authenticated costumes:

By both length and width, the “Super Hollywood” example is huge. More, the “Super Hollywood” costumes analyzed appear unused and unworn, while the confirmed authentic examples are obviously worn and stretched, yet still dwarfed by the “Super Hollywood” examples.

Shorts

As with the tunics, the “Super Hollywood” shorts are huge compared with the confirmed authentic costumes:

Also, the “Super Hollywood” belt loops found on the shorts are much wider than those found on the confirmed authentic costumes (see far right comparison image above). Additionally, the length of the sides of the shorts of the “Super Hollywood” costumes is inconsistent with what is seen on screen in the film, as discussed in previous articles.

Fabric Type & Color

One of the most unique and distinctive attributes of the original Superman costumes is the type of material that was used to construct them.

There have been a number of articles focused on just this element of these costumes:

The Prop Store of London has written a succinct back story on the development of this material, as used in making these suits:

This costume was designed by Yvonne Blake and constructed under the careful supervision of Noel Howard for Bermans and Nathans costumiers of London. It was made from a radical, brand new, specially formulated fabric which had to be flexible and yet not show any sweat stains or any other marks from the rigours of filming. (This was before the invention of “Spandex” of course!) The material was made on a single, now defunct weaving machine in Germany which also produced the judge outfits for Judge Dredd!

The three confirmed authentic costumes examined for this article are all made of this very unique material. The “Super Hollywood” costumes I’ve personally examined are made of an entirely different material:

In comparing the two types of material found in the three “Super Hollywood” samples, both color and type of fabric is significantly different when compared with the three confirmed authentic costumes:

More, the reverse side of the fabric found in the confirmed authentic costumes is very unique and substantially different from the “Super Hollywood” costumes:

As noted in prior articles, the red and yellow “S” shield emblems are made of the same custom material as the “blue” fabric:

Overall, the type of material and colors found with the confirmed authentic costumes is completely different from the “Super Hollywood” costumes. Of note is that the confirmed authentic costumes are consistent from Superman II to III to IV.

Collar

As noted in past articles, the collar/neckline of the confirmed authentic costumes is very distinctive, in that it has some very unique and specific angels, and is not simply “round” as found with the “Super Hollywood” examples:

In addition to the custom neckline, the distance from the top of the “S” shield emblem and the collar is much shorter than the “Super Hollywood” examples, which is consistent with what is seen on screen in the films, as discussed in prior articles.

“S” Emblem Shield

Below is a compilation of the “S” emblem shields found on the chest of the suits. As discussed in prior articles, there are significant differences between the confirmed authentic costumes and the “Super Hollywood” costumes, from the shape to the workmanship to the fabric to the color and quality.

As mentioned earlier, the “S” emblems on the confirmed authentic costumes are made of the same material as the blue fabric with which the costumes are made.

The bottom of the top serif on the “S” is rounded in the confirmed authentic examples and straight/squared off on the “Super Hollywood” examples:

As seen below, the corners of the confirmed authentic examples are gently rounded, while the “Super Hollywood” costumes have sharp angles. More, the quality of the “Super Hollywood” costumes are comparatively poor. Note the loose red threads going into the yellow fabric are highly visible, while no such stitch work can be seen in close inspection of the confirmed authentic examples.

Again, as seen below, the quality of the work done on the confirmed authentic example and the “Super Hollywood” example is striking:

In reviewing the reverse side of the “S” emblem, again, the differences in quality and workmanship is striking:

The issue of stark differences in quality and workmanship can be found in many other areas as well.

Quality, Stitching, & Workmanship

Continuing on the topic of quality and workmanship, another example of a highly visible element of the costume is the sleeve. Though the “Super Hollywood” costumes examined have an overall appearance of not having been worn, poor quality is reflected in areas such as the ends of the sleeves, which have loose threads, and this area of the costume is completely different from the confirmed authentic examples:

Cape Snaps

The confirmed authentic examples feature snaps for attaching capes, while the “Super Hollywood” examples feature no snaps and, upon close inspection, do not appear to have ever had such snaps installed:

Comfort

The confirmed authentic examples include many features which appear to be designed for comfort – features not found in the “Super Hollywood” costumes examined. As an example, the inside of two of the confirmed authentic examples feature padding on the reverse side of the snaps, presumably so as to prevent scratching or irritation from the reverse side of the metal snaps:

Sweat Pads

All three of the confirmed authentic costumes include sweat pads under the armpits to prevent sweat stains from marking the costumes (as seen in the inside out photos below). None of the “Super Hollywood” costumes examined include these, nor is there any evidence that these were ever sewn in:

Socks

One substantive difference between the confirmed authentic costumes and the “Super Hollywood” costumes involves the socks in the tights, or lack thereof.

The confirmed authentic costumes have tights that include specially designed built-in socks made of an entirely different material, again, presumably, for comfort. These are expertly sewn into the tights in a seamless fashion, and are clearly customized to fit the wearer.

The “Super Hollywood” costumes have no such feature, but all is one piece, and the foot area is not sock-like whatsoever.

Asset Tags

As noted in many past articles, these are many issues related to asset tags with regards to Superman costumes trading in the marketplace.

None of the “Super Hollywood” costumes examined feature asset tags by costume maker Bermans & Nathans, though they do have black marker handwriting on the zipper seam inside of the tunics.

All of the confirmed authentic Superman costumes feature a number of Bermans and Nathans asset tags. The compilation below includes examples of the genuine tags found in the confirmed authentic examples, compared with the black marker writing on the “Super Hollywood” examples. The images of the genuine tags have been blurred/obscured to preserve the unique information specific to those authentic costumes.

The confirmed authentic costumes also included other asset tags and other tagging which will not be disclosed in this article, none of which is found in the “Super Hollywood” examples.

More about Bermans & Nathans asset tags:

Superman Costumes in the Marketplace: Bermans & Nathans Wardrobe Tag Analysis

Zippers

The “Super Hollywood” costumes feature a style, color, and type of zipper at the rear of the tunic that is completely different from those found on the confirmed authentic examples:

Cape

There are also a number of significant differences between the “Super Hollywood” cape and the confirmed authentic cape from the “Evil” Superman III costumes recently acquired directly from the Warner Bros. Archives:

As with the “S” shield emblem on the chest of the suit, with the confirmed authentic costumes, the shield found on the cape is also made of the same custom and unique fabric. This is not the case with the “Super Hollywood” cape.

The “S” shield on the confirmed authentic costume is also more rounded at the edges, compared with the “Super Hollywood” piece.

The “Super Hollywood” snaps are of two sizes, while the confirmed authentic examples features two sets of the same size. Placement also differs – on the cape and in space between each other in each example.

The type of fabric these are constructed out of is entirely different, the pattern is different, the weight is substantively different, the type of ties is also different. Also different are the asset tags (and lack thereof).

Overall, in my opinion, based on my “hands on” analysis, the “Super Hollywood” costumes match the confirmed authentic examples only in superficial ways.

In looking at specific details, and comparing side-by-side, they are materially different in very substantive areas, as summarized above.

Outside of physical examination, comparing to both confirmed authentic examples and what is literally seen on screen in the films, the only other area related to authenticity is provenance.

As noted, and outlined in a recent article, there are many “Super Hollywood” letters of authenticity in the marketplace signed by Ana Mungia and Armando Alvarez, which consistently make statements as to costumes and costume components having been gifted to them by the Salkind family (producers of the film). I have found no confirmation of these claims.

This article continues coverage of Superman costumes and costume components offered for sale publicly in the marketplace attributed to use in the Superman films of the 70s-80s starring Christopher Reeve and characterized as “original” and “authentic”. More details can be found under the Market Watch | Superman category.

Jason De Bord