Fortress of Solitude

The Fortress of Solitude is the place of solace and occasional headquarters for Superman in DC Comics. Its predecessor, Superman's "Secret Citadel", first appeared in Superman #17, where it was said to be built into a mountain on the outskirts of Metropolis. By issue #58 (May–June 1949) it is referred to as the Fortress of Solitude, seems at a glance to be a freestanding castle, and is said to be located in a "polar waste." However, when the Fortress finally reappears in 1958 and for the first time takes center stage in a story ("The Super-Key to Fort Superman", Action Comics #241), it was once again an underground complex in a mountainous cliffside.

Traditionally, this Fortress of Solitude is located in the Arctic, though more recent versions of the Superman comics have placed the Fortress in other locations, including the Antarctic, the Andes, and the Amazon rainforest. The general public in Superman's world is either unaware or at best only vaguely aware of the existence of the Fortress, with its location kept secret from all but Superman's closest friends and allies (such as Lois Lane and Batman). A trademark of the Fortress is that it contains a memorial statue of Jor-El and Lara, Superman's Kryptonian parents, holding a large globe of Krypton. Although Superman has living quarters at the Fortress, his main residence is still Clark Kent's apartment in Metropolis. The arctic Fortress of Solitude concept was first created for pulp hero Doc Savage during the 1930s.

Superman II

Superman II is a 1980 British-American superhero film directed by Richard Lester, based on the DC Comics character Superman. It is a sequel to the 1978 film Superman: The Movie and stars Gene Hackman, Christopher Reeve, Terence Stamp, Ned Beatty, Sarah Douglas, Margot Kidder, and Jack O'Halloran. The film was released in Australia and mainland Europe on December 4, 1980, and in other countries throughout 1981. Selected premiere engagements of Superman II were presented in Megasound, a high-impact surround sound system similar to Sensurround.

Superman II is well known for its controversial production. The original director Richard Donner had completed, by his estimation, roughly 75% of the movie in 1977 before being taken off the project. Many of the scenes were shot by second director Richard Lester, who had been an uncredited producer on the first film. However, in order to receive full director's credit, Lester had to shoot up to 51% of the film, which included refilming several sequences originally filmed by Donner. According to statements made by Donner, roughly 25% of the theatrical cut of Superman II contains footage he shot, including all of Gene Hackman's scenes. In 2006, a re-cut of the film was released titled Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut, restoring as much of Donner's original conception as possible including deleted footage of Marlon Brando as Jor-El.

Superman

Superman is a fictional superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster in 1933; later, in 1938, the character was sold to Detective Comics, Inc. (later DC Comics). Superman first appeared in Action Comics #1 (June 1938) and subsequently appeared in various radio serials, newspaper strips, television programs, films, and video games. With this success, Superman helped to create the superhero genre and establish its primacy within the American comic book.

Superman's appearance is distinctive and iconic; he usually wears a blue costume, red cape, and stylized red-and-yellow "S" shield on his chest. This shield is used in a myriad of media to symbolize the character. The origin story of Superman relates that he was born Kal-El on the planet Krypton, before being rocketed to Earth as an infant by his scientist father Jor-El, moments before Krypton's destruction. Discovered and adopted by a Kansas farmer and his wife, the child is raised as Clark Kent and imbued with a strong moral compass. Very early on he started to display various superhuman abilities, which, upon reaching maturity, he resolved to use for the benefit of humanity through a secret "Superman" identity. Superman resides and operates in the fictional American city of Metropolis. As Clark Kent, he is a journalist for the Daily Planet, a Metropolis newspaper. Superman's love interest is generally Lois Lane, and his archenemy is supervillain Lex Luthor. He is typically a member of the Justice League and close ally of Batman and Wonder Woman. Like other characters in the DC Universe, several alternate versions of Superman have been produced.

Richard Donner

Richard Donner (born April 24, 1930) is an American film director and producer. After directing the horror film The Omen (1976), Donner became famous for directing the first modern superhero film, Superman (1978), starring Christopher Reeve.

Donner later went on to direct such films as The Goonies (1985) and Scrooged (1988), while reinvigorating the buddy film genre with Lethal Weapon (1987) and its sequels. He and his wife, producer Lauren Shuler Donner, own the production company The Donners' Company, which is most well known for producing the X-Men film series. In 2000, he received the President's Award from the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films. Film historian Michael Barson writes that Donner is "one of Hollywood's most reliable makers of action blockbusters".

Early years

Donner was born Richard Donald Schwartzberg in the Bronx to Jewish parents, Hattie and Fred Schwartzberg. His father owned a small furniture manufacturing business. He has a sister, Joan. Donner started his career with hopes of acting but quickly moved into directing commercials and making business films. He moved into television in the late 1950s, directing some episodes of the Steve McQueen western serial Wanted: Dead or Alive and the Chuck Connors western The Rifleman.

The Movie

"The Movie" is the 54th episode of the sitcom Seinfeld. It is the 14th episode of the fourth season, and first aired on January 6, 1993.

Plot

The episode begins with Jerry ranting in a stand-up comedy monologue about age gaps in employment:

A night filled with miscommunication begins when Jerry has two stand-up acts scheduled for the same night. At first, the Improv manager, Kernis (played by actor Tom La Grua), tells Jerry that the show has been delayed. Jerry is upset that he must lose his on-stage slot; he is more upset when, after telling Kernis, "You don't understand. I got this all timed out. I got another spot across town at 9:50, I'm not gonna be able to make it!" - he then learns, when he shows up at the other comedy stage later, that his spot was for 9:15, not 9:50.

Adding to Jerry's distress is the fact that a hopeful comedian, Buckles (Barry Diamond), "hangs around hoping that somebody drops out." Buckles always bores and pesters Jerry.

Jerry tells Kernis that he'll agree to lose his moment at the microphone, saying, "I'm supposed to meet my friends to see this [fictional] movie, CheckMate, at 10:30."