Superman

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Clark Kent

Clark Joseph Kent is the civilian secret identity of Superman. (Note that some sources claim that his middle-name is in fact "Jerome," in honor of creator Jerry Siegel.) Though never receiving the same popular attention as the superheroic alter ego, the personality, idea, and name of Clark Kent have entered into popular culture in their own right, becoming synonymous with secret identities and fronts for ulterior motives and activities.

Related Topics:
Secret identity - Superman - Superhero - Alter ego - Popular culture

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As first written in the earliest Superman comics, Clark Kent's primary purpose was to fulfill the basic dramatic concept that a costumed hero cannot operate as a costumed hero twenty-four hours a day, or throughout the entirety of a comic book series. As such, Kent acted as little more than a front for Superman's activities. Although his name and history were taken from his early life with his adoptive Earth parents, everything about Kent was staged for the benefit of his alternate identity — he acquired a job as a reporter for the Daily Planet for the convenience of receiving late-breaking news before the general public, providing an excuse for being present at crime scenes and having an occupation where his whereabouts do not have to be strictly accounted for as long as he makes his story deadlines.

Related Topics:
Drama - Earth - Daily Planet

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However, in order to draw attention away from the correlation between Kent and Superman, Clark Kent adopted a largely passive and introverted personality, applying conservative mannerisms, a higher-pitched voice, and a slight slouch. This personality is typically described as "mild-mannered," perhaps most famously by the opening narration of Max Fleischer's Superman animated theatrical shorts. These traits extended into Kent's wardrobe, typically consisting of a blue business suit, a red necktie, black-rimmed glasses, and combed-back hair.

Related Topics:
Max Fleischer - ''Superman'' animated theatrical shorts

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Kent wears his Superman costume underneath his street clothes, which lends itself to easy transferrence between the two personalities. However, the purpose of this convention outside of fiction is largely dramatic, allowing Kent to rip open his shirt and reveal the familiar "S" insignia when called into action. When in action, Superman usually stores his Clark Kent clothing inside a secret pouch hidden inside of his cape, though some stories have shown him leaving his clothes in some covert location for later retrieval.

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In the wake of John Byrne's The Man of Steel reboot of Superman continuity, many traditional aspects of Clark Kent were dropped in favor of a more aggressive personality; Kent became a respected journalist with a more dedicated social life.

Related Topics:
John Byrne - The Man of Steel - Continuity

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In Metropolis, Superman (as Clark Kent) works as a reporter at the Planet, "a great metropolitan newspaper" which allows him to keep track of ongoing events where he might be of help. Largely working on his own, his identity is easily kept secret. Fellow reporter Lois Lane became the object of Clark's/Superman's romantic affection. Lois's affection for Superman and her rejection of Clark's clumsy advances have been a recurring theme in Superman comics, television, and movies.

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Various reasons over the decades have been offered for why people haven't suspected Superman and Clark Kent of being one and the same. In the 1970s, one such suggestion was that the lenses of Clark Kent's glasses (made of Kryptonian materials) constantly amplified a low-level super-hypnosis power, thereby creating the illusion of others viewing Clark Kent as a weak and frailer being; however, this reason was abandoned almost as quickly as it was introduced, since it had various flaws (such as stories where Batman would disguise himself as Clark Kent, among others). http://progressiveruin.com/archives/2004_02_29_archive.html.

Related Topics:
1970s - Hypnosis - Batman

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Another reason given in the late 1980s was that Superman would vibrate his face slightly so that photographs would only show his features as a blur, thus preventing the danger of photographs of both identities being reliably compared. However, more recent stories showing Superman being photographed have tended to ignore this factor.

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The main means of Superman protecting his secret identity has usually been the physical distinctions between Superman and Clark Kent: Clark Kent is usually shown as wearing conservative clothing, slightly slouching, and speaking in a higher-pitched voice, along with adopting more introverted mannerisms than his heroic alter-ego. Traditionally, Lois Lane and others would often suspect Superman of truly being Clark Kent (and vice-versa), though more recent comics often feature the general public assuming that Superman (because he doesn't wear a mask, suggesting he has nothing to hide) doesn't have a secret identity; in Superman (2nd series) #2 (1987), for example, Lex Luthor was once told the truth, but he dismissed the idea because he could not believe that someone so powerful would want another identity. Also in the modern stories, Lois Lane never suspected the dual identity, beyond one time when she visited the Kent farm, where she was told that Superman was "brought up" alongside Clark like a brother.

Related Topics:
Mask - 1987

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Some fans have noted that the disguise is effective presuming Clark is as skilled an actor as Christopher Reeve. The actor's portrayal of Clark in the feature film series was praised for making the disguise's effectiveness credible to audiences.

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When crises arise, Clark quickly changes into Superman. In the Fleischer animated series of theatrical cartoons, he often ducked into a telephone booth to make the transformation. In the comic books he rarely does so, favoring the Daily Planet's storeroom. As a dramatic plot device, Clark often has to quickly improvise in order to find a way to change unnoticed. For example in the first Christopher Reeve Superman movie, Kent is comically unable to use a newer, open-kiosk pay phone, so he enters a revolving door and changes clothes while spinning within it at superspeed. Thus made invisible, he appeared to enter the building as Kent and exit seconds later as Superman.

Related Topics:
Telephone booth - Plot device - Christopher Reeve

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Kent Family History

In the current Superman continuity, it was revealed that the Kent family in the 19th century were noted abolitionists who assisted the personnel of the Underground Railroad, like Harriet Tubman. The family moved to the territory of Kansas during the infamous Bleeding Kansas period to promote the cause of creating a free state by running a newspaper for the region.

Related Topics:
Continuity - 19th century - Abolitionist - Underground Railroad - Harriet Tubman - Territory - Kansas - Bleeding Kansas

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Unfortunately, the family patriarch was murdered by Border Ruffians who wanted to silence him. Furthermore, the sons, Nathaniel and Jeb, argued and had a parting of the ways so deep about slavery that they found themselves on opposing sides of the American Civil War with Jeb fighting with the notorious Confederate guerrilla unit lead by William Quantrill. Nathaniel fought for the North and married a half-Native American woman who gave him a special traditional spiritual symbol that was apparently a forerunner and inspiration for Superman's chest symbol.

Related Topics:
Murdered - Border Ruffian - American Civil War - Confederate - Guerrilla - William Quantrill

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After the war, Nathaniel became a sheriff in Smallville, while Jeb became the leader of a group of bandits. Eventually, Jeb discovered he had a son out of wedlock years ago, and allowed him to join his gang. Unfortunately, his son turned out to be a murderous sociopath and Jeb approached his estranged brother to arrange a trap to stop him.

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Regrettably, in springing the trap, the son mortally wounded his father before being killed himself and Jeb fully reconciled with Nate before dying. Nate remained in Smallville and there the Kents have stayed for generations, including Jonathan and Martha Kent, Superman's adoptive parents.

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