A Look Back at the 46th Annual Superman Celebration

Posted on June 13, 2024 by Chris Brockow

The 46th Annual Superman Celebration in Metropolis, IL was a very somber with extremely nice and comfortable weather. The only bad weather was on Sunday which saw numerous rounds of showers throughout the day only day it rained.

The unofficial start to the Celebration kicked off on Thursday night with the annual Super Friends Bowling at Super Bowl. Although my wife Helen and I were unable to attend, we heard from several friends that there was a pleasant crowd for the event.

Friday morning started with the official opening ceremony for the 46th Annual Superman Celebration at 9:00am and featured a welcome speech from Mayor Don Canada followed by Metropolis' very own Superman himself, Josh Boultinghouse, kicking off the start of three days of fun filled activities.

The line-up of celebrity guests this year was wonderful and featured Brandon Routh (Superman/Clark Kent - "Superman Returns"). Elizabeth 'Bitsie' Tulloch (Lois Lane - "Superman & Lois"), Kristin Kreuk (Lana Lang - "Smallville"), and Mark Pillow (Nuclear Man - ("Superman IV: The Quest for Peace"). Collectibles and novelties store, Hidden Gems (which is operated by Super Museum co-curators Morgan & Adam Siebert) played host to special guests Beverly Washburn and Greg Moffit who starred in respective episodes of the "Adventures of Superman" television series. Helen and I had the privilege of helping them both get set up at their tables and assisting with anything they needed for their autograph sessions.

Next up was the 14th Annual Superman Super Site Meet & Greet at Fat Edd's Roadhouse restaurant. We helped co-hosts Neil and Jennifer Cole with the event which is looked forward to each year and very popular with the crowd. Various donated door prizes featuring books, CD's, and collectibles were given away during the hour-long event and a great time was had by all. As an added bonus, Greg Moffett stopped by at the end to see what it was all about.

Following the Meet & Greet, we went to see Mark Pillow who was making a return trip to the Superman Celebration for the first time since 2011. Mark along with Kristin Kreuk were set up to meet fans in Artists Alley/Writers Way alongside several featured artists and writers including Karl Kesel, Todd Aaron Smith, Zach Howard, and Ed Gross just to name a few.

Pillow would take to the main tent stage shortly after our visit for his Q&A session which was moderated by FOX 2 news anchor and iHeart Media radio host, Jay Towers. Kreuk's Q&A session would follow and was moderated by long time Celebration attendee and avid Superman collector, Zach Curtis.

After another stop by Hidden Gems to assist Beverly and Greg with their autograph session and photos with fans, it was time for Superman Jeopardy which is a very popular trivia event hosted three times during the celebration by the Rinaldi Family. Everyone that comes to Metropolis for the Superman Celebration looks forward to this event and the Rinaldis always meet everyone's expectations.

Our show, Stump the Superman Expert was right after Superman Jeopardy which provided a a fun evening of Superman Trivia. What was nice about Stump the Superman Expert was that Beverly, Greg and his wife Sandy came out to watch and participate in the show. All three told me that they had a really good time and even Greg got up on stage and answered some of the trivia questions.

The night ended for us by watching singer and fellow Superman fan, Jamie Kelly perform a concert featuring a variety of Elvis Presley songs and Rockabilly music. The crowd in attendance had a great time singing and clapping along to each song with a few, myself included, even getting up to dance to the music.

Saturday is always the busiest and most popular day of the Superman Celebration with autograph sessions for Brandon Routh and Bitsie Tulloch taking place throughout the day. Attendees were also treated to Q&A sessions with each celebrity guest beginning with Tulloch (hosted by John Gleckler) and followed by Routh (hosted by Neil Cole). The final Q&A was with Washburn and Moffett which I had the honor of hosting.

As previously stated, Sunday started out with rain which would continue off and on throughout the last day of the Superman Celebration. Celebrity guests including Routh, Tulloch, and Kreuk had already departed Metropolis but fans still had the opportunity to meet Pillow at Artists Alley/Writers Way as well as Washburn and Moffett at Hidden Gems.

Following the final Superman Jeopardy trivia event, actor and magician Raushan Hammond who starred as the character '‘Thud Butt' in the 1993 film, "Hook" would perform very entertaining magic show on the main tent stage.

The final event of the day was the always popular Heroes & Villains Costume Contest which featured several attendees decked out in an array of superhero and villain costumes as they competed in various categories including Best Villain, Best Hero, Best Duo or Group and Best Superman/Clark Kent. The winner of each group was awarded $100 followed by the best of the four categories being awarded title of “Best of Metropolis” and a $300 prize.

After the closing ceremony, it was time to begin packing up for our return trip home. As with all prior Superman Celebrations, I looked forward to this one all year and it came and went rather quickly. I really enjoyed this year and, like I said before, I can't wait until the next one in 2025.

Thank you Morgan & Adam Siebert, Karla Ogle, Lisa Gower, and everyone in the Chamber of Commerce who makes this Celebration what it is. Without all of you who go out of your way to make all of us feel like a family and that we belong, we would not have that “Feel Good Feeling” and memories that we all cherish for many years.

We'll see everyone next June!