"Is that a bird or a plane in the distance? No, it’s Superman”: Metropolis, Illinois and the Hope in Becoming a Destination as Superman’s Hometown, 1972-Present
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Date
2022-01-01
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Department
History
Program
Historical Studies
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Distribution Rights granted to UMBC by the author.
This item may be protected under Title 17 of the U.S. Copyright Law. It is made available by UMBC for non-commercial research and education. For permission to publish or reproduce, please see http://aok.lib.umbc.edu/specoll/repro.php or contact Special Collections at speccoll(at)umbc.edu
This item may be protected under Title 17 of the U.S. Copyright Law. It is made available by UMBC for non-commercial research and education. For permission to publish or reproduce, please see http://aok.lib.umbc.edu/specoll/repro.php or contact Special Collections at speccoll(at)umbc.edu
Abstract
By the 1970s, Metropolis, Illinois, a small city on the northern bank of the Ohio River, seemed doomed. The local glove factory had closed down. The commercial infrastructure was crumbling. Locals were leaving in droves. A villain in the form of deindustrialization had taken over. Metropolis needed a hero. But wait, look! Up on the water tower! It’s a bird! It’s a plane! No, it’s Superman! This theses examines Metropolis, Illinois and its conversion into the "Hometown of Superman” as a case study to gauge the historical viability of tourism as a tool of downtown revitalization in the wake of deindustrialization. But it is one thing to get people to visit Metropolis, Illinois and it is another to get them to stay. This work expands upon the often overlooked roadside attractions beyond the usual examination of their aesthetic quirks and fits it into the social and economic history of the deindustrialized communities that the attractions represent.