Extra! Extra! Read All About Her!
[Lois has fallen out of a helicopter]
Superman (1978)
Superman: “Easy, miss. I’ve got you.”
Lois Lane: “Y- you’ve got me? Who’s got you?!”
A gang leader walks through a warehouse. It’s taken a lot of work and a few greased palms, but his gang is in position to become the biggest drug supplier in Metropolis. Gazing over his operations, he notices a woman sneaking around. She isn’t with them, so she needs to disappear.
He sends some goons to deal with the intruder, but can’t shake the feeling that he has seen her before. She punches out one of his men and tases another. The gang leader fires his gun at her. A thunderous noise rips through the warehouse as a blur stops the bullet. The gangster finally recognizes Lois Lane while a pissed off Superman glares at him.
Lois Lane is the most famous superhero love interest. She’s famous for being Superman’s girlfriend and later wife, but there’s plenty to her even when he isn’t around. So who is she? Why is Superman so interested in her? Let’s find out.
Scene Select
Star Reporter: Lois Lane’s Backstory
Lois: “I’m confused, Kent. See, I’ve lived in Metropolis most of my life and I can’t figure out how some yokel from Smallville is suddenly getting every hot story in town.”
Superman “The Main Man” (Season 1, Episode 9)
Clark: “Well, Lois, the truth is, I’m actually Superman in disguise and I only pretend to be a journalist in order to hear about disasters as they happen, and then squeeze you out of the byline.”
Lois: “…You’re a sick man, Kent.”
Clark: “You asked.” – Superman “The Main Man” (Season 1, Episode 9)
Lois Lane debuted in Action Comics #1 in 1938. She was created by Joe Shuster and Jerry Siegel. Lois was inspired by fictional reporter Torchy Blane and based on model Joanne Carter, who would later marry Siegel.
Lois Lane was a tough-as-nails reporter working for the Daily Star. She was first shown on a date with her coworker Clark Kent, only to be unimpressed by his cowardice when confronted by a gangster. Lois was kidnapped by the gangster after turning down his advances. She was rescued by a costumed strongman the world would soon know as Superman.
Lois lost a lot of her “tough gal” characterization during the Silver Age, becoming a damsel in distress who frequently needed Superman to save her. She was also obsessed with learning his secret identity so she could blackmail him into marrying her.
Later writers mellowed Lois’ obsession with learning Superman’s identity. She began studying martial arts to defend herself and warmed up to Clark Kent. This incarnation of Lois Lane was last seen in Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?, after she settled down with a depowered Superman.
Love, Death, and Retcons Galore: Lois Lane’s History
Jon Kent: “Why does dad look so much like the guy they say is Superman? An’ why do you look like the lady who outed him?”
Superman: Lois and Clark #6
Lois Lane finally got a consistent backstory following the Crisis on Infinite Earths. She was the daughter of famous general Samuel Lane and had spent her childhood moving from base to base. The elder Lane was disappointed to have a daughter instead of a son and trained her in martial arts and other traditionally masculine pursuits.
Lois studied journalism and became a reporter for the Daily Planet. With help from cub reporter Jimmy Olsen, Lois Lane broke the story of Superman to the world. The scoop earned her a Pulitzer Prize. And she began falling for newcomer Clark Kent.
Lois learned that Clark and Superman were the same person when he proposed to her. Their marriage plans were temporarily derailed when Superman succumbed in battle to Doomsday, but resumed when he was resurrected. After fifty-eight years of attempts, Lois Lane married Superman in Superman: the Wedding Album.
Things didn’t go well for the couple following the New 52 relaunch. Clark and Lois had previously dated, but broke up. Superman began dating Wonder Woman while Lois saw other men. She eventually disclosed Superman’s secret identity to protect him, further separating them.
Then things got weird. It was revealed that the married Superman and Lois Lane existed alongside their New 52 counterparts. They had quietly retired while the New 52 versions took the spotlight, even having a superpowered son named Jonathon Kent. New 52 Superman died and events caused both Lois Lanes to merge into one leaving readers with only one living couple.
Anyone else confused? You need a whiteboard to avoid mixing up these coexisting incarnations.
Pulitzer Pugilist: Lois Lane’s Powers and Personality
[Lois has written an unflattering article about Harley Quinn]
Harley Quinn “Finding Mr. Right” (Season 1, Episode 4)
Doctor Psycho: “Let’s just kill her.”
Harley: “Or…”
Poison Ivy: “No. No more or.”
Harley: “Or we kidnap her and force her to retract the article!”
Poison Ivy: “You can’t. F*ck. With Lois Lane, people!”
Lois Lane doesn’t have superpowers, but who needs them when you’re married to Superman? She has studied various martial arts, later incorporating the Kryptonian styles Klurkor and Torquasm Rao into her repertoire.
Lois has occasionally gained her own abilities. She tends to get the same powers as Superman when this happens, but she has also become elastic, learned magic, and was once the host for a hero called Isis. One incarnation even became a permanent superhero when she was transformed into the wind-powered android Red Tornado.
Lois Lane is stubborn, fearless, and compassionate. She will never be frightened away from a story and nothing can stop her from reporting the truth. Her faith in Superman is unshakable. She’ll gladly jump out of a window for an interview because she knows he’ll catch her. That’s not hyperbole either, she’s actually done that on a few occasions.
Fun Fact: While Lois Lane is a world-famous reporter, she’s ironically portrayed as a terrible speller.
The Actors Who Play Lois Lane
Joan Alexander – Superman (Fleischer), The New Adventures of Superman
Shannon Farnon – Super Friends
Ginny McSwain – Superman (Ruby Spears)
Dana Delany – Superman: the Animated Series, Justice League, The Batman
Sirena Irwin – Batman: the Brave and the Bold
Tara Strong – Justice League: Action
Natalie Morales – Harley Quinn
Noel Niell – Superman (Columbia Serials)
Margot Kidder – Superman (Christopher Reeve series)
Kate Botsworth – Superman Returns
Amy Adams – Man of Steel, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Justice League
Phyllis Coates – Adventures of Superman
Teri Hatcher – Lois and Clark: the New Adventures of Superman
Elizabeth Tulloch – Supergirl, Superman and Lois
Didya Get All That?
Screw Superman, you’re lucky if you can handle Lois Lane.
Jared Bounacos has written for Movie Rewind since 2016.
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