Strange Visitor from Another Country

We spent most of the day today visiting with a friend from Toronto, so I haven't had a chance to sit down at the blog until now. Just a little time until the day turns to Sunday, so in honor of my Canadian friend and the new Superman movie opening next weekend, I'll just borrow a link The Beat had yesterday.

In an attempt to bring Canadian heritage to life, Historica, a Canadian agency devoted to the subject, has developed a series of video spots highlighting significant Canadian people or events. This one features Joe Shuster, artist and co-creator of Superman. The historical accuracy leaves something to be desired, but it's effective in reminding us that even though he lived in Cleveland when he and Jerry Siegel created their iconic character, he was Canadian, so Superman is a legitimate part of Canadian heritage. I've heard the argument that since Shuster had moved to the United States and Siegel was an American, Superman is an American creation. By that same logic, James Baldwin was a French author, Stanley Kubrick was a British filmmaker, and Old Man and the Sea is a Cuban novel.

On the same page as the video is a short essay citing Mordecai Richler's argument for how Superman embodies the Canadian character.

According to the novelist Mordecai Richler, Shuster's Superman is a perfect expression of the Canadian psyche. The mighty "man of steel" hides his extraordinary strength, speed, and superhuman powers under the bland, self-effacing guise of the weak and clumsy Clark Kent. He is a hero who does not take any credit for his own heroism, a glamorous figure in cape and tights who is content to live his daily life in horn-rimmed glasses and brown suits.

Richler wryly suggests that Superman, with his modest alter-ego, is the archetypal Canadian personality who became a "universal hero," famed throughout the world as the champion of everything virtuous.

Another interesting factoid about Joe Shuster that the spot alludes to is that he was the cousin of Frank Shuster, half of the popular Canadian comedy team Wayne and Shuster. I wonder if Wayne and Shuster ever performed a Superman sketch.