Faster than a speeding bullet. More powerful than a locomotive. Able to leap tall buildings at a single bound. Look, up in the sky. It's a bird. It's a plane. It's Superman. Kellogg's Pep. P-E-P Pep. Kellogg's Pep, the sunshine cereal, presents The Adventures of Superman. Today, Clark can't assure he is on the right track of a tie-in between a bigoted plot and a cruel murder. Little realizing that the chief villain has marked him as the next victim. Hello there, gang. This is your pal Dan McCullough. You know, somebody told me the other day that collecting comic buttons in that new series from packages of Kellogg's Pep is just like an exciting treasure hunt. Sure, because you never know just which button you're going to find in the package. Maybe a brand new one that you don't have yet, like the little moose or Spud or Superman himself. Or maybe it'll be a duplicate. And that's even more fun because then you can swap with one of your friends. And boy, do you feel like strutting around when you wear your collection of Pep comic buttons pinned on your jacket or your dress or cap. They're true-to-life pictures, you know, done up in bright red, blue, and yellow and black on a gleaming white background. Mighty snappy looking. So keep going, gang. Remind mom to get you plenty of Kellogg's Pep and look for your comic button inside every package you open. That's right. You don't have to send in any money, not even a box stop. And you can't buy these comic buttons anywhere. But you get a prize in every package of Pep. A prize in good eating, too, because these good whole wheat flakes are loaded with catchy sunshine flavor. A comeback for more flavor that teases you to eat lots. And that makes mom glad because Pep is good for you, too. So ask her to get P-E-P. The Sunshine Cereal, Kellogg's Pep. Now, the adventures of Superman. The Knights of the White Carnation, a secret organization of Metropolis businessmen led by Vincent Kirby, has embarked on a vicious campaign of racial and religious hatred. As his first move, Kirby announced an attempt to break up the Metropolis High School basketball team because four of its star players are of foreign ancestry. Then, when Charles Canfield, a prominent industrialist, objected to prejudice of that kind and threatened to expose Kirby and his friends, Canfield was mysteriously stabbed and killed. Yesterday, as you recall, Clark Kent and Jimmy Olsen attended the opening game of the state championship tourney at the Armory, where Metropolis High was scheduled to play Cedar Falls. But to everyone's amazement, when the Metropolis team took the court, four of its star players were missing. And the coach made an announcement to the effect that they had been suspended for having dealt with professional gamblers. As we continue now, the huge crowd is on its feet, stamping in rhythm on the board seats, shouting angry demands for the return of the four suspended players. Jimmy Olsen, clutching at Clark Kent's arms, screams above the den to make himself heard. It's a lie, Mr. Kent. It's a dirty, rotten lie. Take it easy, Jim. But I know those fellas. I know every one of them. They wouldn't have anything to do with gamblers if it killed them. Attention, please. Attention. Coach is trying to quiet them down. That chance he's got. This crowd is really angry. I don't blame you. Metropolis hasn't had a championship basketball team in ten years. Now that we've got one, look what happens. I'm going down to find out about this. Wait a minute, Jim. Down where? Down in the court. We want to talk to the coach. There's something wrong. Oh, wait, Jim. You'll never get through that crowd. I'll get... I'll go with you. I don't like the looks of this. Angry crowds can get out of hand before you know it. People are hurt. Could be. I've seen it happen. You know where you're going? Yeah, we've got to go under the grandstand to get to the court. I think it's this way. Jim, wait. What's the matter? Something's wrong. What? Great Scott. What is it, Mr. Kent? Get to a phone quickly, Jim. Call the police emergency squad. But I... Don't ask questions. Hurry, Jim. Okay, but... Hurry. It's a matter of life and death. I've got to get rid of him somehow. One of the steel girders supporting the grandstand is beginning to bend and crack from that stamping. Off with these clothes. This is a job for Superman. Leaping up into the air, Clark Kent, now miraculously transformed into the broad-shouldered figure of Superman, straddles the weakened steel girders supporting the grandstand, embraces the center of it in hands that gripped the gold metal as though it were held in the jaws of a vice, straining every muscle in his powerful body, the veins in his neck standing out like whip cords. He literally supports the entire grandstand as it sways under the weight of thousands of screaming, stamping human beings, none of whom are aware of the danger they are in. This girders snap. They're doomed. I've got to hold it until the police arrive and quiet them down. I've got to. Suddenly, off in the distance, Superman hears the eerie wail of police car sirens drawing closer and closer. In a matter of moments, the doors of the huge armory are thrown open and squads of emergency police swarm in. Soon, the mob is quieted. An announcement is made that the game has been called off, and under police direction, the crowd files out. Not until then does Superman release the weakened girder and drop to the concrete floor beneath the grandstand. Five minutes later, now somewhat recovered from the terrific strain, he hears Jimmy Olsen's voice calling to him. Over here, Jim. Under the grandstand. Oh, I was wondering whether you'd still be here. Oh, I've been here all the time. Say, what happened to you? What? Well, golly, you look like someone put you through a ringer. Do I? Well, I guess I was worried for a while. That steel girder was pretty weak. What steel girder? That one up there, supporting the grandstand. That's why I told you to get the police to clear the crowd out. Oh, we've been lizards. We better report it. I will. Did you find the coach? No, but I talked with Jack Wilson. He's the team captain. Oh. The only one of the regulars left on the team. Uh-huh. He said he has something to tell me. He's getting dressed now. We'll meet him outside and take him back to the office. Okay. There's a story behind all this, Mr. Kent, and I've got a hunch it's a good one. Come on. Give me the story now. Well, there isn't much to tell, Jim. We were all sitting around the dressing room waiting for our chance to warm up on the court when Coach Reed came in. He looked kind of white and scared. He pointed at Tony and Cass and Kaplan and Mike Kelly, and he said, you four aren't playing tonight. You can get dressed and go home. No explanation, Jack? No, sir. And when Tony asked how come, he said he couldn't discuss it. To get dressed and beat it. Those poor guys must have gone nuts. Oh, they couldn't say anything. They were like they were struck dumb. So I said something. I said I wasn't going to play either. Good boy. Then the coach took me aside and said I had to play for the sake of the team. He told me he got orders from the principal to throw the fellas off the team. From Mr. Radin? Yeah. You mean Mr. Radin told the coach to bounce those four off the team? No, it wasn't really Mr. Radin. He got orders from somebody else. A man named Mortimer. Well, who's he? I know, Jim. Who is he? Henry Mortimer, chairman of the school board. Well, what's he got to do with the basketball team? That's what I want to know, Jim. And I'm going to find out. Tonight. Mortimer, but as chairman of the school board, you should be able to answer a few questions and perhaps issue a statement. I have nothing to say at this time, Mr. Kent. If you wish to interview me, I suggest you call my office in the morning and arrange an appointment with my secretary. Oh. Oh, so that's how it is. Yes, Mr. Kent. That's how it is. Now, if you'll excuse me. Just a minute. You were the one who issued the order suspending Rizzuti, Kaplan, Pulaski, and Kelly from the Metropolis High School basketball team, right? I informed the principal of the school that the young men in question were to be temporarily forbidden to play. Why? Because of evidence that they were in collusion with professional gamblers. Where's the evidence? I want to see it. I'm sorry, Mr. Kent, but you can't see it. Because it doesn't exist? How dare you? If you don't leave at once, I'll call the police. Oh, I'll leave. I'll leave. But before I do, let me tell you something. You were directly responsible for making a public statement to the effect that four high school students were involved with gamblers. You as much as branded them as crooks. You informed the thousands of people who were at the armory tonight and the millions more who will read about it in the papers that those four boys are dishonest and not to be trusted. I did no such thing. There are laws against slander, Mr. Mortimer, particularly criminal slander. People have gone to jail for what you've done, but that's not the worst of it. You may have heard that last night a man named Charles Canfield was stabbed and killed on the street outside his house. I have a faint suspicion that there's a connection between his death and the dismissal of the four basketball players. I don't know what you're talking about. Perhaps not, but let me warn you. I think you're getting yourself mixed up in something dangerous. You may be the next one to end up with a knife in your back. Pointing an accusing finger at the chairman of the Metropolis School Board, Clark Kent watches the nervous, prissy little man turn ghastly white. We'll learn what happens in a moment, so keep listening. You know, one of the exciting things about collecting those swell comic buttons in the new series from packages of Kellogg's Pet is that you already know the characters. Sure, you've been following their doings in the funny papers for ages. So when you get a button with Chief Brandon's picture on it, for example, well, it's sort of like meeting up with an old friend. And the same goes for Brenda Starr and Superman and all the rest of the 18 different funny paper characters, and that's one reason why you won't want to miss out on a single one. And another reason is the fun of trading duplicates and wearing these smart-looking Pep comic buttons pinned on your jacket or your dress or your cap. So you better get busy. Make sure that Mom gets you some more Kellogg's Pep over the weekend, because that's the only way you can get these comic buttons. You don't send in any money, not even a box stop. And you can't buy them anywhere. They're Pep's exclusive prizes. And Pep's the cereal to make breakfast something terrific, too. Those tender whole wheat flakes are crisp and fresh and full up with catchy sunshine flavor. Mighty good and mighty good for you. Just the thing to warm up your appetite on a frosty morning. That's P-E-P, the sunshine cereal, Kellogg's Pep. Frightened by Clark Kent, who warned him that he might end up with a knife in his back, Henry Mortimer, chairman of the Metropolis School Board, and lost no time in contacting Vincent Kirby, the man who instructed him to suspend the four high school basketball players. As we continue now, it is almost midnight. Kirby has just ushered Mortimer into the study of his sumptuous townhouse. He closes the door behind him. All right, now. What's so important that made you think it necessary to get me out of bed in the middle of the night? A man named Kent came to see me. He's a newspaper reporter. The Daily Planet. Yes. He said I was guilty of criminal slander and accusing those poor boys of dealing with gamblers. And you believed him? That wasn't all. He said I... That I was getting mixed up in something dangerous. And he warned me that I might end up with a knife in my back like... Like Charles Canfield. What? What's that? He said... Well, never mind. I hurt you. Mr. Kirby, you know I didn't want to do it. You know I didn't agree with you when you said those boys were foreigners. But you forced me to do it. You said I'd lose my appointment if I didn't. And now... And now you're getting cold feet. Is that it? I don't want to get mixed up in anything. You don't want to die with a knife in your back. Please don't say things like that. I should have known better than to get mixed up with a chicken heart like you. Please, Mr. Kirby. Stop whining. You're perfectly safe. Nothing's going to happen to you. Tomorrow you can make another announcement. Put the four dirty little foreigners back on the team. And now I'll handle this myself in my own way. And in case Mr. Clark Kent calls on you again, you might tell him that he won't look very pretty with a knife in his back either. With his steel gray eyes slitted and his mouth drawn in a hard, thin line, Vincent Kirby, cold-blooded leader of the Knights of the White Carnation, creators of hatred and intolerance, takes matters into his own hands. Kirby has flung a challenge at Clark Kent, who so far as he knows is a mild-mannered reporter. But unknowingly, his challenge has been made to Superman. And that means he's in for plenty of action. Action is the keynote of this exciting story from now on, gang. So don't miss a single minute of it. Whatever you do, don't forget to be with us again on Monday, when the Man of Steel begins his relentless campaign to expose the vicious Knights of the White Carnation. Be sure to tune in again Monday, same time, same station. And remember, for breakfast, it's Kellogg's Pet. For excitement, the adventures of Superman. Superman is a copyrighted feature appearing in Superman DC comic magazines and is brought to you Monday through Friday at this same time by Kellogg's Pet, the sunshine cereal. This is the Mutual Broadcasting System. This is the Mutual Broadcasting System.
