Pop Culture Icons in Live Theater

Our popular American fables are often carried over into other forms of entertainment. Thrilling costumed heroes, horror heroines or cute kids and their dogs from comic strips or comic books sometimes walked the boards or flew over them in live theater shows.

These beloved, instantly recognized characters from comic strips, books, movies and television have been translated into big stage productions. Here are some of the biggest and best pop culture icons, which were made into live, stage productions.

Superman

It's a bird, it's a plane - it's Superman! It's also a musical stage show.

The highflying, caped crusader from Krypton by way of Metropolis was launched in comic book form in 1938. A justice minded alien who was sent by his scientist father Jor-El from their dying planet is the measure by which most other comic book super heroes are judged.

It's a Bird...It's a Plane...It's Superman opened at the Alvin Theatre on Broadway in 1966 and despite good reviews closed the same year. Among the show songs was "Pow! Bam! Zonk!" and "The Woman for the Man." In 1975, ABC produced a television version of the play starring Lesley Ann Warren and David Wilson.

Carrie

Stephen King's first novel was Carrie - the tale of a tortured teenager with telekinetic powers. Film director Brian DePalma made the book into a classic motion picture. Then someone got the idea to bring Carrie and her crazy cool powers to the stage. It wasn't a great idea.

In fact, the stage version of Carrie remains one of the biggest and most expensive failures in Broadway history. Despite great source material in the Stephen King novel, a hit movie and even bringing respected Broadway actress Betty Buckley into the cast, the eight million dollar show closed after only five critically ravaged performances.

Charlie Brown - Peanuts