George Reeves
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George Bessolo Reeves (born George Keefer Brewer) (January 6, 1914 – June 16, 1959) was an American actor, best known for playing the role of Superman primarily on television in the 1950s.
Besides playing Superman on TV, he also had minor roles in a number of movies, including Gone With the Wind, From Here to Eternity and The Blue Gardenia.
During World War II, Reeves enlisted in the United States Army Air Corps and appeared in war training films.
In the early morning hours of June 16 1959, three days before a planned wedding to Lenore Lemmon, he went to bed after a long night with guests. Shortly thereafter, a shot rang out, and he was found dead in his bedroom with a gunshot wound to the head. An official inquiry concluded that the death was suicide. However, some friends and associates disputed this explanation, and fans have speculated in the years since as to whether his death was actually a murder, and if so, at whose hand, or whether he faked his own death and disappeared.
Because of the similar surnames, people sometimes surmise that George Reeves is related to Christopher Reeve, an actor who would later portray Superman on the big screen. It should be noted that the two are not related, as the last names differ, and the similarity is merely coincidental.
In February 2005, it was announced that Ben Affleck would portray George Reeves in a biographical film drama titled Truth, Justice and the American Way.