Map of Superman's Cleveland

Happy birthday, Jerry Siegel.

In 2008, when going down every road of promotional possibility for Boys of Steel: The Creators of Superman, I discovered that (speaking of roads) there is no Superman-themed tour of Cleveland, the city in which writer Jerry and artist Joe Shuster created him.

[image error] Joe (pointing) and Jerry (pointing)

In March 2008, I made a list of potential stops with the intention of finding someone interested in pursuing the idea. In fact, one of the big hotels in town, the Renaissance Cleveland Hotel, expressed interest in running a tour originating from their lobby, so I shared the list (since updated):

Glenville:

Jerry's house: 10622 Kimberley Avenue. Currently a private home with a commemorative Superman fence (featuring the original Superman S emblem made from stainless steel) in front.
[image error] courtesy of CapedWonder

Joe's house: No longer standing. Now an apartment/duplex at corner of Parkwood and Amor with a commemorative Superman fence (displaying a blown-up version of the first Superman story) in front.Ohio Historical Plaque: corner of E. 105 and St. Clair. The first (and, for years, only) official acknowledgment of Siegel and Shuster in Cleveland.

[image error] front

back

And "Siegal"? Please fix.

The Shuster Studio: Euclid Avenue between E. 105 and E.101. No longer standing.
Joe's studio was in the far right building of this 1939 photo;
today, this area is a hospital complex.

Downtown:

The Bell/SBC Building. At one time alleged to be the model for the Daily Planet, though Joe dismissed this in his later years. Cleveland Public Library. Joe and Jerry took the streetcar there almost every weekend. They were both voracious readers.Newspaper Enterprise Association cartoon offices in Lakeside Place, West Third Street. Now mostly legal offices, this was the syndicate that published the daily Superman strip.
University Circle:

The Commodore Hotel: corner of Euclid and Ford near Case. Now an apartment building, Jerry and Joanne were married there and lived there for a time.Cleveland Museum of Art. Often cited as a place Siegel and Shuster would visit. Joe took classes at the old Cleveland School of Art.
University Heights:

Jerry's house with his first wife Bella and son, Michael: 2402 Glendon Ave. Jerry is said to have had a full-size Superman costume in the front closet to show to kids who would knock on the door and ask for Superman. The house is still a private home in a residential neighborhood.
[image error] The sites are rather scattered so a walking tour was out, and given the logistics required in organizing such a thing, it proved impractical for the hotel to take on the task.

Therefore I was thrilled to discover that Cleveland's enterprising Carol and John's Comic Shop took on the challenge. They didn't go so far as to set up a tour but did create this spiffy and thorough map to help people take a self-guided tour; they also kindly gave me permission to post it here.

[image error] My only suggestion: move the compass so it's fully visible and use the Superman S emblem not as its center but rather as the "S" for "south."