Jim –

Congratulations on your truly wonderful website. In addition to the many entertaining features I’ve enjoyed for so long, the schedule posted on your site of Noel Neill’s appearances enabled me to have the unique thrill of actually meeting her last week.

Well in advance, I had marked in my calendar the fact that Noel Neill would be making a personal appearance in Gaithersburg, Maryland (a Washington, DC suburb) on October 2, 2004. To my delight, when I told my 12-year-old daughter that I hoped to meet the actress who played Lois Lane on the most beloved television show of my childhood, she expressed a strong desire to go with me. I had introduced her to the series through the TV Land re-runs, and I had been very pleased that she had come to share my love for the show. It was an indescribable thrill to think that my own child would be coming with me to meet someone who had been such a special part of my own childhood.

It was with a feeling of nervous anticipation that I entered the building in the Montgomery County Fairgrounds in which Miss Neill was to meet her fans. After all, my image of Miss Neill had been cast in stone, so to speak, for more than 40 years now, and I wondered whether she could really be as sweet, delightful and engaging as I had always imagined her to be. And then, there she was, after all these years. Seeing her was a very emotional experience for me, as it obviously was for the many other fans who crowded around Miss Neill. Of course, she was every bit as nice – even nicer, actually, if that’s possible – than I had imagined. And she’s still so beautiful, with the same trademark smile and voice so familiar to millions of viewers from her days as “Lois Lane.” She and biographer Larry Ward were extremely gracious. Miss Neill posed for several photos with my daughter and me, and Mr. Ward very kindly snapped them with my camera. Those photos will always be cherished keepsakes for me, as will the Adventures of Superman publicity still that Miss Neill signed for me and also Mr. Ward’s terrific book, which both of them signed.

I am so glad that I was able to thank Miss Neill in person for the countless hours of great entertainment that she helped bring into my home. Meeting her was a truly unforgettable experience. By the way: In light of the fact that I am a federal prosecutor, Miss Neill kindly wrote the following inscription on the TAOS publicity still, over her name: “Go get those bad guys, Eli!” Perhaps watching her, Jimmy Olsen and Superman do just that week after week all those years ago helped inspire my career choice. In any event, the framed photo is now displayed prominently in my office at the Department of Justice in Washington. As I had the privilege of saying to Noel Neill in person and with my daughter at my side: Thank you so much, Miss Neill, and God bless.

Eli Rosenbaum
Washington, DC

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Noel Neill and Greg Seltzer in Boston - November, 2004

I just got back last night (Nov 21, 2004) from Boston. Noel could not have been friendlier or more genuine. She looked beautiful, and when she smiled she lost forty years! I gave her your love, and when I mentioned your name she smiled widely and said, "Oh Jim!" After i got some pictures with her and her autograph I went around with my family to see other celebrities. Later I noticed she was pretty much alone at her table with Larry so I asked if I could ask a few questions she's probably answered a million times before, but she said sure. So i asked her if George Reeves was a good guy. Her face lit up and she said he was a very sweet sweet man. When I asked what happened to him she looked sad and said quietly, "Well i think he got involved with the wrong kind of people. He went around with the wrong woman at the end." I asked if she thought Lenore had anything to do with his death, and she said again that it was a bad crowd. Then I asked her if she ever got to meet Marilyn Monroe when she did Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. She said she had not but that she does strongly recall seeing her walk by and noticing how pretty her long legs were. I asked her what Bing Crosby was like, and she told me that when she was starting out as a young contract player he saw her walking by at the studio and started singing behind her. He told her that if any man gave her trouble or made a pass at her to let him know. She loved that and he also hooked her up with his brother, and agent. Jim, she could not have been sweeter and more patient answering the same old questions. What a lovely woman!. I'll try to get the pictures to you when I get them developed. What a sweet lady.

Greg Seltzer