The north-central Iowa town of Woolstock is celebrating the 100th anniversary of the birth of George Reeves Sunday. Reeves is most noted for appearing in 104 episodes of the television series “Adventures of Superman” from 1952 to 1958.
Veronica Guyader organized the event to honor Reeves. “Not a lot of people know that George Reeves was born in Woolstock in 1914 in a small farmhouse there in town,” Guyader. While he was known for playing the man of steel, Guyader says Reeves also had roles in dozens of movies. “For this celebration, we will not only talk about his birth and the history or his family, but also the history of his career and the good works he did throughout his lifetime,” Guyader says.
Reeves moved from Woolstock to California at an early age and didn’t visit the community afterward. The community has been torn on whether he should be honored, but Guyader says this is a chance to move forward. She says while he never came home to Woolstock, Reeves still has a chance to help the community out. “I think we ned to give George a chance to help boost our economy in our community and boost our culture as well,” Guyader says. “I think we need to forgive him for not coming home.”
Reeves appeared in the movie classics “From Here to Eternity” and “Gone With the Wind” and those roles will be featured along with his role as Superman.
“We will have different kiosks set up that depict the different points of his life and also we will be having some cake and ice cream and some other goodies,” according toe Guyader.
The events begin Sunday afternoon at the community hall at 2:30. Guyader says the whole event is free and they want people to come out and enjoy it and learn more about Reeves. Reeves died in June,1959 at the age of 45. The boyhood home of Reeves was demolished a few years ago.
(Reporting by Pat Powers, KQWC, Webster City)