What do Bye Bye Birdie, Annie, and Superman all have in common? The same guy wrote music for all of their Broadway features. Yes, Superman flew onto and was quickly thrown off Broadway in a 1966 smash musical that lasted a dismal 129 shows. For the macho geekery, the knowledge of a Superman musical can be disturbing, shocking, and morbidly fascinating (the CD is available). Proving the musical’s greatness, the Lex Luthor-like villain Max Mercury sings to Lois Lane:

You know, you’re really quite a dish.
You’re what a guy might call delish.
You’ve got an awful lot of class.
You’re packed as solid as a knish.

Check your local summer stock theaters, lyrics like this are still popular in some circles. Or see if you can track down the made-for-TV movie version.