Making Superman’s birthday “Leap Day” could be a sideways reference to his ability “to leap tall buildings in a single bound.” Since February 29th is barely a “real” day at all as far as most people are concerned, it makes sense that a fictional character’s birthday doesn’t even exist during most calendar years. It’s also a handy way to explain why a guy who has been fighting crime since 1938 doesn’t appear to age. The thing is, in the comics, his birthday is far from a consistent thing. You have to keep in mind that as far as his two sets of parents are concerned, Superman would have two different birthdays. Whatever Kal-El’s actual birthday would be on Krypton depends on how you want to interpret the intricacies of the Kryptonian calendar. A Kryptonian “year” is known as a “zetyar,” which is equivalent to roughly 500 Earth days. By the reckoning of the Kryptonian calendar, Kal-El was born on 38 Eorx 9998. The weirdness of the Kryptonian calendar might offer a possible explanation here, so maybe 38 Eorx 9998 fell on the equivalent of February 29th on Earth. Then again, it’s best not to think too hard about this. Here are a few ways you can celebrate Superman’s birthday today, too… Listen to The Adventures of Superman radio show from the 1940s. This series was responsible for giving us some of the most enduring elements of Superman mythology, including Jimmy Olsen and Kryptonite. Hundreds of hours are available for you, legal and free, at Archive.org. Perhaps coincidentally, the June 18th date mentioned above happens to be the birthday of Bud Collyer, the voice actor who portrayed Superman on the radio show and the excellent Max Fleischer cartoons. Watch Superman: The Movie. No seriously, go ahead and watch the superhero movie that all others have tried to live up to, featuring Christopher Reeve’s incredible performance as the Man of Steel. Crank that John Williams score up, too. You can read our complete ranking of the Superman movies right here, as well. Check out this awesome article over at Comic Book Resources detailing some forgotten Superman tales from the Bronze Age. It’s a terrific read. Most importantly, though, try and do something small today to make the world a better place. Call a friend or a loved one. Do someone a favor. Pay something forward. You might even consider a donation to The Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation, to aid their work to help cure spinal cord injury and paralysis. Mike Cecchini knows too much about Superman. Throw Kryptonite at him on Twitter.
