It was the thrill of a lifetime for me to be in Cleveland last week.

As a Superman fan, there have been many great moments in fandom to be a part of- meeting a creator at a con, watching a Superman movie in the theater for the first time in twenty years, the release of a special collection, etc.

Being in the birthplace of the character is just something different.

I was supposed to have gone to Cleveland for an archdiocesan conference the summer of 2020, but COVID had other ideas. I was so bummed out when it was cancelled, as I had quickly filled my head with seeing Superman sites I have been reading about for many years.

Thankfully, after several other cities hosted said conference in the years that followed, in 2026 it was finally rescheduled for Cleveland once again. Needless to say, I was very happy about the news.

That is, of course, the news about visiting Superman sites, which I will be posting about over the next few weeks. The rest of Cleveland… eh.

The conference took place at the Huntington Convention Center of Cleveland. Little did I know that the convention center was the site of one of my intended destinations, the Siegel & Shuster Superman Plaza.

I follow Brad Ricca on Twitter/X, a native Clevelander who has done some phenomenal work on preserving the legacy of Superman’s creators, among Cleveland’s favorite sons. In addition to writing the absolutely fantastic “Super Boys,” he is influential in the local non-profit, the Siegel & Shuster Society.

The society put together a gofundme campaign some time ago to build a monument to Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, as none had ever existed up to that point. They deserve enormous credit for accomplishing this feat, along with major donations from private donors and members of the Siegel family. I am proud to say I contributed a meager offering as well during the campaign, and I wanted to one day go see the final results!

The plaza is very nicely put together with four statues, a “phone booth” with prop articles of Superman’s clothing, and a descriptive sign talking a little bit about the various people represented. There is a statue of Superman in a determined Golden Age flying/leaping pose, with his creators looking on.

Jerry and his wife Joanne Siegel are standing and looking upward like passersby in a Superman comic, while Joe Shuster is kneeling and drawing with a sketch pad.

The exhibit is a fun marker and a good reminder of the historic, creative “birth” which took place in the city.

I was thrilled to once again have an opportunity to make my Superman “pilgrimage,” if you will, and especially thrilled that I didn’t have to walk too far in the scorching, humid Cleveland summer to find my first site. Superman may be able to survive near a yellow sun, but us humans melt at 95 degrees with 90% humidity.

A huge shoutout to Mr. Ricca, whose genuine love to Cleveland and the Man of Steel are very evident. This entire project was clearly a huge labor of love!

It was only a taste of what was to come.

Stay tuned for Part 2 next week!