Comic Tom doesn’t spend as much time on the internet as I do in real life. Probably because that’s not a very dynamic setting in which to tell the story. Or perhaps it’s because the people he talks to are indifferent to the news he wants to share. I suppose he should give up on relaying any Superman-related missives.

And speaking of related! Yes, it is true that someone I went to high school with is the real-life cousin of the new Superman, Brandon Routh. I’ve changed his name in the comic to protect the innocent. But, as you may have heard, Brandon Routh is from right here in Central Iowa. So there have been many news stories in advance of Superman Returns hitting theaters on Wednesday and every newspaper and local news network is parading out all of his relatives for that local angle.

This, of course, means nothing to no one. Famous people tend to come from all over the country. You don’t hear Toronto bragging about how John Candy came from their town. But then again, that might just be due to the fact that Canadians are so polite.

I don’t know. For Iowa, it’s different. There’s very little going on here and for someone to take the mantle of one of the most recognizable icons in world… well, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t feeling a twinge of hometown pride.

I’m trying to imagine what it must be like for Routh’s family. That’s weird bragging rights. "Yeah, my cousin? He’s Superman. Wanna go out later?"

Do you suppose Brandon will give them a cut of all that merchandizing action going on right now? Happy Meals and action figures and all that? Do you suppose he’s unloading all this crap on his extended family as a means of taking care of them for the next 10 Christmas holidays?

Imagine what it must be like for the guy. In three days, he’ll have gone from being totally unknown to being tethered to The Man of Steel forever. Kind of funny how this seems to happen with Superman but not with Batman in regards to film. I mean Christopher Reeve was unknown when they cast him in the first Superman movie back in 1978. But for Batman, it’s been a string of "known" actors under the cape and cowl – Michael Keaton, Val Kilmer, George Clooney. The least well known of them all is probably Christian Bale – but only because they were looking to go back to square one with the character.

My point is, chosing unknowns to tackle Superman speaks to the enormity of the character. Even established celebrity can’t overcome it. I think that’s pretty cool.

I guess Routh was in-town today, not five minutes from my house, attending a showing of Superman Returns at the Century Theaters with 300 kids from the Boys and Girls Club of Iowa. It was a private event, so I wasn’t able to get in. And even though the theater expected people to hang around to catch a glimpse of Routh, I didn’t make the effort to check things out. I don’t know if I should feel stupid about that, or not. Quite truthfully, it’s probably the closest Hollywood is ever going to get to my front porch.