MEMORY LANE batch5/20260908_162655

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## HEADING: MEMORY LANE
Smallville's Erica Durance is just the latest actress to play Lois, the Man of Steel's iron-willed girlfriend By Michael Davis

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D own through the decades, Lois Lane has changed almost as often as Clark Kent went to that Daily Planet broom closet. Now comes a new Lois in sultry Canadian actress Erica Durance, who plays her as an inquisitive newcomer to Smallville seeking answers to her cousin Chloe's disappearance. By season's end, she'll add some crackle to a town that never stays quiet for long.
As it's been for more than 50 years of Superman on screen, Lois Lane stirs things up. She's got questions and she's going to get answers, regardless of the consequences. That's the Lois common denominator among the actresses who have played Double L. The differences are many, thanks to a Superman mythology that adapts to changing times and allows interpretations of what is truth, justice and the American way.

1952
PHYLLIS COATES INCARNATION: Played Lois on the first season of The Adventures of Superman on TV, continuing a role she created for the theatrical film "Superman and the Mole Men." DEFINING QUALITIES: My Gal Friday career woman with a nose for news and kiss-me lips. REPORTING CHOPS: Clipped, professional style and a boundless curiosity about flying alien men. Don't-knock-first style earned her byline scoops. THE STYLE: Buttoned-up single brunette who favored hats and wool suits that seemed to say, "Don't touch me." A little chilly, this one. LOVE LIFE: Had it bad for Superman. Had zero for "Mr. Kent," who also wore his hat indoors at times.

1953
NOEL NEILL INCARNATION: Played Lois in succeeding years of The Adventures of Superman. DEFINING QUALITIES: Competitive to a fault, this sweeter-natured Lois was a magnet for trouble. Easily vexed by Clark's frequent disappearances. REPORTING CHOPS: Constantly violated one of the iron principles of journalism: Cover the story, don't become the story. Blew many a deadline while sealed in a vault filled with knockout gas. THE STYLE: Shopped in the Dowdy Department but always looked presentable. LOVE LIFE: Once prepared to marry Superman, who flew to Switzerland to bring her a bouquet of edelweiss. Alas, it was all a bittersweet dream.

1978
MARGOT KIDDER INCARNATION: The four films of the Christopher Reeve-era Superman series DEFINING QUALITIES: An assertive, tabloid Lois of madcap energy and big appetites, who could neither spell nor keep out of harm's way. REPORTING CHOPS: In a Barbara Walters-style exclusive, she tested Superman's X-ray vision by asking, "What color underwear am I wearing?" THE STYLE: Had a '70s-chic penthouse with a terrace made for romance and flights of fancy. LOVE LIFE: "Clark was her doormat," says Alfred Gough, executive producer and cocreator of Smallville. But Superman relinquished his powers and revealed himself as Clark—just to sleep with her.

1993
TERI HATCHER INCARNATION: The dramedy Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman DEFINING QUALITIES: A beguiling perfectionist who was ambitious and insecure, "Lois wanted to succeed on her own and not admit that she needed a man," Hatcher says. "In her heart she did." REPORTING CHOPS: "This Lois liked winning," says Paul Levitz, president and publisher of DC Comics. "She was very much in the [news] game." THE STYLE: Yuppie business attire that still managed to show off what Superman fan Jerry Seinfeld might describe as her "spectacular" assets. LOVE LIFE: Flirty banter with Dean Cain, but once the characters hooked up, romance fell to Earth.

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1996
DANA DELANY (VOICE) INCARNATION: WB's daytime adventure Superman: The Animated Series DEFINING QUALITIES: Delany played Lois as an updated version of Rosalind Russell: "She's fast-talking, snappy, full of spunk and tough." REPORTING CHOPS: A no-nonsense investigator with attitude. "It's clear that she's very good at her job and the equal of any man," Delany says. THE STYLE: Great gems, arched brows and an uptown "do." "I only wish I looked like Lois," says Delany, recalling this lavender blazer and white pleated skirt. "And lavender eyes to match!" LOVE LIFE: Had a big-time crush on Superman but kept things strictly business with Clark.

2004
ERICA DURANCE INCARNATION: WB's Smallville DEFINING QUALITIES: Notably nosy into everyone's business, "She's willing to take people on and just say what's on her mind," Gough says. Plus: Has issues with her military father; a Great Santini type "who wanted a son and got a daughter." REPORTING CHOPS: This combat-trained high schooler "is curious and tenacious but hasn't really thought about being a journalist," Durance says. THE STYLE: A wardrobe befitting a WB hottie. LOVE LIFE: The Army brat disses Tom Welling as just a farm boy. But there are sparks, (Clark's buck naked when they first meet.)
-Additional reporting by Shawna Maicom

TV GUIDE 41