It Happened One Weekend Afterword

It Happened One Night (1934) stars Clark Gable as Peter Warne - a fast-talking, recently fired newsman and Claudette Colbert as Ellie Andrews - a socialite who's running away from her father to join the man she married.

She's snooty, he's brash, she's rich, he's poor - they have absolutely nothing in common with each other. Which is why, of course, they fall in love.

Many of the scenes are unique and memorable. Peter Warne explaining to Ellie Andrews the ways different men undress, Ellie's version of hitchhiking, and the Walls of Jericho are all classics.

The movie focused on the clash between socio-economic classes. Therefore, my first instinct was to continue this theme by writing Lex in the Ellie Andrews part (rich) and Clark as Peter Warne (working man). Thinking about it more, however, I realized that this wouldn't work. Peter Warne is the know-it-all. The one that spouts lectures on how to dunk doughnuts, piggyback riding, you name it. He's been around the block, so to speak. Obviously, this is not in any way, shape, or form Clark Kent. It does sound a lot like Lex, though.

Instead of writing about differing socio-economic classes, I changed it to a culture clash between species - human and Kryptonian. Kal-El would be the one running off to join what he thought was his true love (Lana Lang in the King Westley role). Lex would be the human that lectures him as he helps, his motives for doing so opportunistic.

Many of the memorable scenes from the movie are in this story in some form.