George Reeves was the 'faster than a speeding bullet' guy.  Trivial note: he was one of the "Tarleton twins" at the beginning of the movie "Gone With the Wind".  Some people have suggested that George Reeves' alleged suicide was really a disguised murder.  Here's one Web site discussing it: 
http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mreeves.html
To the best of my recollection (I may have a word or two wrong), here is the George Reeves' Superman intro:
Faster than a speeding bullet-
More powerful than a locomotive-
Able to leap tall buildings at a single bound-....
LOOK! Up in the sky...is it a bird? Is it a plane? 
NO! It's SUPERMAN!
Yes, Superman!  Strange visitor from another planet
able to change the course of mighty rivers,
bend steel in his bare hands,
and who, posing as a mild-mannered reporter for a great metropolitan newspaper,
fights a never-ending battle for TRUTH, JUSTICE, and the AMERICAN WAY!!!!