|
|
Superman Fan Creates Amazing LEGO Model of Super Museum
by Neil Cole
NASA Aerospace Engineer, author, and fellow Superman fan Nicholas Mastramico (aka Nicholas Cara) recently created an absolutely amazing LEGO model of the world famous Super Museum in Metropolis, IL and presented it to museum curators Jim Hambrick and Morgan Siebert this past week.
In the following exclusive interview, the Superman Super Site had an opportunity to talk to Mastramico about the process of creating the Super Museum LEGO model and other LEGO projects he has worked on over the years. Enjoy!
Super Site: How long have you been creating LEGO models and what was your very first LEGO creation?Mastramico: I’ve been working on models since I was really young with my Dad. We would always stop at our local hobby shop and get sci-fi models (mostly Star Trek) but one of the things both of us always hated was we could never get the paint right. We would take so much time to build the models just perfect and then the bad paint job would kill it. So years later I found an Ecto-1 model when I was walking around Hobby Lobby and I thought, “Hey this would be fun”. And again I took my time putting it together and the paint job killed it. My wife actually was the one who found a LEGO Ecto-1 at a store after that failure and bought it for me. I simply loved it. I had the great time building it and I did not have to worry about the paint at the end. That model really got me interested in what LEGO could do. I still have a bucket of LEGO from when I was a little kid but until the LEGO Ecto-1 I never thought of how those simple bricks could be used in different ways and to make almost anything.
My first original LEGO creation was a LEGO Space Launch System (SLS) rocket for my desk. That is the rocket I am proudly working on at NASA right now and I really wanted a physical representation of that. So it took a while to create a model that really made the perfectionist in me happy but it proudly sits next to my workspace every day.
Super Site: What inspired you to create the LEGO Super Museum model and how long did it take you to create it?
Mastramico: The Lego Super Museum actually was a series of events that worked out perfectly. I initially did not intend to even build the LEGO Super Museum at all.
Last year at the Superman Celebration in Metropolis IL, I was standing in the heat waiting for a few of the celebrities (I think it was Brandon Routh and his parents) to come to the Superman Statue to take the annual celebrity photo before the Q/A. So while I was sitting there sweating, I kept looking at the Superman Statue and really took notice that the statue’s base was the Superman S. I had known that before but standing there studying it I really took notice how creative and well constructed the based was and the only thing I could think was "I bet I could build this..."
So a few months later, I started designing the LEGO Superman Statue and after a few weeks of figuring out the statue digitally, I posted the design on numerous Superman Facebook pages asking what people thought. I was really hoping to make a few contacts with the Chamber of Commerce and the Save the Massac committee in Metropolis. I had just had the humbling success of getting one of my LEGO models (a LEGO Kerwyn model) get displayed on MeTV’s Svengoolie show and featured on one of his nationally broadcasted segments. So my hope was if I created a Statue model that could get enough eyes on it possibly the CoC would like to display it and maybe the Save the Massac charity auction would like a version of it for their auction.
Well I was extremely happy with the response online and both the Metropolis CoC and the Save the Massac committee immediately wanted a copy of my Statue model. With the buzz the Lego models made online, word of it made it to Morgan Siebert at the Superman Museum who contacted me and after a few conversations the idea of creating the LEGO Super Museum was born.
Designing the model digitally took around 2 months to get perfect. The interesting part of the model ended up being the scale of the Museum. Originally, I wanted to keep the Museum to the scale where I could use LEGO doors, windows etc. However, I found out very early that LEGO simply did not have parts to accurately create the unique architecture and color scheme of the Super Museum. So to really get the details of the Museum right I had to create my own windows and my own doors out LEGO to get the Lego Model to truly represent the actual structure. For example each door of the Lego Museum is made of nearly 20-30 LEGO bricks instead of just one.
Ordering all of the pieces took 2 months and the construction of the model took about a month however, that was only because I was furloughed for the month of January. This allowed me to put in about 4+ hours a day to build. If I had not been furloughed for that month, it would have taken me (with my usual schedule) 3-4 months of building.
Super Site: When creating custom LEGO models, what steps do you take in order to prepare and how many bricks did the Super Museum require?
Mastramico: Well initially, I always try to figure out the scale of the LEGO and the amount of pieces it would really take to bring to life. You can design anything digitally however it is a different thing altogether ordering all of the pieces, building the model and then finding somewhere to display the model. The design and construction parts are the parts I enjoy the most. I’ve given away more models than I can remember to kids or even adults after I’m done since I didn’t have anywhere to put them.
Super Site: What other custom LEGO models have you created and what has been your favorite and why?
Mastramico: Besides the LEGO Super Museum and the Lego Superman Statues I have three other completely original LEGO models that I’m really proud of. I will attach images of all three. The Lego Kerwyn I mentioned earlier that is displayed on the set of MeTV’s Svengoolie show. That model was extra special since I added the movement of the mouth to talk and move side to side. Movement isn’t something I usually do on my models so when this worked out I was really happy. The other was the LEGO Space Launch System. This model has evolved along with the actual rocket itself. While we didn’t get all of the 10,000 votes LEGO Ideas needed when we submitted it I made a number of great contacts through that campaign and it is possible that NASA and I might take up the charge to get a LEGO version of our rocket produced the closer we get to launch. Honestly my favorite is a full size University of Alabama football helmet. I toyed with this idea for months (which is why it is my favorite – it went through so many different iterations) but I finally got the design perfect. I even took it down to Tuscaloosa (my alma-mater) and the reaction from students and professors walking around once they saw that it was actually made of LEGO was great. I’ve been trying to get in contact with the athletics department about seeing if one of the coaches would like one but haven’t had any success yet.
Super Site: In regard to Superman's Official Hometown of Metropolis, IL, how many times have your attended the annual Superman Celebration and what are your favorite things about the festival?
Mastramico: This will be the 10th year my family and I will travel to the Superman Celebration. My family and I have just fell in love with the town of Metropolis and the Celebration every first weekend of June has become an annual family trip. Something we love the most about the celebration is its simplicity. In essence, it a street fair but with just enough events for families and Comic Con fans to bring in visitors from all over the world. The cost of the whole weekend is a fraction of what it would cost to go to a Comic Convention but you still get to meet a number of great celebrities and comicbook artists like the big conventions. In addition, I honestly root for this town; it is filled with hard working people that welcome you warmly every time you stop by. And you can see that welcoming nature start to flourish every time you come back because the amount of new businesses popping up on Market Street like Sissy’s Sweetshop and others. My family and I have had numerous other great experiences in Metropolis outside of the Superman Celebration, most notably seeing the 2017 Solar Eclipse Totality. That was such an amazing sight and there we were standing right next to Superman witnessing it.
I even wrote an article on Metropolis IL and the Superman Celebration (under my pen name Nicholas Cara) for the upcoming Scary Monsters Magazine “Monster Memories #27” due out in bookstores such as Books N Million in March in hopes to promote the town to newer and different audience.
Super Site: What is your next custom LEGO project and do you have any plans for creating any other Metropolis, IL landmarks?
Mastramico: I’m not 100% sure of my next LEGO project right now since I’m knee deep in writing my 3rd Grey Ghost novel right now. The amount of design and LEGO pieces the Museum took definitely fulfilled my quota for building for a little while. BUT you never know when an idea will strike and I’ll be on my computer designing again and my wife will be telling me that there are a bunch of packages of LEGO in the mail that day. LOL!
As for the city of Metropolis and its landmarks. We will see, I am very open to continuing the (as some online have put it) Lego Metropolis series. However, that really is going to depend if any of the business owners or officials there have any interest in the idea. I cannot give enough credit to Morgan at the Super Museum for taking a risk on me to complete such a large project for her and the Museum. I hope that the work has impressed others there who might want to take a chance to see what I can do with their business.
I am also very interested in seeing how the LEGO Superman Statue does at this year’s Save the Massac charity auction. If this kind of LEGO model is something that can raise a considerable amount of funds for the Massac organization then maybe it will be something I can work with them again for next year.
Super Site: What advice could you offer others who may be interested in created custom LEGO models and tips on getting started?
Mastramico: My first advice is to stop thinking there are limitations to building. There are no rules to these bricks. Also, don’t be afraid to fail with your initial ideas. Some of my best designs have come from failing and failing until suddenly like magic there was the answer. Do not stress about it and just have fun.
The next time you are in the Metropolis, IL area, be sure to stop by the Super Museum to see Mastramico's proudly displayed LEGO model as well as all the various Superman memorabilia, collectibles, and one-of-a-kind items featured throughout the museum itself.
For more information on the Super Museum, visit SuperMuseum.com. Also be sure to visit Mastramico's website where he has written a series of Grey Ghost novels under the pseudonym of author Nicholas Cara.
