I'm watching the early episodes of Lois and Clark on DVD---for the first time since their initial airing---and am a little surprised at how much I am enjoying them. I'm also struck by John Shea's Lex Luthor---except for the full head of hair, he seems a pretty good recreation of the Byrne/Wolfman version of Luthor. I remember Shea left the show at the end of the first season for reasons I can't recall, nor can I remember if Lex goes bald or was bald the whole time but hiding it.

Regardless, I also think that the movie versions of Luthors, while they definitely had some great moments (not to mention some choice lines of dialogue) and undeniable star power, ultimately come up lacking in comparison to Lois and Clark's Shea and Smallville's Michael Rosenbaum. In fact, I think Rosenbaum is the best and most 3-dimensional Lex Luthor overall: smart, charismatic, and never, ever buffoonish or goofy, even if we never got to quite seem go into full supervillain mode.

What say you? (I know that the old Superboy show also had a Lex Luthor character, but since I never saw that show I'm just going to pretend no one else did either.)

Rosenbaum's Lex is only topped by Clancy Brown's.

Both had the character pegged from the first episode.

I liked the Rosenbaum Luthor better than the rest of this list. Hackman was too much of a Batman style over-the-top villain. My favorite though was Sherman Howard from the 1980s Superboy show.

Kurt, who is Clancy Brown and when did he play Lex?

Mark, if you didn't vote already, I can add Superboy's Lex to the list.

Voice of Lex on Superman Adventures, JL, JLU, Public Enemies... etc., etc., etc....

I hadn't voted yet.

This.

I think the guy playing the devil in that new show "Eastwick" would be a good Lex. (The show has been cancelled). His name is Paul Gross.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-4VSChdnCaA[/youtube]

I've added the Superboy choice, if anyone's interested. Still never seen it, myself.

There was a different actor playing Lex Luthor in the first year of Superboy, as I recall.

There was also a different Superboy and the T.J. White character, both gone by year two.

Sherman Howard *was* very good.

Rosenbaum is my favorite.

Lyle Talbot was pretty good in the Superman Atom Man serial.

You people are making me cry.

You didn't like Lyle Talbot? He struck me as a right and proper Luthor.

I thought Shea was a mighty good Lex back during the Lois & Clark days; haven't revisited the show since first run to reconsider, though.

I haven't seen it, but I don't want to keep having to add more Luthors to the poll.

Matthew Munn played the young Lex on the pilot episode of Smallville.

I'm just saying....

Would the real Lex Luthor please stand up? Or, make a time machine out of two aspirin and a transistor radio, so we can verify your identity?

Not live-action, but the guy who did this voice was great:

I liked Lyle Talbot, too.

I voted for Rosenbaum. I think he's great, and it was cool how we got to watch him slowly turn evil (although actually, it was kind of painful in a way, too, because you started to like the character.).