“It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s … a drone?

Well, you know the right finishing line is “It’s Superman.”

However, drones have been filling the Pennsylvania skies lately, and they have truly encroached the New Jersey air. I have been in contact with a few of my New Jersey-based friends and they are worried.

What about sports and pop culture? Have we associated a number of players, teams or situations that have been linked to “flying” or “flying objects”

In this week’s version of my Yesterday column — reminiscing about sports and pop culture from the 1960s, 70s, 80s and sometimes before and beyond, I’ll look back at some of the “flying” associations with the above mentioned.

To the Skies and Beyond ... When it comes to sports nicknames associated with flying, here are some: ex-Phillie Shane “The Flyin’ Hawaiian” Victorino, Quadry “Missile” Ismail, Raghib “Rocket” Ismail, Aroldis “Cuban Missile” Chapman, “Bullet” Bob Hayes, Michael “His Airness” Jordan or “Air Jordan,” Vince “Air Canada” Carter, Don “Air” Coryell, Steve “Air” McNair, David “Skywalker” Thompson, Kenny “Sky” Walker, and Gayle “The Kansas Comet” Sayers.

Finally, there was Pennsylvania native Honus “The Flying Dutchman” Wagner, who won seven batting titles with a career average of .329. Wagner played 21 seasons with Louisville and Pittsburgh until the age of 41. He had a career OPS of .858, slugging percentage of .467 and a WAR of 131.0.

Faster Than a Speeding Bullet ... The famed “Adventures of Superman” TV series aired from 1952-58 with the first three seasons in black and white and the last four in color.

The show began as a result of an initial movie titled “Superman and the Mole Man” in 1951 that was eventually turned into a TV two-parter. It’s a classic and depicts an alien from the time.

They were before my time, but I remember watching them — particularly on New York’s Channel 11 — as a kid and still watch today.

Another Flyer ... Along with Superman, you have to remember “Underdog” that aired from 1964-1967 on NBC. Like Superman’s Clark Kent identity, Underdog was known as a mild and meek “shoeshine boy.” This series also was a big hit in syndication.

Was It Live or Was It … (Memorex) ... On Oct. 30, 1938, Orson Wells created mass hysteria when he told the world the country was being invaded by martians during a CBS radio broadcast from New Jersey.

In reality, Wells was creating a martian invasion based on H.G. Wells’ novel, “The War of the Worlds.” He described a flying aircraft landing on a farm in Grovers Mill, N.J. Wells told of martians with ray guns roaming the countryside.

Wells did preface the broadcast by stating it as fiction, and he had plenty of apologizing along his way.

On the Tube ... Remember the Jetsons? It was a cartoon based on a family in the presumed space age of 2000 and beyond. It aired as a prime-time show on NBC from Sept. 1962 to March 1963.

The show gained more traction as a rerun in syndication, as you may know.

“My Favorite Martian” aired from 1963-1966 on CBS. Newspaper reporter Tim O’Hara stumbled upon a martian whose ship crashed. He took him home and referred to him as “Uncle Martin.”

This was a breakthrough show for Bill Bixby, who later starred in “The Incredible Hulk.”

How about “Gazoo” from “The Flintstones?” He was the miniature martian that first appeared in 1965. Gazoo was banished from planet Zetox for inventing a doomsday machine (there’s a good trivia question for you).

Another Classic Game (Film) ... In keeping with the holidays, did anyone see the film, “Santa Claus vs. the Devil?” It was a Mexican film in 1959 that was dubbed in English a year later.

Santa Claus is in outer space battling a demon named Pitch sent by Lucifer to ruin Christmas and “make all children do evil things.”

It was on the list of “Mystery Science Theater 3000,” which is a lost cult classic.

We Flew It ... When you think of flying objects, you have to include “Frisbees” to the list.

They were initially invented in the late 1930, but the Wham-O company marketed them in the mid-50s.

The plastic flying disc is still a hit today, and it has expanded to include frisbee golf. Reportedly, the idea came from workers tossing around pie tins at Connecticut’s Frisbie Pie Company.

I bet you have one in your garage.

Can’t Forget ... I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the song, “Fly Eagles Fly,” but do you remember the disco hit “Fly Robin Fly” in 1975, or Bill Conti’s “Gonna Fly Now” as the “Rocky” theme in 1976?

Or as a kid or a young adult, how about the Oscar Meyer blimp referred to as the “Wienermobile?”

Also, did you have the “Superfly” album like I did? I watched the movie as an early teen, and I didn’t quite get everything at the time.

Readers Write ... Former Salaries and Phillies

Hi Jeff!

I enjoyed your recent column on top salaries from the old days. If those players, such as Mays, Williams, DiMaggio, Aaron, Koufax, Schmidt and Ryan (baseball), and Chamberlain (basketball) put up their numbers in today’s game, their package could approach or even reach $1 billion. They might own part of the club. Don’t forget. They did it without steroids.

Does anybody remember wrestler Karl Istaz from the WWWF? He was billed as “Karl Gotch.” Along with Renee Goulet, they held the WWWF tag belt from August 1971-February 1972. He really knew how to wrestle. I mean WRESTLE!

Although we remember that Dick Allen and John Callison were the big guns for the Phillies in the 60s, two teammates deserve recognition. Tony Gonzalez played for them for nine years, hitting a solid .286 and flashing leather in CF or LF. Wes Covington gave them offense (.284 with HR pop) from the LF position, although speed and defense were not his strong points. Unfortunately, he played 15 years too early. He would have made a great DH.

Richard Ochs

Walnutport, PA

WWF/WWE Wrap ... Each week, I’ll recall a former wrestler from our past.

In keeping with the theme, the one wrestler I recall is Jimmy “Superfly” Snuka, whose acrobatic leaps and “Superfly Splash” electrified crowds in the 1980s.

Snuka, a Fiji native whose real name was James Wiley Smith, had a 45-year career that began in 1970 and ended in 2015. He wrestled in 2,858 matches and had a career mark of 1858-762 with 238 draws.

Once a legendary villain of the World Wrestling Federation who transformed into a hero character, Snuka used jeering audiences and his athleticism to rise to stardom during the wrestling craze of the 1980s.

Snuka died in 2017, shortly after the murder case over the 1983 killing of his mistress was dismissed. He was 73 and had been battling cancer.

He was a hit in the WWE, but he gained heavyweight and tag-team champion titles in the NWA, ECW, and WCW.

Snuka made national headlines when he was charged with third-degree murder in the death of his girlfriend who was found in an Allentown-based hotel room.

However, charges were dismissed against Snuka when he was suffering from dementia and cancer.

Final Thought ... In the true spirit of Christmas, I would like to send blessings and well wishes to former sports editors Ed Hedes and Emmett McCall, and current editor Patrick Matsinko and assistant editor Rod Heckman for allowing me to contribute this column and others, as it keeps me going every day.

Also, special thanks and wishes to colleague T.J. Engle for his support on many levels over the past few years, as well as Rich Strack and my loyal reader and contributor Richard Ochs for their support.

I’ll contact Santa and see if he can leave each of you a new laptop or some Phillies tickets around the Christmas tree for each of you.

Never forget your yesterday Christmas and holiday memories.

Your comments are always welcomed; email them to tnsports@tnonline.com