Single Celebrity Dads

-- intro: Dean Cain played Superman on television, but he's a Super-Dad in real life to 14-year-old son Christopher.

That's because Cain is flying solo these days as a single parent. He's one of several celebrity dads parenting on their own.

"It was really tough," the 48-year-old actor, best known for his role as Superman on the '90s hit "Lois & Clark," told People about the nasty custody battle with his ex-girlfriend, former Playboy model Samantha Toress. "Ultimately, we just disagreed on the best way to raise Christopher."

Cain, who now stars in VH1's basketball drama "Hit the Floor," has been raising his son solo since 2011, and father and son couldn't be closer.

"He's going to have to fight to stop me from kissing him," Cain said, tousling his son's hair during the interview with People. "He's my favorite person on the whole planet."

Though somewhat embarrassed, the teen responded with, "Yeah, same."

Cain, a Princeton-educated, former football player, takes his father role seriously.

"I'm better at being a father than I have been at anything else in my entire life," he told People in 2003.

Click through to see other famous single dads:

quicklist:title: Lenny Kravitztext: Being a rock star didn't make Lenny Kravitz any less strict when it came to solo-parenting daughter Zoe Kravitz. Zoe, who lived with her father from age 11 after he split with her mother, Lisa Bonet, told ASOS magazine in 2011: “My dad was brought up very old school, very strict – ‘Yes, ma’am, yes sir.’ So he’s wearing leather pants and a boa, but he would be like, ‘Did you do your chores today?’ Or, ‘That dress is too short!’ [Or,] ‘Yes, there’s a party going on with Mick Jagger and some models, but it’s your bedtime.'” For his part, Lenny called his relationship with his daughter, "the best thing I have in this world, that's it."media: 24933845

quicklist:title: Cristiano Ronaldotext: Portuguese soccer star and international sex symbol Cristiano Ronaldo shocked the world in 2010 with his announcement that he had become a father to a baby boy and planned to bring up his son without any help from the unnamed U.S. mother who was reportedly paid to serve as a surrogate. "It is with great joy and emotion that I inform I have recently become father to a baby boy," Ronaldo said on his Facebook page. "As agreed with the baby's mother, who prefers to have her identity kept confidential, my son will be under my exclusive guardianship."media: 24148400

quicklist:title: Dwyane Wadetext: The Miami Heat basketball star is one of the most high-profile celebrity single dads. He has been a hands-on dad since winning full-time custody of his two boys after a bruising three-year court battle. "It is not about the money I have or don't have," Wade told “Nightline.” "It is about the time I am willing to sit down across the table from my kids and if they don't get something right, helping them get it right." media: 24933899

quicklist:title: Ricky Martintext: Ricky Martin became a single father to twin boys via surrogate in 2008. Another hands-on dad, the singer juggled care for his twins without a nanny. "I'm doing this on my own because I don't want to miss a moment," he told People months after they were born. "Everything they do, from smiling to crying, feels like a blessing. Being a father feels amazing. This has been the most spiritual moment in my life."media: 24933753