Batman and Star Tre k are among the most iconic TV series of the 1960s, and many fans fantasize about a crossover between the two shows. In 2005, amateur film director Christopher Allen didn’t just fantasize: he decided to make a film, Star Trek vs. Batman (released in 2006), where Batman and Robin meet Kirk, Spock, and the rest of the Enterprise crew . While Chris had imagined just shooting it in a garage with cheap props, the denizens of a certain all-seeing, all-knowing 66 Batman message boar...
Mar 03, 2022•1 hr 54 min•Ep. 179
For decades, the creation of Batman , and all the characters and things surrounding him, was credited to Bob Kane . But it turned out that someone else, Bill Finger , was heavily involved in the character’s creation and was the uncredited writer of many of the early stories. Kane actively quashed rumors that the words “Batman by Bob Kane” were less than accurate. Kane became rich and famous; Finger died flat broke. Batman and Bill is a film about the controversy over Batman’s creation, and the s...
Feb 17, 2022•1 hr 30 min•Ep. 178
As we showed last time, Cannan and Cash ’s Marsha script wasn’t produceable for many reasons. So Greenway handed off the project to Stanford Sherman , fresh off Hizzoner the Penguin , to salvage it, and he quickly realized he had no choice but to start from scratch. The result, of course, is the Marsha two-parter we all know (though perhaps not love). It comes as no surprise, though that some changes were made between the “final” script and what was shot. This time, we take a look at those diffe...
Feb 03, 2022•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 177
We don't know whose idea the character Marsha, Queen of Diamonds , was, but it’s clear that she was created with one woman in mind: Zsa Zsa Gabor . A script for the actress was commissioned by Greenway Productions through a talent agency to two writers, Tom Cannan, Jr , and Jack Cash . The script they produced , Marsha, The Queen of Diamonds (note the extra definite article) is riddled with problems, from requiring special effects way beyond the show's means, to flagrant mischaracterization of t...
Jan 20, 2022•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 176
More than one attempt was made to include Two-Face among the villains of Batman ’66 . We’ve already discussed Peter Rabe ’s attempt ; this time, we discuss a treatment by science fiction legend Harlan Ellison , The Two-Way Crimes of Two-Face . Why didn’t it go to a full script? What would have needed to be changed to fit the rules of the Batman ’66 world? How well does the 2014 comics adaptation, Batman ’66: The Lost Episode , capture both Ellison’s idea and the tone of the show? We touched on t...
Jan 06, 2022•1 hr 23 min•Ep. 175
These Batpoles were made for slidin’! This time, we enjoy the holidays and take a break from the Batpoles to present our special look at the 1967 Nancy Sinatra TV special Movin’ With Nancy ! It’s a detailed, admiring, but sometimes irreverent look at a program we love.
Dec 23, 2021•2 hr 3 min
While Batman season one seemed to have a consistent view of women - incapable of being hardened criminals, attracted to luxury items (and Batman ), etc. - season two (as is true in many respects) tends to be less consistent. While some molls are ditzy and childish, others not only have agency, but seem more intelligent than the villain. Ma Parker and Marsha appear as the first two truly villainous women (aside from Catwoman ) of the series. Even Aunt Harriet shows herself to be smarter and tough...
Dec 09, 2021•1 hr 32 min•Ep. 174
What was the cultural environment in the US in 1965, as Batman was being developed? What were the events that led up to the decision that William Dozier would indeed make a Batman show? If TV in the ‘60s was thinking about what it could do better than movies, what’s the answer to that question, and did it show up on Batman ? What were some of the rules that Lorenzo Semple Jr made regarding how Batman and Robin should be written? This time, we look at what was going on in 1965 and the discussions...
Nov 25, 2021•1 hr 21 min•Ep. 173
When producer William Dozier and writer Lorenzo Semple, Jr , met up in Madrid in May 1965, Batman wasn’t all they were cooking up; it wasn’t even the main reason they were meeting. Semple had been developing an idea called Mr. Zero , a possible action/adventure TV show that had nothing to do with the character who would come to be called “Mr. Freeze.” This time, we take a look at a 40-page presentation document Semple wrote to describe the series. What does it tell us about possible casting, cha...
Nov 11, 2021•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 172
In 2009, Batman wasn’t yet available on home video, with the rights issue still unresolved, and there was no certainty that would ever change. Adam West , 80, feared that it wouldn’t change in his lifetime. So he set out to release a sort of standalone commentary track, setting up cameras at his home in Idaho to capture his memories of each episode of the show. It’s fun to see him talk about Batman, and the package of his reminiscences, Adam West Naked , includes some interesting tidbits. But th...
Oct 28, 2021•1 hr 25 min•Ep. 171
In the mid-1970s, Power Records (a division of Peter Pan records) released audio stories of a number of popular properties, including Batman . Two volumes were released of four stories each, and some of the stories were then released as 7” “singles” complete with a comics version of the same story. Occasional elements in the stories were echos of the ’66 show. While the Power Records superhero discography utterly passed Tim and Paul by at the time, JB Anderton was really into them. JB, creator o...
Oct 14, 2021•1 hr 31 min•Ep. 170
Mr. Zero ? Dr. Schimmel ? No, Mr. Freeze ! In Max Hodge ’s first draft of Instant Freeze , the comics villain Mr. Zero, for reasons we discussed last episode, became Mr. Freeze. But the script contains many more references to his “real” name, Dr. Schimmel, than made it to what was broadcast. Why? Where’d this script's unexplained parade come from? What would the Batman series have been like with more animation effects on the screen, outside of the Batfights? All this and more as we dig into a pr...
Sep 30, 2021•1 hr 31 min•Ep. 169
In 1966, William Dozier’s Greenway Production s was riding high, seemingly on the verge of building a TV empire built on superheroes: first Batman , then the Green Hornet . Why not keep going in that direction? An entire pilot episode of Dick Tracy was made, starring Ray MacDonnell , and all signs point to Dozier having confidence that the show would be bought by NBC - but it wasn’t. Meanwhile, Greenway also made a test film for Wonder Woman , starring Ellie Wood Walker , with a script that woul...
Sep 16, 2021•1 hr 52 min•Ep. 168
The Wrong Earth , written by Tom Peyer , is a comics series in which the super-square Dragonflyman and grim & gritty Dragonfly find themselves on each other’s versions of earth. In the second volume, recently concluded, the two meet each other on yet another earth. Peyer, editor-in-chief at Ahoy Comics , is an industry veteran with many writing credits under his belt, including for the Batman ’66 comics series. This time, Tom joins us to discuss our favorite show and what The Wrong Earth mig...
Sep 02, 2021•1 hr 21 min•Ep. 167
Batman and Robin (1997) is notorious as one of the worst Batman films, panned by both audiences and critics. But wait a minute. All four of the Tim Burton/Joel Schumacher Batman films have their problems. Doesn't B&R 's story hold together relatively well? Isn't it kind of .... entertaining? Could it actually be the best of the four? Of course it's far from perfect, and we discuss some of its problems, including a pretty un-Batman-like Batman and a misguided "homage" to Batman '66 . We discu...
Aug 19, 2021•1 hr 18 min•Ep. 166
As any Batman ’66 fan knows, three different actors played the villain Mr. Freeze on the show: George Sanders , Otto Preminger , and Eli Wallach . Any discussion of Mr. Freeze on the show prompts the question: Which Freeze do you like best? And, which Freeze script do you like best? In this episode, we give our answers to those questions, as well as exploring how the show set the course for the character in the comics (at least until Paul Dini changed it in 1992), potential reasons for the lack ...
Aug 05, 2021•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 165
Lorenzo Semple, Jr. having made his changes to Robert C. Dennis and Earl Barret 's first King Tut script, next it was the turn of director Charles R. Rondeau and master ad-libber Victor Buono . How much of the story that made it to the screen was determined by them? This time, we discuss two different versions of the Curse of Tut script, and how much changed after the "final" version. Also, a Bat Research Lab on Dennis and Barret, your comments about all three versions of the scripts (and on our...
Jul 22, 2021•1 hr 35 min•Ep. 164
As the early episodes of Batman were being produced, and broadcasts had not yet begun, Executive Script Consultant Lorenzo Semple, Jr. , was editing scripts and trying to get across his vision for the show to the other writers. Robert C. Dennis and Earl Barret ’s script for "The Phantom Pharaoh" gives us a peek at Semple’s vision for how Batman , Robin , and the other characters should be written. This time, we look at the script, the comments Semple wrote on it, and how it differs from the end ...
Jul 08, 2021•2 hr 2 min•Ep. 163
The Lego Batman Movie (2017) gives us both a unique Batman, and a Batman considered to be in the continuity of every iteration of Batman - in the comics, the ‘40s serials, the films, the animated shows, and even - or, perhaps, especially - Batman ’66 . In this episode we take note of a movie about a Batman that is emphatically not the Adam West version, but nonetheless is making dozens of references to the West version. ALSO: Burt Ward talking about injuries on the set, and a jazzy version of He...
Jun 24, 2021•1 hr 22 min•Ep. 162
A frequent assertion about Cesar Romero ’s Joker is that, over the course of the Batman series, he goes from genuinely evil to just silly or bratty. Others disagree with this and maintain that he’s the same all the way through. We thought (as did some listeners on our recent survey) that this was a good focus for a Joker discussion, so we asked noted Bat-fan and cartoonist Ken Holtzhouser to join us in discussing Romero’s take on the Clown Prince of Crime. We also discuss how Romero compares to ...
Jun 10, 2021•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 161
After more than six years of doing this show and reliving our childhoods, what have we decided is our favorite story of the series ? Our favorite piece of bat-equipment ? Our favorite villain ? This time, we rank all our favorites! Plus, the “bardcore” version of the Batman theme , and your comments on episode 157 !...
May 27, 2021•1 hr 31 min•Ep. 160
For whatever reason, Batman ’s producers decided that they would not do Peter Rabe’s Two-Face script (see last episode) as it was written. Instead, Lorenzo Semple Jr. adapted it into The Joker’s Last Laugh , keeping just enough of the story that Rabe got a “story” credit. This time we look at Semple’s first draft of that episode, which retains some aspects of Rabe that didn’t make it to the broadcast version, and a few other things that we kind of wish had made the final. Also, the William Cheun...
May 13, 2021•1 hr 32 min•Ep. 159
Two-Face never quite made it to Batman ’66 (unless you count William Shatner ’s animated turn in 2017, as pictured). But two known attempts were made in the ‘60s: the Harlan Ellison treatment (which later became the comic book Batman ’66: The Lost Episode ), and Peter Rabe ’s full two-part script , The Two-Faced Counterfeit and The Counterfeit Counterfoiled , which was adapted by Lorenzo Semple, Jr. , into a Joker story (as we’ll see next time!). In this episode, we take a look at Rabe’s script....
Apr 29, 2021•1 hr 48 min•Ep. 158
Part of Adam West ’s renaissance as a performer, once his fans were old enough to cast him in stuff, was voicing various versions of himself in cartoons. One of these was in Nickelodeon show The Fairly OddParents , in which “TV’s Adam West” was the famous actor who had played the hero “Catman” — but thought he really was Catman! This time we take a look at Adam’s appearances on the show. Also: The 7th issue of the Batman ’66 comic book , featuring False Face ! Art by past Deconstructing Comics i...
Apr 15, 2021•1 hr 34 min•Ep. 157
In 2003, CBS broadcast the special Return to the Batcave , featuring Adam West and Burt Ward walking through a search for the stolen Batmobile as they reminisced about their time making Batman . The reminiscence was hampered a bit by the show still being tied up in rights issues; only clips from Batman: The Movie were included, not from the TV series itself. This time, we delve into the good and the bat-awful of this special. Also: J-Flexx's Bat Rap , your response to our interview with Greg Pat...
Apr 01, 2021•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 156
When Stanley Ralph Ross sat down to write what would be his final Batman script, which he titled Batman Meets his Match , he built it around a magical character who could turn invisible: Dr. Cabala . It was only in a later draft that, for whatever reason, he made Cabala the second banana to his alchemist wife, Dr. Cassandra . This time, we examine both versions of the script to see how much of this story was intact from the beginning and which aspects evolved later. Also, why do pseudosciences l...
Mar 18, 2021•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 155
1966 Batmania didn’t just put a lot of Batman toys on the shelves; it inspired twists and parodies on the show itself. One of these was Hal Seeger’s Batfink , which was not exactly a parody but appropriated a fair number of elements of the show. Batfink came on the heels of Batman , but years into the ’66 show’s syndication, The Secret Lives of Waldo Kitty included Catman , a hero who was clearly a takeoff from the Caped Crusader. This time, we dig into these cartoons, their shared DNA with the ...
Mar 04, 2021•1 hr 38 min•Ep. 154
Burgess Meredith put glee and humor into his portrayal of the Penguin . Who knew it could be just as fun to play Meredith playing the Penguin? Greg Patterson , and attorney by trade, has also acted in some one-man shows at Mount Vernon Chautauqua in Ohio, playing historical figures including Meredith. He talks to us this time about his Bat-fandom and his portrayals of Meredith and Pengy. Also: your mail about episode 150 on the "Astrologer" script , and we look (only as briefly as is warranted) ...
Feb 18, 2021•1 hr 22 min•Ep. 153
We need help procuring an interview with John Astin - we have some questions about his "substitution" as Riddler that we'd like to ask him! But he doesn't do interviews for free, and we're not exactly a major media outlet. Listen for details and, if you've got a few bucks for the cause, donate them here by THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2021, at 7 a.m. Eastern Time.
Feb 09, 2021•2 min
The Riddler , a one-off villain in a Bill Finger/Dick Sprang comic book story in 1948, languished for nearly two decades until, in 1965, Gardner Fox and Sheldon Moldoff happened to bring him back… just as a certain TV producer, William Dozier , was researching the idea of making a Batman TV show. Riddler ended up in the premiere episode, played by Frank Gorshin , and Gorshin was nominated for an Emmy for the role. Thus was the Riddler cemented as one of Batman’s greatest foes. So the ’66 show is...
Feb 04, 2021•1 hr 53 min•Ep. 152
