To The Batpoles! Batman 1966
232 episodes - English - Latest episode: 18 days ago - ★★★★★ - 45 ratingsLike many who grew up in the '60s and '70s (and perhaps even '80s and later), Tim and Paul had the course of their lives changed by the 1966 Batman TV show, from the types of play they did growing up to their present-day interests. In this series, they discuss the show's allure and its failures, the arc of the show from satire to sitcom, its influences (the '40s serials and the comic books themselves) and the things it, in turn, influenced.
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Episodes
#216 Putting a Finger on the Clock King script
April 11, 2024 12:00 - 1 hour - 88.8 MBThe Clock King’s Crazy Crimes/The Clock King Gets Crowned is the one Batman ’66 arc written by Bill Finger, now credited as a co-creator of the character, and Charles Sinclair. Unsurprisingly, the first draft of the script reveals a writer not well versed in the rules of Hollywood, such as that an actor who says one word on screen is more expensive than one in a non-speaking role. This time we look at the first draft, final, and revised final scripts of the Clock King story, finding bits th...
#215 Women in Season 3, pt. 1: Villains (and heroes!) approach gender parity
March 14, 2024 12:00 - 1 hour - 82.2 MBOne of the most striking things — in a good way, for once! — about Batman’s third season is the number of villains who are women. Also, of course, this is the season of Batgirl, who is more aggressively “feminized” than any other woman on the show, perhaps because she’s doing “a man’s job.” This time we begin a look at how the show presents women in season three by looking at the season's first five episodes, and we’re joined again by novelist Nancy Northcott. PLUS: What if King Crimson p...
#214 “Mr. Terrific”: A tough pill to swallow? Pt 2
February 15, 2024 13:00 - 1 hour - 62.1 MBMr. Terrific was cancelled after half a season, but… was it really a terrible show? Is star Stephen Strimpell partly to blame? This time, we push back on Thirteen Week Theatre’s take on Strimpell, consider why pill popping was such a common way to get superpowers in the Sixties, and the show’s …. agressive … laugh track. Also, were the network execs commissioning superhero sitcoms really trying to imitate Batman, or just cash in? Plus, The Music Within’s bass guitar cover of the Batman th...
#213 “Mr. Terrific”: A tough pill to swallow? Pt 1
February 01, 2024 13:00 - 1 hour - 59.5 MBThis time we look at the other sitcom that tried to cash in on Batman, CBS’s Mr. Terrific. It’s goofier than Captain Nice and not as funny (although the laugh track clearly doesn’t think that!), but with a surprisingly good cast. We discuss the unaired pilot, and the first 8 episodes of the 17-episode series, which is quite different from the pilot, with an utterly different cast and different situation for Mr. T’s alter ego, Stanley Beamish. Plus: Max Diaz Music’s “punk” version of the ...
#212 That’s no bat, boy, that’s Captain Nice!
January 04, 2024 13:00 - 1 hour - 90.3 MBWhen Batman hit in early 1966, it set a trend of superheroes in pop culture that many rushed to emulate. By the time many of these bat-mimics were ready for public consumption, the trend was on its way out. One such wave-rider was Captain Nice, created by Buck Henry, and repeating some gags from Henry’s hit Get Smart. While Captain Nice brought some really funny moments, it failed to catch on with audiences. Was this simply because the bat-bubble had burst? Or was it that Henry wasn’t the r...
#211 Holy overbooking! The Late Show’s Batman reunion
December 07, 2023 12:20 - 1 hour - 76.3 MBOn April 28, 1988, the then-fledgling Fox Network’s The Late Show with Ross Shafer hosted a Batman reunion. However, due to poor time management and a second-rate host, among other problems, the reunion can be a bit of a tough watch - especially the way Alan Napier was shortchanged on airtime at the end as he and Shafer struggled to communicate with each other. Video of the episode, unavailable when we looked for it years ago, surfaced last year, and this time we discuss the problems as wel...
#210 The Sandman Cometh Alone (part 2)
November 23, 2023 13:00 - 1 hour - 57 MBWe conclude our look at Ellis St. Joseph’s original Sandman script with the sleepwalker-filled second part of the arc, originally titled “A Stitch in Time.” We discuss our impressions of the script, the episode we got instead, and which one we might have preferred. We also share more impressions of the script from the denizens of the ’66 Batman message board, and listen to the world’s most enthusiastic kid, “The Colour Boo”, sing a mostly original song about the Caped Crusader. The Sandma...
#209 The Sandman Cometh Alone (part 1)
November 09, 2023 13:00 - 1 hour - 69.7 MBMidway through Season Two, Julie Newmar appeared along with Michael Rennie as guest villains Catwoman and Sandman in The Sandman Cometh. But originally, this script by Ellis St. Joseph featured only the Sandman, with Robert Morely picked to play the role. This time, we get into how the teamup came about as we begin a look at St. Joseph’s original draft script. Also, Below the Staff Music takes a stab at a jazz version of Hefti’s Batman theme, Adam West and Burt Ward cameo on the SImpsons,...
#208 The Pilot Audience Report: Why did Batman seem “kind of stupid”?
October 12, 2023 12:00 - 1 hour - 69.8 MBEven after Batman made ABC’s “second season” schedule, to start in January 1966, there was still concern about how audiences would react. Will they get the joke? Should a laugh track be used? In a memo dated January 14, 1966 - the day after the second episode, Smack in the Middle, was first broadcast — Joseph Schrier, Director of Program Development at ABC, reports on audience testing on the pilot. While some adults got the joke, others weren’t quite sure if the show was meant to be funny. ...
Next episode topic, and vote for new Patreon podcast topic
September 23, 2023 12:10 - 2 minutes - 2.03 MBWhat will we cover in our next episode? Also, what will be the topic of the next patrons-only podcast? Listen to hear how you can help to decide the answer to the latter question, and to hear the answer to the former!
#207 The Bat-bible, and Buck Henry’s rejection of camp
August 17, 2023 12:00 - 1 hour - 64.9 MBIn television, a show’s “bible” is a collection of the rules for the world of a particular show, to keep writers on track with their scripts. The makeshift bible that Lorenzo Semple, Jr., wrote for Batman is lost to history, but what might have been in it? What are the rules that we can see the show following? Tim has compiled some and presents them here — and asks for your suggestions. In a recent Bat Inbox, we discussed some comments writer Buck Henry made about Batman and camp shortly ...
#206 Neil Hamilton: From silent film star to Gotham’s top cop
July 20, 2023 12:00 - 1 hour - 64.1 MBHe’s best remembered as the Gotham City Police Department’s Commissioner Gordon, the Dynamic Duo’s #1 cheerleader. But Neil Hamilton had a long Hollywood career decades before Batman, dating back to the silent film era. This time, we talk about the hills and valleys of his decades in film and television, capped off with the Batman role that earned him the funds to retire. PLUS: More of Adam West’s 2014 appearance on the YouTube channel Cinefix, the Scott Community High School Band version...
#205 Batman - Star Trek ACT-OFF, pt. 2
June 22, 2023 12:00 - 1 hour - 74.6 MBWe’re joined again by our childhood friend Kyle for the second installment of our comparison of actors who appeared on both Batman and Star Trek. On which show did Grace Lee Whitney (King Tut moll Neila vs. Yeoman Janice Rand), Lee Meriwether (Tut kidnapee Lisa Carson vs. planetary security system Losira), Frank Gorshin (the Riddler vs. traitor-tracker Bele), and Sherry Jackson (Riddler moll Pauline vs. improbably sexy android Andrea) turn in the better performance? Then, having pitted two ...
#204 “Rembrandt III”: Watching paint dry
May 25, 2023 11:55 - 1 hour - 90.2 MBAs the broadcast of Batman season one drew to a close, a treatment called Rembrandt the Third Meets his Master was submitted by 31-year-old Yale M. Udoff, who would go on to some success, but was just getting started as a screenwriter. Udoff’s inexperience may account for many of the problems with this treatment: A villain, Rembrandt III, whose crimes and motivations are too creaky for a TV show, and who engages many elements that don’t fit the theme of “painting”; many bat-no-nos, includin...
#203 “Has TV gone batty?” Snarky press coverage from 1966
April 27, 2023 11:59 - 1 hour - 75.7 MBAt the height of Batmania in the first half of 1966, nearly every press outlet found it necessary to do a feature story on the phenomenon. But many in the media were not terribly impressed by Batman, so these articles tend to look down their noses at the show. One such example is “Has TV Gone Batty?”, an article by John Skow in the May 7, 1966, issue of The Saturday Evening Post. Aside from the snark, and misinformed discussion of camp, the article gives us some interesting insights into th...
#202 British Batmania: A Slow Burn
March 30, 2023 11:59 - 1 hour - 97 MBWe Americans know that Batman was also popular in the United Kingdom (and many other countries), but there are differences in the level of popularity that was reached and how long it lasted, and also in terms of when “first run” of the show was there. 66 Batman Message Board co-admin Ben Bentley is, in fact, British, so we asked for his assistance in tackling this topic. Our discussion touches on the show’s second wind in the ‘70s, Batman references in The Avengers (as in Steed and Peel) an...
#201 Chip Kidd’s Book of Bat-Merch
March 02, 2023 13:00 - 1 hour - 84.4 MBWhen the Batman TV show set off Batmania in 1966, a wide variety of toys and other tie-in items, not all of them licensed, hit the market. Since licensers seldom made style guides in the ‘60s, rights to the actors likenesses weren’t available, and some of the onslaught of Bat-crap came from overseas makers who thought Batman’s costume would look better in orange, the results are highly entertaining. This time we look at Chip Kidd’s 1996 book Batman Collected, a history of Bat-merch from 193...
#200 “Batman: The Movie”: The Novel
February 02, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 87.5 MBFormer Batman comics writer Winston Lyon, fresh off his novel Batman vs. Three Villains of Doom, a few months later produced the novelization of Batman: The Movie, a book called Batman vs. the Fearsome Foursome. This time, for our 200th episode, we discuss the book: though based on Lorenzo Semple, Jr.’s screenplay, it betrays a different attitude toward Batman than Semple, and the Batman show in general, held. Plus, one of our favorite versions of the Batman theme, Cesar Romero interviewed...
#199 "Nora Clavicle" scripts and writing in season three
January 12, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 86.9 MBThe three versions of the script for Nora Clavicle and the Ladies’ Crime Club raise some interesting questions about season three. Why did the Duo and Batgirl never have a way to easily contact each other? Why do our heroes’ early suspicions that Nora is crooked all get cut from the script? What are the types of female characters that the show keeps coming back to? Plus we look at lines and events that were cut — or added — at late stages in a very hurried process. PLUS, Chad Vermillion’s...
Holy Casting Crossover! Actors who appeared on both BATMAN and STAR TREK TOS
January 06, 2023 08:31 - 1 minute - 1.47 MBIt's here! The Internet's most complete list of actors who appeared on both Batman and Star Trek: The Original Series! But... is it totally complete? Look it over and see if there's a relevant actor who isn't listed - then post about him or her in the comments! Some are famous actors in big roles on both, some are extras and uncredited actors, some fall somewhere in between - or had a big role in one show and a bit part in the other. See the entire list at the link below. ...
BONUS! DCU King Tut in "Batman Confidential"
December 22, 2022 13:00 - 26 minutes - 31.1 MBIn 2009, writers Nunzio DeFillipis and Christina Weir brought King Tut to the DC Universe in three issues of Batman Confidential (issues 26-28), with art by Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez and Kevin Nowlan. Tim and Paul discuss the story, and a few '66 Easter eggs embedded therein. (Originally published on Patreon March 19, 2022.)
Going away, but we'll be back
December 04, 2022 13:00 - 1 minute - 2.07 MBWe're going away for a bit. Here's the scoop on what's going on and when we'll be back!
#198 Women in Season 2, pt 3: You’ve Come a Long Way, Bat-Moll
November 24, 2022 12:30 - 1 hour - 118 MBAs the show hit its first anniversary and the second season neared its end, we see Batman’s characterization of women subtly changing, particularly Lee Meriwether’s strong Lisa Carson character, and some examples of actual (gasp) interaction between women! Why did the “poor, deluded girls” fade away? Was it changing social mores, or just the show trying not to repeat itself? Nancy Northcott joins us once again to discuss women on the show, this time in the final third of Season Two, which i...
#197 Adam and Frank’s… semi-big show
November 10, 2022 12:24 - 1 hour - 74 MBIn early 1966, Batmania was everywhere. This caused a certain (convicted tax evader) concert promoter to ask the question: Can Batman fill Shea Stadium? Adam West and Frank Gorshin were recruited to play their characters as part of a show that also included such musical luminaries as the Young Rascals and the Temptations. However, on June 25, 1966, the answer to the concert promoter's question turned out to be a resounding "No!" The Shea Stadium show has lingered as an oddity on the edges...
#196 "The Joker's Big Show"
October 27, 2022 11:39 - 1 hour - 72.2 MBThe 11th issue of the Batman ’66 comics series gives us an unusual full-issue story in which the Joker teams up with a very Newmaresque Catwoman to break from prison and try to crack up all of Gotham! But how do we feel about these modern Batman elements, such as Arkham, showing up in this context? Is the series fan service going in too many different directions? PLUS: The iPhonedo Garage Band version of the Batman theme, more from Adam and Burt on The Merv Griffin Show, mail on the Batma...
#195 SCRIPT: "A Piece of the Action"
October 13, 2022 13:26 - 1 hour - 122 MBIt’s time for another script! This time it’s the first draft of the Green Hornet guest shot arc A Piece of the Action/Batman’s Satisfaction, featuring a much more assertive Robin than perhaps we ever saw Burt Ward play, and a greater focus on the secret identities of Batman and the Hornet! Plus, more of Adam and Burt’s Sept 1, 1966, Merv Griffin appearance, the L'Orchestra Cinematique "EPIC" version of the theme, and your mail on our Madge Blake episode! Links from Chris Cavanaugh Dete...
#194 Susan Silo: Mousey and much more!
September 29, 2022 11:55 - 1 hour - 135 MBYou know her as Mousey in A Riddle a Day Keeps the Riddler Away, but did you know that Susan Silo has been a sought-after character voice actor for cartoons since the ‘70s? Or that she had a hit single in 1956 ("Dear Diary") and performed on American Bandstand? Or that she’s performed on Broadway? Or that her high school English teacher became a huge TV star in the ‘70s? This time we chat with Susan herself about all this and more! Plus, the Villains’ version of the Batman theme, more of ...
#193 Batman - Star Trek ACT-OFF, pt. 1
September 15, 2022 12:05 - 1 hour - 70.4 MBTwo of the most iconic American TV shows of the 1960s are Batman and Star Trek. A surprising number of actors pulled double duty, appearing on both shows, either as regulars, recurring characters, or one-shot roles. This crossover of actors sounds like an interesting topic, but how do we get it into our show? What we settled on was to put these actors in March Madness-type brackets and pit them against each other. On which show did a given actor give the better performance? And how does t...
#192 Mercy alive! It’s Madge Blake!
September 01, 2022 11:55 - 1 hour - 77.5 MBWhen talking about Batman, discussion tends to focus on Adam West, Burt Ward, and those who played villains who the Dynamic Duo brought to justice. But here we’ve done nearly 200 episodes and mostly missed someone whose name is in the opening credits for the first two seasons: Madge Blake. So this time we’ve dug in to see what we could learn about this woman who started acting late in life, charmed fellow actors but frustrated some directors, and worked with Jack Benny, Vincente Minnelli, G...
#191 Women in Season 2, pt 2: Deluded Girls and Second Bananas
August 18, 2022 12:00 - 1 hour - 87.3 MBAs season two rolls on, women are still filling familiar roles: OK with crime, but killing the Dynamic Duo is going "too far"; ditzy moll who dreams of diamonds and Hollywood; "team-up" baddie who's completely superfluous to the male partner's plans. We also get a season one throwback of a moll who crushes on Batman, and a Catwoman assistant (and Batman producer's niece) who wants to be a singer. We're once again joined by novelist Nancy Northcott to discuss women in the middle of season tw...
#190 Batman refs: “Mighty Mouse” & “The Simpsons”
August 04, 2022 12:00 - 1 hour - 84.3 MBThe cultural impact of Batman '66 was felt for decades after, and still reverberates. This time we discuss a couple more late-20th-century cartoons that showed evidence of that impact: Mighty Mouse: The New Adventures, which in 1987 gave us Night of the Bat-Bat, featuring Bat-Bat, a hero with the powers of a bat and a penchant for corny one-liners; and numerous episodes of The Simpsons, including 1992's Mr. Plow, in which Adam West makes a couple of heavily-Bat-referencing appearances; and ...
#189 The Evolution of “False Face”
July 21, 2022 12:00 - 1 hour - 100 MBWhy does False Face impersonate Chief O’Hara? Where is FF’s hideout? Since when does Aunt Harriet drops censor-tempting puns? Why does Blaze tell the Duo “It’s faster on foot”? These questions and more are up for discussion as we look at the Outline, First Draft, and Revised Draft of True or False Face/Holy Rat Race! Also, Merv Griffin’s 7-year-old son Tony asks Adam West some burning questions, Mina Pang and her dad jam out with the Batman theme, and we read your mail about our Joker Jur...
#188 iPhone? Try “snow cone”: “Batman ’66” #10
July 07, 2022 12:00 - 1 hour - 68.5 MBMr. Freeze is back - WILD! He’s gone all Steve Jobs and put a device in everyone’s pocket — one that will plunge Gotham City into year-round winter! Can Batman turn the tables? Meanwhile, Batgirl is going up against a “villain” who, well, very nicely offered Bruce “milk and cookies” in the TV series itself. Yup, it’s Lisa Carson! Did anyone ask for this Egyptian heel turn? Tim and Paul discuss the 10th issue of the Batman ’66 comics series. ALSO: Adam talks with Merv about whether being B...
SCRIPT: True or False Face
June 27, 2022 12:17The next script we'll be discussing on TO THE BATPOLES is Stephen Kandel's "False Face" script! We have an outline, a draft, and a revised draft, so they're all pretty early in the process. Recording has not been scheduled yet, but it will definitely be after July 11, 2022. If you read the scripts and comment before we record, we may quote your post on the podcast. Will let you know when the recording date is set! OUTLINE First Draft Revised Draft
#187 "Superman" musical: It's not a bird, but is it camp?
June 23, 2022 12:00 - 1 hour - 80.7 MBJust a couple of months after Batman hit the airwaves in 1966, another superhero emerged from the comics, as Superman arrived at the Alvin Theater on Broadway in It's a Bird...It's a Plane...It's Superman. How did the musical's creators approach the same question William Dozier and Lorenzo Semple, Jr., dealt with in 1965: how to make a "children's character" appealing to adults? We compare and contrast the two shows' approaches. After a good start, the musical closed in less than four month...
#186 Why "The Joker Jury" was out
June 09, 2022 12:00 - 1 hour - 77.3 MBAs we know, many episodes of Batman — especially in the first season — were based on stories from the comics. And additional comics stories were floated as possible episodes but didn’t make the cut. This time, we focus on one such story: The Joker Jury, by Bill Finger and Sheldon Moldoff, originally appearing in Batman 163 (May 1964) and adopted into an unproduced treatment by Max Hodge, writer of the first two Mr. Freeze arcs of the show. What changes did Hodge make to the story and why? W...
#185 Zelda without Shame
May 26, 2022 12:00 - 1 hour - 77.1 MBThe cover of Batman '66 #9 includes Zelda the Great hanging above the Duo, and Shame's boots in the foreground. Zelda's in the issue, but where's Shame? Um... in issue #8?! (We discussed that story in episode 182!) Jeff Parker's Zelda story has its moments, but in other ways it's just weird. Meanwhile, Tom Peyer's backup story brings back Alfred's cousin Egbert from The Joker's Provokers, but brings to mind what a version of Alfred in Peyer's The Wrong Earth might have been like! This time,...
#184 “Hizzoner”: A Good Script? It’s debatable
May 12, 2022 12:00 - 1 hour - 80 MBStanford Sherman’s Hizzoner the Penguin is a bit hard to reckon with. Satire on Batman is not in line with Lorenzo Semple Jr’s vision for the show, and the 1966 political references date this arc much more than many others. And yet, it has some brilliantly funny moments. This time, we take a look at Sherman’s treatment, first draft, and final script for Hizzoner to learn about the development of the story, possible reasons why Sherman was unhappy with the result, and previously unnoticed mo...
#183 Bat-Costumes' Dynamic Duo: Chuck and Lynne Williams
April 28, 2022 12:00 - 1 hour - 86 MBA huge aspect of the Batman show is the colorful costumes, overseen by designer Jan Kemp. Sadly, Kemp is no longer with us, and his records, if they exist, are not easily available, so if you want to make a really accurate Batman ’66 replica costume, some detective work is required. Chuck and Lynne Williams have done just that, making patterns from original costumes owned by collectors, tracking down existing supplies of fabrics that are no longer made, and more. This time, we hear from thi...
#182 Eartha and LBJ
April 14, 2022 12:00 - 1 hour - 83.2 MBOn January 18, 1968 — just two weeks after her final appearance on Batman was broadcast — Eartha Kitt attended a White House ladies’ luncheon held by Lady Bird Johnson. After a brief, unsatisfying conversation with Lyndon Johnson, Kitt, annoyed, stood up and denounced the Vietnam War. This prompted an apparent effort by the President to kill her career in the US. We discuss a recent video from the New Yorker that explores this incident, with clever tie-ins to her Batman appearances. Also,...
#181 Who was Reuben Watt?
March 31, 2022 12:00 - 1 hour - 68.9 MBA lot of people work behind the scenes on a TV show, and some of them are never named in the credits. One is Assistant Director Reuben Watt, who nonetheless did get some credit in the form of coverage in magazines aimed at African-Americans. (The image shown here is from the cover of Sepia magazine.) The June 1966 issue of Ebony included a photo feature on Watt, which tells us some interesting things about Watt, the status of African-Americans in Hollywood in the ‘60s, and the Batman show i...
#180 “The Thirteenth Hat” Scripts: Kidnap the Jurors Already!
March 17, 2022 12:00 - 1 hour - 108 MBThe Thirteenth Hat/Batman Stands Pat is Charles Hoffman’s first produced Batman script. But what did earlier versions of the story look like? It turns out that the original plot had the Mad Hatter simply stealing the jurors’ hats! The stakes - and potential profits from Hatter’s crime wave - had to be raised. At the same time, certain too-expensive-to-film gags and distracting subplots were abandoned. Join us as we discuss the five-page “springboard”, 22-page treatment, and full first draft...
#179 “Star Trek vs Batman”
March 03, 2022 12:35 - 1 hour - 104 MBBatman and Star Trek 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 b...
#179 “Star Trek vs Batman”: The Director Speaks!
March 03, 2022 12:35 - 1 hour - 104 MBBatman and Star Trek 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 b...
#178 “Batman & Bill”: The Creatorship Controversy
February 17, 2022 12:50 - 1 hour - 82.6 MBFor 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 t...
#177 Stanford Sherman’s Marsha: “Rewriting the fool thing”
February 03, 2022 12:50 - 1 hour - 71.3 MBAs 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 dif...
#176 "Marsha", first draft: Too much chat, not enough Bat
January 20, 2022 12:50 - 1 hour - 60.8 MBWe 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...
#175 Harlan Ellison’s "Two-Face"
January 06, 2022 12:45 - 1 hour - 75.8 MBMore 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 th...
"Movin' with Nancy" review SPECIAL
December 23, 2021 13:00 - 2 hours - 113 MBThese 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.
#174 Women in Season 2, pt 1: From the Childish to the Badass
December 09, 2021 13:00 - 1 hour - 84.4 MBWhile 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 to...