#216 Putting a Finger on the Clock King script
To The Batpoles! Batman 1966
The 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 , , and scripts of the Clock King story, finding bits that changed significantly as shot, and answer some of our questions about odd parts of the story. ALSO: The version of the Batman...
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#215 Women in Season 3, pt. 1: Villains (and heroes!) approach gender parity
To The Batpoles! Batman 1966
One 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 . PLUS: What if ? A Batman writer ! And, Bat Audio from . Read the Clock King scripts we’ll discuss next month: ...
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#214 “Mr. Terrific”: A tough pill to swallow? Pt 2
To The Batpoles! Batman 1966
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, , more from Adam and Burt on Hour Magazine, and e-mail from our listeners!
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#213 “Mr. Terrific”: A tough pill to swallow? Pt 1
To The Batpoles! Batman 1966
This time we look at the other sitcom that tried to cash in on Batman, CBS’s . 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: , in 1984, and of the Batman cast reunion on Fox’s Late Night with Ross Shafer, in episode 211!
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#212 That’s no bat, boy, that’s Captain Nice!
To The Batpoles! Batman 1966
When 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 right person to grab the lightning in a bottle that Lorenzo Semple, Jr., had captured? We look at the...
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#211 Holy overbooking! The Late Show’s Batman reunion
To The Batpoles! Batman 1966
On 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 well as the interesting bits that we did pick up from the bat-cast. ALSO: The version of the theme, and...
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#210 The Sandman Cometh Alone (part 2)
To The Batpoles! Batman 1966
We 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, , sing a mostly original song about the Caped Crusader. The Sandman Cometh, ,
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#209 The Sandman Cometh Alone (part 1)
To The Batpoles! Batman 1966
Midway 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, and we read your mail on the Bat Bible and Buck Henry’s rejection of camp! The Sandman Cometh, , ...
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#208 The Pilot Audience Report: Why did Batman seem “kind of stupid”?
To The Batpoles! Batman 1966
Even 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, . While some adults got the joke, others weren’t quite sure if the show was meant to be funny. Audience reaction to Batman and Robin was mixed, as well, with some noticing that Robin was solving all the Riddler’s riddles while...
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Next episode topic, and vote for new Patreon podcast topic
To The Batpoles! Batman 1966
What 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!
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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 responsible for The Riddler’s prominence, but didn’t it also determine some specifics of the character? How he acts? How he dresses? How he talks? The show’s influence over how the Riddler was played lasted decades. In this episode, we’re joined by a voice actor who met Gorshin and has played several versions of the Riddler himself, Wally Wingert, to discuss these aspects of the Riddler, and explore the approach of his alter-ego, Frank Gorshin.
Plus, your mail about our discussion in episode 149 of Alan Napier’s memoir!
Brian Cronin article on the Riddle - find the inaccuracies!
Frank Gorshin performs "The Riddler" on Dean Martin's show
Frank Gorshin on American Bandstand, 1975
Evolution of the Riddler in cartoons in 11 minutes
1966 Batman Golden Records comic book + LP boxed set (submitted by Chris Cavanaugh)
Bat-Van submitted by Martin Noreau
Help Tim move away from his cough-inducing apartment