To The Batpoles! Batman 1966

In December 1966, the " Penguin's Nest " arc was finally broadcast. But it was the first season two arc to be shot; why the delay? We also discuss the 1946 comic book version of this story; Lorenzo Semple 's gift for making humor from situations, rather than the goofy jokes added by some other Bat-writers; the majesty of Burgess Meredith as the Penguin ; and a swaggering Batman who gets taken down...

Batman faces a showdown when Shame arrives in Gotham City! This swaggering cowboy is after… hot rod parts? This somewhat odd arc by Stanley Ralph Ross is full of references to both the old west and drag racing; what's going on here? Looking at Cliff Robertson 's first Batman appearance, we also touch on the mysterious Roy Gleason , several ways that times have changed since this one was shot, the...

Various other Bat-commentaries paint this arc in drab tones. What Carolyn Jones (apparently replacing Zsa Zsa Gabor at something close to the last moment) brings to the role of Marsha, Queen of Diamonds , is basically Morticia Addams with a different look, says conventional wisdom. The arc is full of filler scenes that don't advance the story, say commentators. In this episode of To the Batpoles ,...

"The Impractical Joker"/"The Joker's Provokers" is Charles Hoffman 's rewrite of a draft by Jay Thompson , and it's a bit of a kludgefest: interesting ideas are introduced and abandoned; Joker 's strategy and goals (related to keys — sometimes) are a muddled mess; they even botch a chemistry reference. But, as always, there ARE enjoyable nuggets to be found, and Tim and Paul list some of them. Als...

In his 1994 book Back to the Batcave , Adam West tells… some. Yes, there are recollections of funny things that happened on the set of Batman , a discussion of the development of how the character Batman would be played on the '66 show, and answers to some lingering questions that have come up on this podcast. On the other hand, his love life recollections tend to be shrouded in anonymity, and men...

It's Otto Preminger 's turn to be Mr. Freeze ! Why does his version keep saying "wild"? What aspects of this version are better than the George Sanders version, and which are worse (aside from his demeanor on the set)? The script itself has more than its share of head-scratchers, as well as some bits of comedy (and camp ) gold. And, wait... are there references in this arc to the 1940 film His Gir...

Batman battles it out with the Penguin — at the polls! Who will be voted mayor of Gotham City? In Hizzoner the Penguin and Dizzoner the Penguin , writer Stanford Sherman and director Oscar Rudolph deliver biting political satire (complete with Barry Goldwater references!) — but does the arc's ending invalidate some of their points? Were Paul Revere and the Raiders , with their appearance here, rea...

As we continue through the series, we notice more and more awesomeness in the Nelson Riddle incidental music- and we also have some questions about it. Pat Evans is working on getting answers to those questions as he does a series of interviews for his documentary film " The Beat of the Bat "! We discuss how Riddle's scoring for the show is more like that of a Warner Brothers cartoon than most liv...

It may be tough to appreciate for us 50 years later, but having Liberace on your show was a big deal in 1966. When he appeared on Batman, it reportedly led to the show's best ratings ever. Of interest to Tim and Paul is how the show dealt with his alleged homosexuality, writer Lorenzo Semple Jr 's references to Liberace's real-life backstory, and what his attempts at acting remind us of. His Bat-a...

Vincent Price makes his Bat-debut as Egghead ! Price is generally associated with the horror genre, although he could also be considered a camp icon. And so could someone else in this arc! Is the character of Chief Screaming Chicken satire or racism? Well… yes. Also, a window cameo by Jose Jimenez . Who? We explore this and several other cameos and familiar faces (or voices) in this arc, with deto...

ZAP! POW! The Batman TV show became famous for its "comic book" fight sound effects. Odd, though… before the show began, punches in Batman comics were silent! So where'd the show get the idea for noisy punches? We ponder this question after reading many '60s Batman comics , and also explore the changes of " New Look Batman " in 1964; determine what the show borrowed from the comics —and what the c...

Our expounding on the coolness of the Clock King arc concludes with a look at " The Clock King Gets Crowned "! Did Madge Blake need help with her lines from the film editors? Is Millie Clock King's "beard"? Might the first draft of this episode have called for a climactic fight at Wayne Manor? (And, if so, why was it scrapped?) Plus, this episode's cluster of "meanwhile" cross-cuts and its operati...

Where some see a disappointing script from Bill Finger , we see a camp masterpiece! We're talking about The Clock King's Crazy Crimes , which features an amazing riff on pop art (well, and quite a bit of art that isn't actually of the "pop" variety); a Daliesque painting of the Dynamic Duo ( who painted it ?); another great (but rather subtle) villain theme from Nelson Riddle ; Batman and Robin do...

Perhaps more than most Batman arcs so far, the Ma Parker storyline has many points that don't stand up to scrutiny? How could she have just arrived in Gotham City, already have a house just outside of town, and have also established herself at the local old folks' home? Never mind! Shelley Winters plays a cartoony and ultra-campy villain, so Tim and Paul just go with it and let plausibility slide,...

King Tut 's back -- and not only does he have the best gang since Bookworm , but Victor Buono has totally dialed into the character, and ramped the camp up to 11! Thus, Paul can't resist marking the occasion by introducing a new podcast feature on camp ! Also, how the "Spell of Tut" arc really shows the challenge of filling exactly the amount of time allotted for one TV episode -- necessitating cu...

It's a new villain -- even new to the Duo themselves: The Minstrel (Van Johnson) ! But his crimes don't involve robbing music stores and the like: he's out to shake down the stock market, though by using methods that Batman and Robin are at pains to tie back to the malfeasant musician's tuneful guise. And finance-related crimes seem to be a specialty of writers Francis and Marian Cockrell . By the...

When Batman hit the airwaves in January 1966, its instant popularity led to an explosion of all kinds of Bat-merchandise -- including records! Singles and albums by musicians ( Nelson Riddle ,  Neal Hefti ) and actors ( Adam West ,  Burt Ward , and some Bat-villains too!) associated with the show, as well as some with no connection who just wanted to ride the Bat-wave (for example, Dickie Goodman...

In " Hot off the Griddle " and " The Cat and the Fiddle ", Julie Newmar's Catwoman takes on new dimensions, including sex kitten and little old lady. In discussing whether this arc has too many un- Semple -like zingers, Tim and Paul make a digression into the definition of “ high camp .” Are people using this expression to describe Batman without quite understanding what it means? Also: the advant...

Season two begins! We dig into what ELSE was being broadcast the week of Batman ’s season two premiere on still-struggling ABC-TV and its two muscular competitors. Then, why did the season start with Archer ? Why Art Carney ? Why do all these bizarre, puzzling things happen in part one? Why isn't Spike Jones band member Doodles Weaver funny in this? It's a headscratching arc, but not without its h...

The summer of 1966 brought “ Batman: The Movie" ! Now, in the winter of 2016, Tim and Paul, joined by “Batman at 45” author Chris Gould , look at the film from many directions: the fantastic music, the new elements not seen in season one (Compressed Steam Batpole Lift!), the references to Lyndon Baines Johnson (both the man and his policies!), the dangers on the Batman set, the dynamic among the f...

Having finished Season One, this episode we take a breather and consider what we've learned. Firstly, just because a show is successful doesn't mean it has money to throw around. We explore such aspects as Joker 's laugh, the lack of continuity in '60s TV shows, and the interesting camera work sometimes employed on the series -- deep shots such as Penguin watching the Duo from afar. We do all this...

The Penguin is back, but this time his hideout and henchman names are on the theme of fish, rather than birds! And he’s aiming to steal all the money donated by millionaires to smokin’ hot babes (each girl representing a charity, of course). Yes, the final arc of Season One is also its most sexist — and that’ s not even considering the rather suggestive bellows scene ! Tim and Paul discuss this ar...

In Frank Gorshin 's last Bat-appearance till Season Three, the Riddler 's making a movie. Silent-film-scholar Paul is digging this arc! But why does the Prince of Puzzlers bother filming Batman and Robin when he's got luscious, leggy Sherry Jackson on his team? More to ponder: This arc is based on a comics story in which the Joker , not the Riddler, impersonated Charlie Chaplin . Does this work as...

And at last we reach the Bookworm arc, perhaps one of the greatest of the series. I mean, it's got a giant cookbook in it! And it's got a shocking first scene, the great Roddy McDowell , one of the best supporting gangs we've seen, the first bat-climb cameo... oh, and did we mention the giant cookbook? True, it also contains the seeds of some of Season Two's excesses. But overall, you can't go wro...

Victor Buono as King Tut is perhaps the most divisive villain among Bat-fans: some call him a genius, others roll their eyes whenever he appears. What is it that makes him more/less fun than the Joker or the Penguin? In this episode, having just watched "The Curse of Tut" and "The Pharaoh's in a Rut", we discuss this question and others: Why are there so many dummies in this episode? (Bruce certai...