The 1960s TV series Batman has never been available on home video – until now. It’s finally emerging from the proverbial Batcave, in a set sure to please Baby Boomers and confuse today’s youngsters…
The complete series, originally shown on ABC beginning in 1966, is available from Warner Bros. Home Video, on DVD and in a limited-edition Blu-Ray collector’s set, which comes complete with a tiny Hot Wheels Batmobile, a set of Batman trading cards, and other things. But for me, and people like me who grew up on this pop-art Batman series in the Sixties, it’s the shows that matter.
Extras included on the Blu-Ray set’s bonus disc include a round-table discussion in which Kevin Smith and others discuss the Caped Crusader with the show’s star, Adam West; a documentary that nicely ties the TV series to the pop art movement of the time; and even such rarities as the original screen test by Burt Ward (under another name), who won the co-starring role of Robin; and the original spinoff pilot for a Batgirl series starring Yvonne Craig.
But most of all, these brightly colored Batman episodes are the true gold mine. Younger viewers may have to adjust to a hero who’s less tortured than square, but they may, just as equally, respond enthusiastically to the cartoonish playfulness of the show in general, and the villains in particular.
Burgess Meredith as the Penguin! Frank Gorshin as the Riddler! And – sigh – Julie Newmar as Catwoman, who will forever embody that feline villain, for Boomers, just as much as Sean Connery will always be the best, as well as the first, James Bond.
To hear my review of this Batman set for NPR’s Fresh Air with Terry Gross, listen to today's show, or, later this afternoon, visit the Fresh Air website. You also can order the Batman box set – just in time for gift-giving.
Holy holidays, Batman!