Batman has been around in one form or another since 1939,
making the character older than the combined ages of everyone in the first row
at the average Justin Bieber concert. But for all of the various Batman
incarnations in comic books, movies, television, video games, and the
occasional puppet show, the one that will always be the real Batman to me is
the one portrayed by Adam West in the 1960s TV series.
I understand that hardcore comic book fans are probably
throwing rotten fruit at their computer screens right now. They may think that
the campy portrayal of Batman in the TV series was an abomination. But that was
my first exposure to Batman, and to me that is what Batman is meant to be.
Growing up in the 1970s I watched the show in syndication on
a daily basis and I adored it. It was fun, it was funny, it was colorful, and
it was surprisingly educational. (In addition to being acrobatic fighters and
snazzy dressers, both Batman and Robin seemed to have an encyclopedic knowledge
of pretty much everything. It was through that show that I learned the word
“diphthong.” Look it up.)
Even after the mega popularity of the various Batman movies
beginning in 1989, and the recent evolution of the character into the wildly
popular Dark Knight persona, I still only think of Adam West when I think of
Batman. His slow, deliberate line reads and ethics that would make an Eagle
Scout feel like a criminal are forever etched into my memory.
Unfortunately, for now my memory is about all I can ever
have of that show. Due to some sort of legal brouhaha between 20th
Century Fox, which owns the rights to the television footage, and DC Comics,
which owns the rights to the characters, none of the 120 episodes of the show
have ever been put on DVD. Happily, Batman:
The Movie, which included all of the same actors from the television show
and was released in June 1966 between the show’s first and second seasons, is
available on DVD (not clear why there was no brouhaha with that one) but that
is merely a tease. It’s like being given one tiny forkful of tiramisu, when the
entire cake is under glass and out of reach.
This inability to see the show depresses me for two reasons:
1) I want to hear Batman tell Robin once again that he could tell someone is
from Philadelphia because he “dipped his diphthong,” and 2) I want to share
this glorious bit of pop culture with my six and four-year-old sons. They’ve
seen and loved Batman: The Movie
(especially the opening scene when Batman is attacked by an obviously rubber
shark and defeats it with the shark repellent spray that Robin hands him) but I
want to show them more. The only villains in the movie are the Joker, Riddler,
Penguin, and Catwoman. I don’t want my sons to be deprived of the wonders of
Mr. Freeze, Egghead, Bookworm, King Tut, and the Mad Hatter.
Someone has to do something about this travesty! I searched
online to see if there is any kind of movement of like-minded people who are
trying to right this horrible wrong. I did manage to find a Facebook page
called “Bring the 60’s Batman TV show to DVD/Blu-Ray” which is kind of a
support group for others going through Adam West (and Burt Ward too, of course)
withdrawal. I’ve joined the page, so at least I feel like I’m doing something,
but I feel I need to do more.
Perhaps I’ll write to my local congressmen and senators.
Lord knows they’re not accomplishing anything else in Washington these days; maybe
this at least could garner bipartisan support. In fact, maybe if all the
politicians rally around this cause it would give them some common ground to
build upon. And maybe that would cause them to be congenial with each other and
allow them to feel comfortable enough to finally engage in constructive
conversations around the major issues of the day. And maybe things would
finally start getting better in this country, and that would give confidence to
other nations to work out their issues. And maybe this would lead to peace and
prosperity on a global level!
Yup, Batman saves the world once again.
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