“Hand down the Shark-repellent Batspray!” Let’s hope the Boy Wonder doesn’t get it confused with the Barracuda-repellent Batspray. That could create a toothy problem for the Caped Crusader. Join this episode’s Grue Crew - Joseph Perry, Whitney Collazo, Chad Hunt, and Jeff Mohr - as they join Batman and Robin in their fight against the United Underworld in Batman: The Movie (1966).
Decades of Horror: The Classic Era
Episode 62 – Batman: The Movie (1966)
The Dynamic Duo faces four supervillains who plan to hold the world for ransom with the help of a secret invention that instantly dehydrates people.
IMDb
Director: Leslie H. Martinson Writers: Lorenzo Semple Jr., Bob Kane (based upon the characters created by) Featured Cast: Adam West as Bruce Wayne / Batman Burt Ward as Dick Grayson / Robin Lee Meriwether as Catwoman Cesar Romero as The Joker Burgess Meredith as The Penguin Frank Gorshin as The Riddler Alan Napier as Alfred Pennyworth Neil Hamilton as Commissioner James "Jim" Gordon Stafford Repp as Chief Miles O'Hara Madge Blake as Aunt Harriet Cooper Reginald Denny as Commodore Schmidlapp Milton Frome as Vice Admiral Fangschleister Van Williams (uncredited voice) as President Lyndon B. Johnson
Of course, the Classic Era Grue Crew knows Batman: The Movie is not a horror movie, but they just couldn’t help themselves. From the beginning of the podcast, they’ve been making connections between the film they discussed and Batman (TV-Series. 1966-1968) and even some of the Batman films. It was inevitable that they would eventually pull the Bat-trigger and feature this 1966 film. Joseph was the one who finally put it on the schedule and everyone had beaucoup Bat-fun covering this Batman: The Movie.
Chad points out Adam West wasn’t a shoo-in for the role of Batman and encourages us to check out Lyle Waggoner’s screentest on YouTube. Other works in horror by the cast and crew are identified by Joseph while Jeff focuses on other screenplays written by Lorenzo Semple Jr. Whitney notices Adam West’s version of Batman is more nurturing toward Robin than most later depictions. If you haven’t seen this campy and fun film, your Grue Crew highly recommends you watch Batman: The Movie in the near future!
If you’re unaware of the Decades of Horror: The Classic Era’s many connections to the Batman TV-series, you might want to check out these episodes: Frank Gorshin (The Riddler) in 48. Invasion Of The Saucer Men (1957), Vincent Price (Egghead) and Elish Cook Jr. (Prof. Isaacson in 17. House On Haunted Hill (1959), Carolyn Jones (Queen of Diamonds) in 24. Invasion Of The Body Snatchers (1956) and 25. House Of Wax (1953), and Alan Napier (Alfred) in 18. The Uninvited (1944) and 37. Cat People (1942). There are a lot more so go to it!
The Decades of Horror: The Classic Era Grue Crew plan to release a new episode every three weeks. The next episode in our very flexible schedule will be The Wizard of Oz (1939), the first experience many children have with being scared to death by a movie.
Please send us feedback on the films we cover, ideas for future films, or the podcast itself. After all, without you, we’re just four horror freaks talking about the films we love. Send us an email at feedback@gruesomemagazine.com or leave us a message, a review, or a comment at GruesomeMagazine.com, iTunes, the Gruesome Magazine Horror News Radio Facebook group or your friendly neighborhood podcast aggregator.
To each of you from each of us, “Thank you so much for listening!”
