Author: Robert Greenberger

The much anticipated home video release of the 1966-1968 Batman teleivsion series has been confirmed by Warner Home Video. A complete box set of the trend-setting 104 episodes will be out later this year in a date to be determined.

The announcement was made on the Conan O’Brien Show complete with a breaking news tweet.

Last year, Warner Bros. and 20th Century Fox reached an agreement to allow licensing from the ABC series to begin which spawned action figures, Barbie & Ken Collector’s Set, the well-received comic book Batman ’66 from DC Entertainment, and related merchandise. There were high hopes that the DVD announcement would be made at last summer’s Comic-Con International but it was not to be.

No details have yet been released regarding how this arrangement was completed but it has been long understood that there were legal entanglements between DC, 20th Century Fox, and Greenway Productions, the latter being William Dozier’s production company which actually created the pop series.

Dozier had been asked to turn some comic hero into a television series and after attempts with others failed, they settled on Batman, whose sales had been slipping for years as the static art from co-creator Bob Kane and his ghosts failed to keep up with the maturing look of comic books and the writing had gone down hill, mired in science fiction concepts unbefitting the world’s greatest detective.

He decided to play it as straight as he could and with Lorenzo Semple, Jr. at the typewriter, they came up with an approach that worked. The story would be split in two, with the first thirty minute part concluding on a cliffhanger with Dozier’s own narration promising results if fans merely tuned in “same bat time, same bat channel”. One show split up ion this manner had not been done before but ABC, then a distant third in the ratings, was desperate to try anything.

The series arrived on January 12, 1966 after being in development for less than a year. However, it shattered the ratings charts and became an instant smash success, spawning countless forms of apparel, books, records, and other collectibles. It turned journeyman actor Adam West into   a superstar and newcomer Burt Ward into a youthful sex symbol. All manner of actors, actresses, and celebrities clamored to play villains on the series or make cameo appearances during the famed climbs up buildings.

The series arrived at a time when pop culture was enjoying a colorful renaissance, inspired in part by an art movement fronted by Andy Warhol and a renewed interest in super-hero comics. It used odd camera angles, a bright colorful palette (at a time when color TV was still considered something new), and had jazzy music. Kids adored the action sequences while adults cackled at the corny jokes and seemingly ludicrous plots. There was something for everyone.

The show quickly spawned a big budget film which arrived in August 1966, between the first and second seasons, allowing the producers to add a Bat boat and Batcopter to the growing arsenal of bat-themed weapons. It also pitted the Dynamic Duo against a quarter of foes, something heretofore untried on the series.

By that fall, though, the bloom had quickly faded and ABC was scrambling to find ways to sustain interest in the series. They asked DC for a Batgirl and rather than resurrect Kathy Kane, editor Julie Schwartz and art director Carmine Infantino created Barbara Gordon, who was introduced in Detective Comics #369 that November. Yvonne Craig, a dancer turned actress, nabbed the role and became an object of lust for young boys everywhere when she arrived the following September.

Even though ABC reduced the series to a single night, the ratings continued to plummet and the show was canceled, airing its final episode in March 1968. Soon after it went into syndication and it has been playing on some channel, somewhere ever since.

Growing up, Saturday nights were usually spent with the NBC peacock. Their sitcom lineup during the 1960s included Flipper, Get Smart, Adam-12, Please Don’t Eat the Daisies, and The Ghost and Mrs. Muir. The latter lasted just a season on the network, moving to ABC for its second and final season. It was the first time I recall learning that the series was based on a film, one I never got to see.

Thankfully, 20^th Century Home Entertainment remedied that this holiday season with the release of the 1947 film, starring Gene Tierney and Rex Harrison, on Blu-ray.

While the sitcom played it for family friendly yucks, with an over-the-top performance by Charles Nelson Reilly as the ghost’s descendant, the film, written by Philip Dunne, is something far different. It is a story of love and loss, missed opportunities and evokes reminders of the overlooked romance Somewhere in Time. Captain Daniel Gregg (Harrison) is long dead but his spirit remains attached to Gull Cottage, the seaside house where he once resided. Along comes the comely widow Lucy Muir (Tierney), who has defied her in-law’s (Isobel Elsom and Victoria Horne) expectations that she come stay with them after their son has died. She charts her own course, a strong statement for a female lead at a time when women were still seen as subservient to the male’s expectations, and by extension those of his family.

Defying the locals who tell her the cottage is haunted, she takes up residence, much to the spirit’s ire. He then “:haunts” the place to chase her out but she surprises him by demanding he appear before her, which he does and so begins a most unusual relationship. He’s a gruff sea captain, used to women acting in 1947 as they did in his day but she continues to defy expectations and he gradually comes to admire her inner spirit. In turn, he begins to open up to her, dictating his memoirs which Muir has published and it becomes a surprise best seller.

Enter Miles Fairley (George Sanders), a fellow author, with designs on Mrs. Muir, who wants to have a relationship with her but is less than he initially seems. In the end, it leaves you longing for the elusive happy ending and reaching for the tissue box. It’s a shame the film didn’t net the cast any award nominations although the effective photography did get Charles Lang a nod. Bernard Hermann’s score is superb and a real gem. Director Joseph L. Mankiewicz does a superb job with a premise that could have fallen flat.

The film holds up to high definition with a good transfer aided by solid sound. This new edition comes with a commentary by Greg Kimble and Christopher Husted, a duo demonstrating a solid understanding of soundtracks and film effects so we learn a few interesting things. There’s a second commentary by Jeanine Basinger, a film professor and critic, and Kenneth Geist, who has written about Mankiewicz. Rounding out the offering is the Theatrical Trailer.

The Adventures of Superboy found its groove with the third season and a sense of stability was most welcome as the tone was consistent and the stories got stronger thanks to Stan Berkowitz and the increasing influence of DC editors Mike Carlin and Andy Helfer. Gerard Christopher as the title character had truly grown as a performer with time and Stacy Haiduk’s Lana Lang was every bit his match. As a result, things looked promising as production on the fourth season got underway in the summer of 1991.

However, the success of Batman in 1989 and that summer’s sequel, Batman Returns, meant there was fresh demand for super-heroes. DC Comics’ parent, Warner Bros., had already had limited success with The Flash on CBS and was looking to build. They needed Superman but that meant, in a bizarre twist, they filed suit against Alexander and Ilya Salkind to regain control of all elements stemming from the hero. ABC was interested in an adult Superman tale and didn’t want competition from a low-budget first-run syndicated series. So, as production continued, its death warrant was also being composed.

The final season is now available from Warner Archive and you can see what might have been had Lois & Clark not been on the drawing board. There are returning foes, longer stories with more two-parters than before and a sense that the boy was on the verge of becoming a man. Still assigned to the Bureau for Extra-Normal Matters, Clark and Lana are well positioned to stay atop of the bizarre happenings around the world – and beyond.

Berkowitz, accompanied by J.M. DeMatteis, write a hefty percentage of the season and are joined by Christopher himself, penning two episodes. One of them, “Cat and Mouse” gives Clark a promotion but nicely threatens his alter ego when he undergoes a psychiatric evaluation at the hands of perceptive guest star Erin Gray.

Bizarro (Barry Meyers)and Lex Luthor make repeated appearances this season, and Lex even partners with Metallo in “Threesome”, putting all of Smallville at risk. Bill Mumy’s Puck also appears twice in a nice turn but the most entertaining guest stars were found in “Paranoia” as Noel Neill and Jack Larson briefly return to the mythos. Carlin and Helfer wrote a few tales including one introducing the television incarnation of the Kryptonite Kid (David Carr). Fittingly, they also wrote the final two episodes, “Rites of Passage” that tie together several threads from the mythology and set the stage for an unrealized future.

Episodes 74-90 offer up some of the strongest material in this oft-forgotten series, and they’re worth a second look.