False Face - Should He Have Appeared More?

General goings on in the 1966 Batman World

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Yellow Oval
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False Face - Should He Have Appeared More?

Post by Yellow Oval »

Next to Joker's first appearance, my next all-time favorite episode was Malachi Throne as False Face. I seem to have loved the really spine-tingling creepy villains. As a kid I would get the severe willies everytime I saw him click his heels dressed as the baker with the mask and laughing during the episode's opening shots. The same later when he would appear in the glass of the subway station vending machine. In my opinion (be it ever so humble :lol: ), the show's creators had really hit on a goldmine villain-wise when they created him and should have brought him back for more guest spots. It's possible they could have kept the show longer on the original comedy/drama/action balance they lost control of in the latter half of Season 2. Does anyone else believe False Face should have been featured more or was there any other little-used villain you think should have returned to Gotham City?
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66wasbest
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Re: False Face - Should He Have Appeared More?

Post by 66wasbest »

Definitely False Face shouldve returned.It wouldve helped keep the original formula for the show going.Imo he would definitely been better than the other villains from season 2 Chandell,Minstrel who imo missed the mark.Also they shouldve brought back The Bookworm as there was so much more they couldve done with him.
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Catfan
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Re: False Face - Should He Have Appeared More?

Post by Catfan »

I would have welcomed a return of False Face! His episode may have been the best written of the series, because of its unpredictability. I remember how that episode kept me on my seat 46 years ago!!! My only concern is that the writing might not have been up to par, but of Lorenzo Semple Jr. wrote it, it might have turned out well.
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dodgr31
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Re: False Face - Should He Have Appeared More?

Post by dodgr31 »

Couldn't agree more. He is also a very nice man in person and proud of the role he had in that show. Told me the story behind the question mark villain during opening credits
chetchumley
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Re: False Face - Should He Have Appeared More?

Post by chetchumley »

absolutly....imagine the possibilities with such a character,???????,he could have impersonated ROBIN,,,,or BATMAN,,,etc,,etc,,or who knows?...it would have made 4 great episodes 4 sure...but unfortunatly he never returned....probably due to the nature of characeter...i,m sure alot of kids were scared silly by that clear MASK..he wore.. :o
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Lewis Tully
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Re: False Face - Should He Have Appeared More?

Post by Lewis Tully »

I didn't remember False-Face until I watched the series again recently. This guy was SUPER creepy! I REALLY liked him as a character. They should have used him more. He was a good creepy balance to the goofiness of the rest of the show. I would have liked to have seen more of him in the canon of Batman over the years.
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svl
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Re: False Face - Should He Have Appeared More?

Post by svl »

As many here know, FF is my fave villain. Malachi was incredible, and the script writing in his appearances was top notch. I whole-heartedly agree they missed out by not bringing him back, especially since so many of the villains they used were sub-par compared to the "Man of Many Faces".

Malachi (and False Face) R-O-C-K (as you can see here, quite literally!)...

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WayneGrayson
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Re: False Face - Should He Have Appeared More?

Post by WayneGrayson »

Chalk that up to the writing in season one. All the villains were pretty scary then, especially the Big 4, who sadly became parodies of themselves later on. Joker went from threatening to unmask our heroes on live television, then devolved into a surfing match with Batman; Penguin tired to suffocate the duo in the tank with the bursting balloons, then created sleeping bugs; Riddler disguised his moll as Robin to infiltrate the batcave in order to murder Batman, then popped up in a silly boxing match; Catwoman went from feeding the duo to tigers and subduing them with poison darts, then was using hair-bombs to steal some dress. As great as FalseFace and Bookworm were, the question remains as to whether they would have gone silly later on.
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Lee Kirkham
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Re: False Face - Should He Have Appeared More?

Post by Lee Kirkham »

No question about it, FF should have been a repeat offender!
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Dr. Shimel
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Re: False Face - Should He Have Appeared More?

Post by Dr. Shimel »

Of course, the Big Four appeared MUCH MORE extensively:

Riddler: 6 appearances
Penguin: 10 appearances
Joker: 10 appearances
Catwoman: 8 appearances

One or two appearances in S2 probably wouldn't have sent the character into the nosedive the others endured.

Malachi Throne was very much in demand as a character actor during the Batman era. From 1966-68, he was in 20 shows after playing False Face. In the last show, he was Robert Wagner's co-star on "It Takes a Thief." Also given his melifluous voice, he may have done commercials as well. In short, he just didn't have the time to play him again.
MysticNitekatt
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Re: False Face - Should He Have Appeared More?

Post by MysticNitekatt »

Dr. Shimel wrote: Malachi Throne was very much in demand as a character actor during the Batman era. From 1966-68, he was in 20 shows after playing False Face. In the last show, he was Robert Wagner's co-star on "It Takes a Thief." Also given his melifluous voice, he may have done commercials as well. In short, he just didn't have the time to play him again.
Perhaps that might have been one of the reasons he didn't make a return appearance - availability.

Although for Villains created for the show - only four made more than one appearance - King Tut,Egghead,Shame, and Louie The Lilac - with King Tut making more than two appearances.

Roddy McDowell always said he was contracted for more appearances, but they never asked him back - availability or lack of popularity?

The absence of three then current Batman villains on the TV shows - Poison Ivy (First Appearance was The spring/summer of 1966) and Blockbuster (late 1965), Scarecrow (Who returns around 1964) sticks out like a sore thumb. (I would say Two-Face not having made any notable appearances in the comic for 15 years might have been off the radar.)
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Dr. Shimel
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Re: False Face - Should He Have Appeared More?

Post by Dr. Shimel »

MysticNitekatt wrote:
Dr. Shimel wrote: Malachi Throne was very much in demand as a character actor during the Batman era. From 1966-68, he was in 20 shows after playing False Face. In the last show, he was Robert Wagner's co-star on "It Takes a Thief." Also given his melifluous voice, he may have done commercials as well. In short, he just didn't have the time to play him again.
Roddy McDowell always said he was contracted for more appearances, but they never asked him back - availability or lack of popularity?
Looks to be more availability, although he wasn't quite as prolific as Throne in 1966-67.
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redbird
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Re: False Face - Should He Have Appeared More?

Post by redbird »

In reading the revised edition of the Batbook, Mr. THORNE hated I idea of wearing a clear
plastic mask, and preferred makeup and wigs to change his appearance. You couldn't see
his facial expressions under thar stupid plastic mask. The actor returning to the role
I highly doubt...and the question mark in the credits was because he didn't care for the
way the audience couldn't see his features....so why show his name!
You did see the actors true face with makeup when he played the bank security guard
that was parked illegally in front of a fire hydrant.
Personally I loved the episodes...because in those days...two-face would be impossible to create
with budget issues.
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Dr. Shimel
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Re: False Face - Should He Have Appeared More?

Post by Dr. Shimel »

redbird wrote: The actor returning to the role I highly doubt...and the question mark in the credits was because he didn't care for the way the audience couldn't see his features....so why show his name!
Yet they did show his name in the end credits of the second part:
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clavierankh
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Re: False Face - Should He Have Appeared More?

Post by clavierankh »

redbird wrote:In reading the revised edition of the Batbook, Mr. THORNE hated I idea of wearing a clear ...

Its Throne not Thorne.
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