High C Has Passed Away

General goings on in the 1966 Batman World

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epaddon
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High C Has Passed Away

Post by epaddon »

It is with the deepest sadness that I must report that "High C", long-time member of this board and #1 fan of the Siren, has sadly passed away.

I knew him for many years because we lived in the same area and we got together locally. He was a sportswriter for many years who had covered the New York Jets and Seton Hall basketball. But sadly, he had fallen on hard times professionally the last few years since losing his full-time job with one newspaper. He had some health issues, and when I talked to him over the phone just this past weekend, he had been complaining about back problems. On Sunday he had told me he had gotten an appointment with a clinic for Sunday evening. It was the last time I ever talked to him. When I heard nothing for several days I got deeply concerned. Then this evening I saw the headlines in the press reporting his death. It was a police announcement reporting no cause of death but the fact it was police and not a hospital (because I had thought perhaps because of his appointment on Sunday he might have checked into a hospital) leads me to fear something more horrible may have happened. I was always there for him as his friend, and he had always been a good listening board for me.

His enthusiasm for the show made for some great fun conversation over the years. I will miss him deeply.
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clavierankh
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Re: High C Has Passed Away

Post by clavierankh »

So sorry to hear this.
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BATWINGED HORNET
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Re: High C Has Passed Away

Post by BATWINGED HORNET »

I am so very sorry for the loss of High C, but thoughts are certainly with him on his next journey.
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Scott Sebring
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Re: High C Has Passed Away

Post by Scott Sebring »

Oh no! This is heartbreaking news. I've always enjoyed High C's presence on the board through the years. Insightful, articulate, and thought-through posts were one of his ongoing traits I could count on seeing. I got to know him much better once we started doing the video bat-chats again during the initial lockdown and then beyond. Having actual verbal conversations with him was even more entertaining than his posts as we were constantly laughing about this or that. I always looked forward to interacting with him. I wish we could have met in person at least once for a hysterical lunch. He was one of those real treasures to have on the board. His loss really hurts.
Thank you for the update epaddon. I know you two were tight and I'm so sorry for the loss of your friend.
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AndyFish
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Re: High C Has Passed Away

Post by AndyFish »

This is terrible news. So sorry to hear it.
RIP
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Jim Akin
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Re: High C Has Passed Away

Post by Jim Akin »

This is tragic news. I had lots of lively exchanges with High C over the years, and we swapped some bat-trivia behind the scenes as well. As things go with fandom, we didn't always agree about everything, but debates were always in good fun. Condolences to epaddon and all who knew him off-board, and to all his loved ones.
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rsaffle
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Re: High C Has Passed Away

Post by rsaffle »

Sad news indeed. His contributions to this site will remain for even more people to read and his name will not be forgotten.

My thoughts are with his family and close friends.
*See more 3D printed props @ https://www.instagram.com/saffledesigns/
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Larry A.
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Re: High C Has Passed Away

Post by Larry A. »

R.I.P. High C! I agree that He will NOT bew forgotten!!!!!!!!!
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AndyFish
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Re: High C Has Passed Away

Post by AndyFish »

Was High C JP Pelzman? If so they have covered his passing in the New York Post. I won't link to it without confirmation. I confess I've never understood using an alias on a message board.
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Ben Bentley
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Re: High C Has Passed Away

Post by Ben Bentley »

Thanks for sharing this with us Epaddon and my sincere condolences to you and his close friends and family. I'm genuinely heartbroken to hear this.

I echo entirely what Scott said. J.P. was a staple of our community here on the message board, he was a member even prior to Scott and I joining back in 2004. J.P's knowledge and passion for the show were always present in the thoughtful and nuanced observations he would share in his posts.

During 2020 and 2021, one of the few silver linings of being stuck at home was our rebooted weekly Video Bat-Chat sessions and during that time as Scott mentioned the dynamic shifted with the VBC regular attendees from that of acquaintances here on the message board to that of genuine friends who not only shared their love for the '66 show but laughed, joked and showed genuine interest in each other's lives. The kinship born out of those difficult times and the levity it provided is something that I will cherish for the rest of my life. J.P. was one of my "paperwork guys" who I would exchange production documents and tidbits with. We would go back and forth, theorizing, contextualizing and generally trying to expand our understanding of how this silly show we all love came to be. I really enjoyed the friendship we developed.

J.P. was a longtime supporter and even contributor to most of the '66 Batman podcasts that are out there. I really hope Tim and Paul catch this thread sooner than later as I feel like "To The Batpoles" will sorely miss his input. I particularly enjoyed the episode of Jimmy's podcast that J.P. guested on, it was a great conversation and again was another relationship born out of VBC sessions.

I was actually hoping to see J.P. for lunch next week whilst i'm in NYC for work, so to wake up to a text from Scott telling me that he had passed was the very last thing I could have ever imagined waking up to this morning.

You are already missed, Sir!
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Jim Akin
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Re: High C Has Passed Away

Post by Jim Akin »

Hi, all.

High C's real name was indeed J.P. Pelzman, and he was a well-respected sportswriter. Before posting his obituary, I consulted with epaddon to be sure there's no reason J.P. wouldn't want to be "outed" as the name behind the High C board alias.

Here's his obituary from Newsday, one of many publications he wrote for.

If any of you use Twitter, searching on J.P. Pelzman will show you many fond remembrances from colleagues and friendly competitors. He was much loved and much respected.
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Ben Bentley
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Re: High C Has Passed Away

Post by Ben Bentley »

AndyFish wrote: Fri Jul 22, 2022 8:32 am Was High C JP Pelzman? If so they have covered his passing in the New York Post. I won't link to it without confirmation. I confess I've never understood using an alias on a message board.
That's correct Andy. I'd love to read the bit.
Jim Akin wrote: Fri Jul 22, 2022 9:01 am Hi, all.

High C's real name was indeed J.P. Pelzman, and he was a well-respected sportswriter. Before posting his obituary, I consulted with epaddon to be sure there's no reason J.P. wouldn't want to be "outed" as the name behind the High C board alias.

Here's his obituary from Newsday, one of many publications he wrote for.

If any of you use Twitter, searching on J.P. Pelzman will show you many fond remembrances from colleagues and friendly competitors. He was much loved and much respected.
Thanks for sharing Jim.
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bat-rss
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Re: High C Has Passed Away

Post by bat-rss »

So sorry to hear this. We frequently heard from JP via email as well as through the board. We had planned to have him on TO THE BATPOLES again, but the question we had planned to cover turned out to be more difficult to research than we'd realized.

He will be missed.

We did have him on to discuss -- what else? -- Siren! Listen to that one here.
"I'm half-demented with whimsical outrage!"
-- The Joker, in a line cut from "The Joker's Epitaph"
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P “Junior Batman” Y
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Re: High C Has Passed Away

Post by P “Junior Batman” Y »

This is shocking and terribly sad news. High C was not only a titanic Bat-fan; he was also smart, generous, highly curious, and a loyal, outgoing, and concerned friend. I can’t say we were close by any means, but Tim and I could always rely on him for honest and thoughtful comments about Batman and all related phenomena, and of course about our podcast. There were times when we weren’t sure that anyone but High C was listening, but we were always certain he was there; and frankly, I wouldn’t have minded continuing to produce it even if he really were our only listener.

We’re going to miss you, J. P. If we had a Batsignal, we’d fire it up continuously for a week in his honor. He was obviously many things to many people, but to me, he was an indispensable fellow fan, the kind with whom we could really dig deeply into the histories and implicit workings of the cultural phenomena we enjoyed so fervently. Sail on, sailor, and may Siren lead you home.
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Re: High C Has Passed Away

Post by Lounge lizard »

I'm so sorry to read this news today. My best wishes to his family and friends over the forthcoming days.
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