TO THE BATPOLES #130: Reading fan letters in the Wayne living room

[bat-rss]

Bill Adler was an expert at riding the latest wave, and in 1966 he released “Bill Adler’s Funniest Fan Letters to Batman,” a collection of real (?) fan letters sent by fans (mostly kids) of the Caped Crusader’s TV show and comic books. In this episode, we discuss this book and read some of our favorite letters from it.

We’re also joined by Ben Bentley of this very message board, to fill us in further on last episode’s question regarding the similarities of various “living room” sets from the show, and his findings regarding which set was used for the library in the Batgirl/Killer Moth presentation reel!

http://tothebatpoles.libsyn.com/130-rea ... iving-room

[Jim Akin]

I tried posting this to the libsyn page for the podcast, and something weird happened, so I'm not sure it stuck.

I'm not sure it originated there, but the version of the Batman theme used in the podcast can be found on a TV-theme compilation album called Television's Greatest Hits.

TelevisionsGreatestHits.jpg (26.01 KiB) Viewed 5579 times

I picked up a copy of the double LP in the mid 80s, mainly to get the Batman theme, and was disappointed to discover it was the version in question, with the phony actors doing the "Atomic batteries to power" bit. The album contains the original versions of lots of other TV themes (albeit several that sound like they were recorded straight from tinny TV speakers), but they must not have had the rights to the "real" Batman theme.

[bat-rss]

Thanks for this. You’re right, the comment on the blog didn’t appear. Sorry about that. It’s Facebook-based, and I’ve found with that system, if you enter the comment first and then log into Facebook, the comment disappears - it’s necessary to log in first and then enter the comment. A pain, I know...

[artbat123]

In order to get the Batman tv theme from the tv show get the two cd set "25th anniversary edition TV Classic Themes including rare celebrity greetings." There is also a rare greeting from the Batman cast on driving safety.

[gothosmansion]

I really enjoyed listening to Ben talking about the sets. Thanks for having him on the show and letting him share his knowledge.

The letters book sounds like fun, but, like you, I wonder about the authenticity of the letters. I don't think I've ever ran across one.

You guys may not remember making the comment, but I agree that 60s tv was much more fun than 70s TV. I wasn't born until the 70s and watched 60s TV much more than anything that came on in the 70s or 80s. I'm as big of a Buddy Ebsen fan as there is, but, as much as I like Barnaby Jones, it doesn't hold a jug of moonshine to the classic early seasons of the Beverly Hillbillies. One of the few 70s shows I love is the Lynda Carter Wonder Woman series. I mean, come on, Lynda Carter versus a giant brain that has an eye on an antenna, lives in a giant translucent can and speaks with the voice of John Carradine....how can you fail to be entertained by that?

[High C]

Tim and Paul, I again am impressed at how you are able to shine a light on some of the pop culture ephemera that took advantage of the Bat-phenomenon. I was dimly aware of Adler's compilations--I am sure I saw them in the local bookstore, but never was tempted to ask my parents to buy one. I agree with you--I suspect many of the youngsters' letters were legit, but that prom/dance one was absurd. Still, an interesting snapshot of the time.

Ben, thanks for the fascinating history lesson. As dumb as it sounds, I admit it never occurred to me before that some of the non-main sets, sets OTHER than the Batcave, Gordon's office, Wayne study, etc., would be disassembled and reassembled as needed.

With that in mind, I noticed that the stock exchange directors' boardroom in the Minstrel arc in season 2 has numerous similarities to Bruce's private office in the Siren episode. It isn't exactly the same, but there are common things, clock, light fixture, etc.

[Ben Bentley]

A big thanks to Tim and Paul for having me on the show again, it's always fun chatting with the guys!

Another thank to those of you who listened for all of the kind words - i'm always very happy to share information and research, glad to know other people enjoy it too!