Things you didn't notice or remember until seeing the DVDs

[Progress Pigment]

Decades ago, I recall a few fans stretching things--thinking use of the Julie double was almost a slap in the face to Kitt--as if to leave the series with the "preferred" image of Catwoman, instead of Newmar's successor.

Why a slap in the face? What is a slap in the face to Lee Meriwether and Julie Newmar actually returned for season two? Or when Frank Gorshin returned in season 3 after John Astin was cast as the Riddler in season 2? Obviously these are the actors wanted for the rolls.

Oh! *snicker* I get it now. The Dr. Cassandra episode was also a slap in the face to John Astin!! Do you see a mustache? I sure don't. He must've been crushed. But I see what you're saying. It would've been a nice gesture to hire an actress physically similar to Eartha Kitt. I wonder if they felt Julie might return for a 4th season if the rating suddenly went thru the roof again & Batman was renewed? Likely, they had a good prior relationship with Marilyn Watson and just brought her in without thinking about it much. In hindsight, they probably should have put some stage hand in the "Loulie the Lilac" suit. It's not like anyone past the age of six was watching anymore anyway. I think I'm in the VAST minority, since I tend to like the episode quite a bit.

[Golddragon71]

When I first got the DVDs I ripped them all to my computer and watch them whenever I want on it or my devices.
Usually when I watch them on the desktop computer I use quicktime. For the most part I just skip through the opening animation credits and go straight to the action.
However, Tonight I stopped myself as I noticed something.
In the third season we see Batgirl in the opening credits. No big, she swings in kicking a thug at the beginning and races across the Batmobile's path on her Batgirl Cycle at the end of the credits sequence. In the last Forty years that I have watched this show I have never noticed this before!
BATGIRL TURNS HER HEAD!!!





Now I had always thought that her ride across was just a new picture that swept across the pre-existing sequence of the Batmobile zooming in. and it goes so fast I'm not surprised i never caught it before.

[Therin of Andor]

Likely, they had a good prior relationship with Marilyn Watson and just brought her in without thinking about it much.

That's my understanding of it. She was there on set, often, for regular female stuntwork, but had lost her Catwoman double work. (Eartha's double for lighting set-ups, etc would no doubt have been her height and complexion, and may have only done a few eps., ie. the Season 3 Catwoman appearances.)

In hindsight, they probably should have put some stage hand in the "Louie the Lilac" suit.

Nah, the episode is important to me in that it specifies which villains were considered to be Batman's "arch criminals", in as much as they got their own wing and wore their regular costumes. Louie was small potatoes. And stage hands aren't actors or even stand-ins.

Although it also would have been fun to see the arch villains in prison stripes in that first scene, and a whole batch of alternate action figure exclusive for FTC!

[Gernot]

The thing I noticed recently was on ME-TV (I don't own the DVDs yet).

It's how Batman's cowl actually has a BLACK shadow across it, just as his cowl does in the comics. I never noticed it before in earlier viewings, and wasn't sure I really saw it until I REALLY studied the show. I noticed it there while viewing the new animated movie, and realized I DID see it on TV.

Now, THAT'S Batman!

[Dr. Shimel]

The indelicate question of Eartha's color and the lack of a comparable stagehand/extra to fill her place might also explain the re-emergence of "Julie" as Catwoman. I've also noted before that the romantic tension between Batman and Catwoman stopped once Eartha took over, since I don't imagine Dozier wanted to deal with the inevitable blowback from even hinting at an interracial relationship.

[Therin of Andor]

The indelicate question of Eartha's color and the lack of a comparable stagehand/extra to fill her place might also explain the re-emergence of "Julie" as Catwoman. I've also noted before that the romantic tension between Batman and Catwoman stopped once Eartha took over, since I don't imagine Dozier wanted to deal with the inevitable blowback from even hinting at an interracial relationship.

Oh, Eartha would have had a stand-in, for lighting purposes - too expensive to make the guest star stand around, even in the 60s, and probably a dark-skinned stuntwoman had her scripts required stunts, and if one was available. There may have been very few female/black stuntwomen at the time; didn't a small male jockey/stunt guy play Batgirl in the horse race episode? (Many bit-part actors also were registered as stunt performers - sometimes in the 60s they did "extra" work for one studio under one name and stunts for a different studio under a different name). But "stagehand" would never be the correct term for such a job.

(There was a controversial union faux pas in the 80s with "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan", when a white stuntman was put into blackface to double for Paul Winfield, when the director wanted an impromptu roll down a sand dune. Which was never used in the film. I think in the 60s, it may have been quite common to put white stunt people into matching makeups for actors, but the rules were more lax.)

My point being, it was the penultimate episode, all the regular villain stand-ins/stunt guys were getting one last play in the iconic arch villain costumes, so Marilyn Watson got the gig.

Would Eartha have returned for a Season Four? Anyone's guess. She seemed to be having fun in Season Three. (And yes, they used the character more as a foil for Batgirl, rather than romance for Batman.) But as a cabaret singer and actress, she may have been just as busy as Julie Newmar and Lee Meriwether.

[Progress Pigment]

The indelicate question of Eartha's color and the lack of a comparable stagehand/extra to fill her place might also explain the re-emergence of "Julie" as Catwoman. I've also noted before that the romantic tension between Batman and Catwoman stopped once Eartha took over, since I don't imagine Dozier wanted to deal with the inevitable blowback from even hinting at an interracial relationship.

It occurs to me that having one of the name actors, Burgess Meredith for example, saying one line or even just in close-up for a few seconds, similar to his appearance on The Monkees, would've gone a long way in salvaging the episode.

About the stagehand comment, I was being facetious, but we're talking 3rd season Batman here, so who knows? I think the only stab at romantic tension with Eartha Kitt was Batman saying words to the effect, "Yes Robin, but she IS attractive." Something like that. I'm glad for that much least that. You occasionally come across a blub about "Batman's" chance of beating Star Trek to the first interracial kiss. Which barely counted anyway since in the Trek episode Kirk & Ulhura were being controlled. By this point a little controversy could only have helped "Batman". Getting in the papers for any reason aside from being in the top 10 worst shows on TV, or for it's dismal ratings could only have been good. But William "syndication deal" Dozier wouldn't have allowed anything good, bad or indifferent that might affect his cash flow.

[Therin of Andor]

If I recall correctly, the casting of Eartha Kitt was indeed considered newsworthy, and garnered publicity and "a little controversy".

[clavierankh]

As for Eartha coming back for possible fourth season, in early 1968 you she got in trouble for remarks to Lady Bird Johnson about the war in Vietnam Nam and black youth. She had a lot of trouble finding work after that. I doubt Dozier would have brought her back.

Ironically I think her remarks would make her a hero in Hollywood today.

[Therin of Andor]

http://after68.com/1968-eartha-kitt-and ... ntroversy/

Wow!

[STP Swallowthispill]

I Just finished watching the Blue Ray edition and here are the things I noticed.

In The episode:

King tuts Coup / Batman's Waterloo
When Batman is in the sarcophagus look at the up and down button!
That's the costume change devise from the bat cave!

Also I noticed the slide down the poles changed all over the place there are scene's from part 1 used in all the rest of the parts back and forth! This can be told by the bags they land on at the bottom of the poles!

I also notice the change to the service elevator it went from a little alcove to a real looking elevator.

They buttons for the "Compressed Steam Bat pole lift" changed a lot sometimes they are the same size other times Batman button was larger that Robins button.

I also have to say that Alan Napier should have been awarded a prize of some sort he was very good at his job!
I mean you here in the special features but no one even mentions him at all I think the show would not have worked without him!

I also saw in the Special features another Batman and Robin screen test aren't we glad they chose the right ones!

Charles

[Golddragon71]

Ok so this is a little reverse to the main Topic but I'm suddenly confused. Over the years I've watched Batman on and off. and there have been as many episodes I've missed here and there as there are episodes I've seen repeatedly.
For the last four or five months I've watched every Batman episode beginning to end (except on Tuesdays when I do my comic strip "Another Day in the Pit")
Here's my problem. I distinctly recall an episode of an explosion in the Batcave rocking Wayne Manor. Alfred goes to the Batpole entrance and calls down to Bruce and Dick and get's no reply. I'm sure I didn't dream it, and yet i can now find no evidence of any such occurrence. (at least not involving Alfred, In Joker's Fl;ying Saucer, Joker's "martian" plants a bomb in the batmobile which does go off in the Batcave but Alfred's already far away from Wayne Manor.) does anyone recall this scene besides me? If so, can you point me to it?

[HappyDude]

Maybe you're thinking of part 2 of the Chandell story, where having deduced that he's plotting to marry Aunt Harriet and so inherit the Wayne fortune, they fake an explosion in the photographic dark room in Wayne Manor. We see the explosion, and Alfred going in saying "Mr Bruce! Master Dick!"

[Golddragon71]

yeah I do recall that. It's funny how you get scenes from various episodes mixed together in your brain (especially when you've been running through them recently)
Thanks

[STP Swallowthispill]

Ok so this is a little reverse to the main Topic but I'm suddenly confused. Over the years I've watched Batman on and off. and there have been as many episodes I've missed here and there as there are episodes I've seen repeatedly.
For the last four or five months I've watched every Batman episode beginning to end (except on Tuesdays when I do my comic strip "Another Day in the Pit")
Here's my problem. I distinctly recall an episode of an explosion in the Batcave rocking Wayne Manor. Alfred goes to the Batpole entrance and calls down to Bruce and Dick and get's no reply. I'm sure I didn't dream it, and yet i can now find no evidence of any such occurrence. (at least not involving Alfred, In Joker's Fl;ying Saucer, Joker's "martian" plants a bomb in the batmobile which does go off in the Batcave but Alfred's already far away from Wayne Manor.) does anyone recall this scene besides me? If so, can you point me to it?

There is a huge explosion in the Bat cave with the Batmobile covered by debris I can't think of the name of it but you are correct!

Charles