Feature by Mike Martinez
Published
June 1, 1989
UCSD
Guardian Hiatus Entertainment
BACKSTORY: I was a real Batman buff, dating back to the
original Detective comics and the 1960’s TV show. My brother-in-law Buzz and I
usually attended the San Diego Comic Convention, back in the 70s when it was
just a comic seller’s marketplace. He is an uncredited resource in this
featured profile of 1989’s biggest summer hit.
We may as
well face it – sometime this summer, we’re going to stand face-to-face with the
Batman.
When Warner
Bros. Batman movie opens throughout the country on June 23rd, one of
the most massive promotional campaigns of recent memory will accompany an
equally comprehensive merchandising and product placement blitz. All of this coincides with the 50th
anniversary of the Bat Dude’s first appearance in Detective Comics.
Expect to
run a gauntlet of TV promos, specials, licensed apparel and other Batproducts.
In theaters, Batman will battle not only the Joker, but Indiana Jones,
Ghostbusters II, Star Trek IV, and the thirtyish Karate Kid.
The
Batcompetition for this summer’s movie dollars comes mainly from sequels to
proven hits of years past. The Batman, however, has his own built in
recognition factor – a fifty-year legacy as a comic hero and star of TV and
film.
Everyone
knows Batman – but which Batman do they know?
Batman first
appeared in DC’s Detective Comics in May of 1939, issue #27 for you buffs.
Created by Bob Kane, the story was titled “The Batman and Commissioner Gordon.”
A bored socialite named Bruce Wayne slinks around Gotham City in the dark of
night, presenting a “weird menace to crime.” This Dark Avenger thwarts a petty
thief named Jack Napier, who accidentally falls into a chemical vat that maims
his features. He’s transformed into a chalky-faced, green haired lunatic who
eventually takes over Gotham’s crime underworld.
The Joker,
that is.
Subsequent
issues filled in between the lines, and explained that Bruce witnessed the
murder of his parents and decided to take it out on the riffraff of the world.
Robin, a teenage assistant vigilante, is also introduced, as is Alfred the butler,
Batwoman (a secret identity of the Commissioner’s daughter), and assorted
Batweapons.
More
strangely dressed enemies like the Penguin and the Riddler came along later. In
1940, Batman got his own dedicated comic book. DC has published Batman’s adventures
under both titles to the present day.
The original
Robin left the Batman series to join a crime fighting “supergroup.” He was
replaced in issue #368 by Jason Todd, who unfortunately was killed in #428. The
Detective series has the original Robin, but the Batman title comics have
Batman as a solo act!
 |
| Lewis Wilson, 1943 |
A Batman
movie was a logical extension for 1940’s Hollywood. After all, film product was
churned out as such a rate that every literary character short of Aunt Jemima
starred in a series of “B” films. During the war, Columbia produced film noir
Batman serials in which the hero wasn’t the angular muscleman depicted by
skilled comic artists.
As portrayed by flabby Lewis Wilson, Batman more resembled an earthbound Philip Marlowe than a rousing caped crusader. The cheap effects and laughable dialog made even the ultra-tacky TV Superman that came a decade later seem like high art.
As portrayed by flabby Lewis Wilson, Batman more resembled an earthbound Philip Marlowe than a rousing caped crusader. The cheap effects and laughable dialog made even the ultra-tacky TV Superman that came a decade later seem like high art.
1960's Revival
The popularity of the 1966 ABC-TV Batman was an indication of his longevity and cult appeal, as well as a harbinger of the merchandising appeal of Batstuff. Twenty-three years removed, it’s not too difficult to recall the Batmania of the times. Pop art, and the mass marketing of popular culture, exploded in the mid-Sixties. Suddenly, anything Bat was in.
Little-known
stars Adam West and Burt Ward became video icons, assured of nostalgia industry
income well into their September years. The show itself, characterized by a
camp sensibility, as like no other. The actors hammed, and both good guys and
bad guys wore exaggerated costumes. The dialogue was cliché heaped on parody.
Scenes were shot at off-kilter angles. Even the main titles and graphics were
out of Warhol’s sketch book. ABC’s
Batman spawned imitators on CBS and NBC. Even the DC comics updated their
Batman milieu with a fair dose of pop/camp.
This Adam West-styled pop hero may
still be the prevailing image of Batman to the public at large.
Go into Bucket O’ Comix today, fork out four bucks for a Batman comic and … well, there’s no telling what you’ve selected. DC still features both Detective and Batman titles. In 1986, they also introduced the Dark Knight series – and this guy aint no Adam West! This Batman of the future is aged, bitter and world weary. He’s more or less in hiding as vigilante punks rampage in Gotham City, evoking his name as they cripple even the most harmless offenders. Robin’s tights are now filled by a redheaded girl named Carrie Kelly.
Talk about affirmative action! I wonder if the Guardian copy editor will feel compelled to call her the "Person Wonder."
Anyway, Batman and his still youthful pal Superman comment on the turbulent world around them …much like two past-their-prime gunfighters sitting on the front porch. A brutally violent episode titled The Killing Joke appeared last year. Batman and his old nemesis Joker are rather like old adversaries with a mutual respect for each other. They reflect their times – the Age of Anxiety, when right and wrong may be on the very same coin.
Batman Today
Go into Bucket O’ Comix today, fork out four bucks for a Batman comic and … well, there’s no telling what you’ve selected. DC still features both Detective and Batman titles. In 1986, they also introduced the Dark Knight series – and this guy aint no Adam West! This Batman of the future is aged, bitter and world weary. He’s more or less in hiding as vigilante punks rampage in Gotham City, evoking his name as they cripple even the most harmless offenders. Robin’s tights are now filled by a redheaded girl named Carrie Kelly.
Talk about affirmative action! I wonder if the Guardian copy editor will feel compelled to call her the "Person Wonder."
Anyway, Batman and his still youthful pal Superman comment on the turbulent world around them …much like two past-their-prime gunfighters sitting on the front porch. A brutally violent episode titled The Killing Joke appeared last year. Batman and his old nemesis Joker are rather like old adversaries with a mutual respect for each other. They reflect their times – the Age of Anxiety, when right and wrong may be on the very same coin.
Batman
merchandising during the Sixties craze generated some $150 million in revenues.
Expect more of the same this year … and with contractual commitments from
Keaton, Basinger and Williams, count on at least one sequel.
This setting pre-dates the appearance of Robin, although his origins will be mentioned. The Joker will be played by Jack Nicholson, who should chew up major scenery and provide box office credibility. Supporting players Kim Basinger, Billy Dee Williams and Jack Palance are solid pros who should help the cause.
It’s the
casting of Michael Keaton as Batman that has caused apprehension, especially
from hard core comic fans. Known primarily from his arsenal of vague reassurances
in comedy roles, he’s done little straight drama. His Batman must even wear a
muscle suit to fill out his non-heroic frame. The backlash was such that it was
even written up in The Wall Street Journal.
To appease
fans, Warner’s sent out a big gun – Bob Kane himself. He did some good
old-fashioned cheerleading at comic conventions and the like, calling this new
version a “serious” Batman, and exhorting fans to give Keaton a chance.
A lot is riding
on Keaton’s padded shoulders, but count on Batmania Revisited to prevail. After
all, he can’t be as awful as Lewis Wilson.