Alex Reviews The Mad Hatter!

My son has released his second video review, this time focusing on that dastardly chapeau-obsessed fiend, the Mad Hatter.

While the review focuses on a toy based on the character from the 1966 Batman TV series, Alex takes the time to provide a brief primer on a character who is a bit more complicated than one might think. Initially created as an impish villain inspired by his namesake from Alice in Wonderland, a second Hatter was introduced a decade later with no ties to Lewis Carroll’s work but a burning need to posses all hats, especially Batman’s cowl.

Portrayed by David Wayne, then a hot commodity, the Mad Hatter appeared in two stories, one focused on getting revenge on the jury who convicted him and a follow up in which he irradiates Batman’s cowl, turning it pink. Armed with a top hat that housed a secret mesmerizing beam, the Mad Hatter was a formidable foe for the caped crusader and just weird enough to be fondly remembered. An unusual and quirky character, he has proven popular enough to still have an appeal, even to a seven year old kid.

Watch the review here!

Alex Reviews Launches!

They say the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree and my better half, Alex, is every bit of an enthusiastic pundit on toys and cartoons as I am, and far more charismatic. This month, I have published the first in a series of reviews from my seven year-old protege and anticipate many additional videos to come.

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The opener is a review of the Batman ’66 Mr. Freeze toy by Figures Toys Co. Included in the review is a short comic book history lesson and a quick sketch of the character’s first appearance. Please take a look and spread the word.

Cheers.

Visit the most happening nightclub of the 60’s, Wayne Manor

Stately Wayne Manor…

Was never like this!

The hottest place in the San Francisco suburb of Sunnyvale is Wayne manor, named after Batman’s straight self, Bruce Wayne. At the Manor, the Dynamic Duo of Batman and Robin are painted in throbbing colors on the walls, and villains cackle in fluorescents. Behind a plate-glass screen girls dressed like Robin lead the crowd in the Batusi. Batman sells tickets at the front door, the maitre d’ is the Joker, and drinks are served by Wonder Woman.

I was clearly born in the wrong decade. A nightclub built in an old bank, Wayne Manor was initially created as a South Bay Whisky A Go Go. The owner Joe Lewis’s son suggested a Batman theme (listen to your children, nightclub owners) and he went all out with wild colors on the wall, costumed staff and such. It became a huge hit when the 1966 TV series launched a year later and soon attendees were doing the Batusi!

Things like this just blow my mind. While today superheroes are marketed to young and old alike (with varied results), to hear of a nightclub based on the caped crusader is just amazing. But what better time than the 1960’s? Musical acts included Sly and the Family Stone, Music Machine and the Coasters.

For more info and images, visit this site.

POW! Batman 1966 products on the way!

Batman 1966/Frank Miller’s Dark Knight Returns Mash-up

Back when I was a kid, I was an avid fan of the Batman TV series. I watched it avidly every day and was so confused by its nature that I had no idea it was an absurdist comedy. Yes, I took it as a straight adventure series. I wore a Cooper Batman costume under my ‘street clothes,’ had Batman slippers, adorned my walls with Batman posters and my room was littered with Batmobiles and action figures of the caped crusader, boy wonder and the many crazed foes.

As the years have grown like moss on a tree, the world has embraced the comic book icon as a pop culture phenomenon. DVD box sets, video games, retro vintage-like T-shirts and more have been released of everything from Planet of the Apes to My Favorite Martian. But no 1966 Batman. I wondered why there was such a slim turnout for a program that was so emblematic in its impact on my generation (and those who saw it back in ’66 as well). The answer involves complicated legal stuff that makes my head spin and keeps a deluxe Blu-ray set from adorning my mantle.

Apparently, there has been some kind of concession as a slew of products are on the way velebrating the 1966 Batman TV program.

Oh frabjuous day!

As a blitz of merchandise hits store shelves for “The Dark Knight Rises,” Warner Bros. is turning to a campier source for a new Caped Crusader product: the 1960s “Batman” TV series.
For the first time in 40 years, Warner Bros. Consumer Products will be able to use the likeness of the show’s stars, including Adam West, Burt Ward, Cesar Romero and Burgess Meredith, on everything from apparel to toys, home goods, publishing and promotions.

WBCP will introduce the new “Batman” product opportunities to potential partners and retailers at next week’s Licensing Expo, running June 12-14 in Las Vegas. First products will launch in the spring.

Retailers had requested a larger merchandise line tied to the show over the years, but studio arm had previously been able to use only the series’ logo, POW!-packed animated opening sequence and the Batmobile for product, not the actors, due to rights issues as the series was produced by 20th Century Fox. As a result, studio was limited to a small line of T-shirts and a die-cast Batmobile made by Mattel.

Studio began negotiating with Fox, West and the estates of the show’s other thesps for the rights to their likenesses in August 2009. Batman is a DC Comics character.

Division is eager to exploit the “Batman” series, which aired on ABC from 1966-68, especially its colorful characters, gadgets like the Bat phone and Bat boat, and kitschy humor, an easier sell for retailers than the darker, more serious and gritty tone of Christopher Nolan’s film trilogy.

Company is talking to department stores about carrying exclusive lines of “Batman” show merchandise, the way Bloomingdale’s turned to its household brands like Marc Jacobs and Psycho Bunny to tap into the 75th anniversary of DC Comics.

“For the first time in over 40 years we will be able to offer fans a full merchandise program that captures the classic, kitschy look and feel of the original ‘Batman’ TV show,” said Brad Globe, president of Warner Bros. Consumer Products. “This new licensing program allows our partners to take advantage of the characters, gadgets and humor that made the show a smash hit in its day and a perennial favorite decades later.”

Warner Bros. also will promote “Man of Steel,” the next two “Hobbit” films, “The Looney Tunes Show,” “The Wizard of Oz,” “Scooby-Doo” and “ThunderCats” TV shows at the Licensing Expo.

Via Variety

Batman The Dark Knight (1966)

(poster via http://www.66batman.com)

Kids today only know the grim and gravely-voiced Batman as played by Christian Bale in the two record-breaking hit films. A brutally realistic take on the comic book hero, the Chris Nolan trilogy is a far cry from the absurd shtick of William Dozer’s 1966 Batman TV series.

The TV series was wacky and bizarre, garnering high ratings on the small screen and even branching out as a feature film! A strange comedic version of the crime fighting hero, it left an indelible mark on the caped crusader removed only after Tim Burton’s 1989 film re-imagined Batman for a modern audience. Burton’s visually stunning nightmarish vision gave way to the multi-colored Schumacher films that challenged the malleability of the character while murdering its dignity.

When Batman returned to the big screen in 2005 it was in the form of a cinematic crime noir project. The surreal Batmobile was gone (replaced by a state of the art military armored vehicle), the quirky villains were hardcore murderers and charismatic terrorists and the hero himself a tortured soul.

All of these things considered, it’s very weird to see this modern version of Batman filtered through a 1966 lens.