Batman in the 1960s Issue 41: September/October 1966

 

The Caped Crusader in the 1960s
by Jack Seabrook
& Peter Enfantino

Infantino/Giella

Detective Comics #355

"Hate of the Hooded Hangman!"

Story by John Broome

Art by Carmine Infantino & Joe Giella

Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson take in a night at the wrestling matches, watching the flavor of the month, the undefeated Hangman, whose gimmick is that no one knows his real identity. Dick puts forth that the Dynamic Duo should utilize (some might say waste) their detective skills to discover just who the man under the hood really is.

Bruce quickly agrees that it would be a lot of fun to unmask a celebrity but admits that they must attack that chore in their spare time. Since Joker, Riddler, Penguin, and Catwoman all seem to be out of town, there's a lot of spare time on hand. Well, except that Dick has to tackle his homework, which leaves Batman to patrol on his own. It's while on street ops that he hears a burglar alarm sound and sees (coincidentally) the Hangman running from a burgled pawn shop. Thinking quickly, he exits the Batmobile and gives chase. The Hangman pleads innocence but Bats is on one of his "I will restore order to the streets of Gotham" tears and employs battle tactics.

The Hangman proves to be just as adept at street fighting as he is at wrestling and puts Batman out (1-2-3) on the canvas. While the Dark Knight lies in the gutter, the Hangman approaches and reaches down as if to unmask our hero. At that moment, a siren rings out and the wrestler hoofs it. The next morning, Bruce is astonished to learn that two thugs have been arrested for the pawn shop heist. The Hangman is innocent! But then why was he running? Anyone who runs down a dark Gotham street has to be up to something, no?

That night, on another solo patrol, Batman stumbles onto the Hangman in an alley where a robbery is in progress... again. That tears it! This guy is up to something! The two are involved in some light fisticuffs until the Hangman slips into a darkened doorway. Batman finds the door is locked and sighs... another villain has escaped the grasp of the World's Greatest Detective in the simplest way! The next day, Bruce and Dick are pondering the subject when their "favorite newscaster, Telman Davies" begins his broadcast and Bruce suddenly realizes that the voice of Davies and the voice of the Hangman are one and the same!

That night, Batman shows up at Gotham Arena for the Hangman's latest bout and challenges the celeb to a match. Hangman agrees but wants to take the fight upstairs to the roof. Batman agrees and the epic battle begins. Hangman gets the best of Bats and then grabs for the Caped Crusader's mask, pulling it off and revealing the face of... Telman Davies! This obviously startles the Hangman since (just in case you weren't paying attention) he's Telman Davies! Batman takes advantage of the break in the action to pop back up and deliver a crushing blow and a turnbuckle dive, with the piece de resistance being the public unmasking of the Hangman. Telman Davies is fired from his high-paying newscasting gig and run out of town (on a boat!). Batman and Robin sigh, knowing they've done good work, basically disgracing a mentally ill man and sending him off to another country.

Another really lame adventure, with some parts defying all logic. There's always a boatload of coincidence involved in a funny book story... I get it, without wink winks there would be no story... but the fact that Hangman just happens to be the number one watched news guy in Wayne Manor and the boys were at the wrestling match is a little much. The Dynamic Duo have become so mentally entwined that Dick can actually read his mentor's mind now (see reprinted panel). My personal favorite moment comes when Hangman decides he's had enough of an alleyway battle with Bats and escapes through an obviously-scouted convenient escape portal. Bats can't seem to open the door, despite the myriad of gadgets on his utility belt! Despite all this, I thought the Hangman was a nifty character and wouldn't mind a return visit once he's finished his exile in Cuba.-Peter

Jack-Between another gorgeous cover and terrific interior artwork by Infantino and Giella, I was so dazzled that the coincidences in the plot didn't bother me until the end. Having the Hangman's entire motive be to become the number one masked man in Gotham was a real letdown. It would have been better if he had been on the right side of the law and worked with Batman to solve some other problem.

Infantino/Anderson/Giella

The Brave and the Bold #67

"The Death of the Flash"

Story by Bob Haney

Art by Carmine Infantino & Charles Paris

Gotham City is hit by a series of robberies by men wearing sneakers who can run super-fast! They manage to outrun both the Batmobile and the Bat-Copter, causing Batman to crash both vehicles during pursuit. Even when wearing a jet pack, Batman can't catch them! Meanwhile, in Central City, the Flash catches a pair of crooks but feels exhausted, so it's off to the doctor, who tells the speedster that he's running himself to death and he'd better slow down!

When Batman calls the Flash for help, however, the Flash can't say no, so he takes the train to Gotham City and soon ends up chasing speedsters. Flash catches one and is worn out; Batman arrives and observes that the crook's sneakers burned up, surely to prevent them from being analyzed. The crook reveals that he and his gang call themselves the Speed Boys and, unbeknownst to our heroes, the bad guys meet at the Accelerated Gentleman's Club where, wearing masks and tuxedos, they discuss their plans and explain that their sneakers are coated with radioactive isotopes and meteorite fibers that give them their pep.

The next day, a midget Speed Boy is mistaken for a kid when he steals a valuable necklace. Flash and Batman work together to catch him but, when Flash collapses, Batman knows something is wrong. Another visit to the doctor's office reveals the truth but, unfortunately, a Speed Boy is outside the doctor's office and overhears the Flash's dire prognosis. The next day, the Speed Boys rob a bank and the Flash gives chase. The Speed Boys overpower the hero and send a TV message to Batman announcing "The Death of the Flash." Back at the Batcave, Batman analyzes one of the sneakers and discovers what makes it go.

Following a clue to the hideout of the Speed Boys, the Caped Crusader coats the floor with oil and captures all but their leader, who escapes out a window and is chased by the Flash, who catches him with ease and is back to full health, having been cured by his proximity to the radiation from the Speed Boys' sneakers!

I guess that the term "Gentleman's Club" had a different meaning in 1966 than it does today. This issue marks the return of inker Charles Paris, who toiled with Sheldon Moldoff for so long before being unceremoniously dumped in favor of Joe Giella. Paris's inks over Infantino's pencils are nothing special and don't compare well to those of Giella or Sid Greene. As for the story, it's average. We all know that the Flash isn't going to die, but the fact that the radiation from the sneakers is what cures him is not what I expected.-Jack

Peter- You're right, Jack, this isn't Adams or Englehart, but I did enjoy it, nonetheless. As in 'tec #356 (below), there's much more energy than the usual Bat-venture and, Giella or no, I found the art to be much better than anything Moldoff was doodling at the time. I thought at first this might turn into a classic Marvel Team-Up-esque superhero battle, with Batman mistaking the fast thief for the Flash, but that never materialized. I guess the DC characters trusted each other much more than the Marvel heroes. I love how Gordon goads Batman with talk of failure. This from the laziest law enforcer in the DC Universe!

Infantino/Anderson

Batman #184

"Mystery of the Missing Manhunters!"

Story by Gardner Fox

Art by Sheldon Moldoff, Joe Giella & Chic Stone

"The Boy Wonder's Boo-Boo Patrol!"

Story by Gardner Fox

Art by Sheldon Moldoff & Sid Greene

Batman and Robin suddenly return after having been missing for 13 days! Commissioner Gordon and Aunt Harriet were beside themselves! The Dynamic Duo don't recall where they've been, so Robin hypnotizes Batman and the Dark Knight explains that, after saving Slippery Sam Lorenzo from a near-fatal fall off of a tall building, Batman used Sam's intel to interrupt a robbery in progress at the Temple of Tiny Treasures.

Sam proceeds to tell Batman all about Robbery, Inc., in exchange for a promise to protect him. Batman hides Sam in a cave with Robin and spends the next twelve days in a series of disguises, trying to learn more about Lefty Wright, the main threat to Sam's safety. Batman heads back to the cave, trailed by Lefty and his gang. Batman and Robin make short work of the gang members and their leader but, when the Dynamic Duo touch the Batmobile in order to grab the car phone to call Commissioner Gordon, they are zapped by an electric shock set up by Slippery Sam and  lose their memory of the last 13 days.

Sam escapes and Batman and Robin return to the Batcave, make some calls, and do some hypnosis to refresh their recollections about what's going on. They quickly locate Sam back at the cave and that's that.

In spite of a groovy cover, "Mystery of the Missing Manhunters!" is a dud. The whole business about Batman and Robin being out of touch for 13 days is ridiculous. Robin is hanging out in the cave with Slippery Sam while Batman tries on one disguise after another and learns next to nothing? Good thing the Joker didn't pick these weeks to start a campaign of terror! Worst of all, our heroes take about ten minutes to recover their memories, making the whole amnesia bit pointless.

Bruce Wayne has to attend an important meeting out of town so Robin is left on his own to patrol Gotham City. "The Boy Wonder's Boo-Boo Patrol!" begins when he sees a pretty redhead being thrown from a speeding motorcycle after the rear wheel falls off. Robin saves her from a bad scrape only to learn that she's stunt girl Viola Lance and Robin has ruined a take from a TV show she's filming. The Boy Wonder notices an air-blister on the tire and wonders if the accident was staged to harm the young woman. He decides to keep an eye on her.

The next day, Robin does some digging and learns that the show's director, Bill Porter, stands to receive a $1M insurance payment if Violet is killed. That night, Robin again rescues the stunt woman when she's sailing over a burning building by means of a balloon that appears to be pierced by a bullet. Certain that Porter is up to no good, the Teen Wonder drives Violet home, only to have to save her again when a speeding car barrels toward her. The car was driven by jewel robbers and Robin quickly knocks them out. Porter arrives and Robin learns that he and Violet are engaged to be married. A bit of investigation reveals that the balloon was punctured by a stray meteorite and Robin feels foolish for jumping to conclusions.

Violet gives him a peck on the cheek as a reward and, when the Boy Wonder returns to the Batcave and tells Bruce Wayne about his slipups, Wayne ribs him about the lipstick on his cheek.

This rare Robin solo adventure lives up to the "boo-boo" in its title by being corny and badly illustrated. We're a long way from the more mature Robin of a few years' hence who will go off to college and solve many a crime on his own.-Jack

Peter-Alas, the only smile that came to my face as a result of reading this snooze-filled issue was the title of the Robin solo. Between the two, I guess the better art was found in "Manhunters!" Neither script has a whit of wit nor anything resembling suspense. I couldn't make sense of the timeline in "Manhunters!"; were the crime-fighters out of service for two weeks or were they babysitting the whole time? I absolutely see the sense of letting a wanted criminal hang out in the Batmobile. Superhero life gets boring. The Moldoff/Greene Bruce Wayne found in "Boy Wonder Boo Boo" (pictured to the left) is unlike any I've ever seen or ever want to see again. Someone rescue me from this sludge.

Infantino/Giella

Detective Comics #356

"Inside Story of the Outsider!"

Story by Gardner Fox

Art by Sheldon Moldoff & Joe Giella

As our pals Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson wave bye-bye to Aunt Harriet (heading down to the local pub to slam back a few tall ones) in the Wayne Manor driveway, a delivery truck arrives and deposits two crates before them. Without further ado, the duo open the crates and are astonished to find inscribed coffins. When the lids are thrown back, wax images of the Dynamic Duo stand straight up and deliver a message from the Outsider: in one hour, both men will be dead.

Taking the threat seriously, the boys suit up and head after the truck drivers, who spill out of the cab in their work clothes: they are the Grasshopper Gang (last seen in 'tec #334). A tense, savage battle ensues but, as usual, Batman and Robin arise triumphant! They dump the bad guys at police headquarters and head back to the Bat-Cave for some detective work. Batman reveals that every time they've completed an adventure with the Outsider, they've had a peek into Alfred the butler's coffin (not just for kicks but because he was the only man who knew the Dynamic Duo's secret identities) and they head down to the cemetery for yet another look. 

Once they have a look in Al's refrigerated casket, they realize it can't be him. He's still there and just as dead as ever. What gives? Well, it's here that writer Gardner Fox decides to spill the beans on the greatest funny book mystery this side of Gwen's clone: the secret origin of the Outsider! Evidently, boy genius Brandon Crawford is following a "rare insect" into the graveyard and detects a moan in one of the mausoleums thanks to his "audiometer." He investigates and, sure enough, finds Al the butler moaning in his casket. Crawford grabs Al and hauls him back to his basement lab where he is busy perfecting every incredible invention known to mankind.

One of those inventions can regenerate cells and restore the dead to life (or something to that effect), so Brandon pops Al on a gurney and zaps him with his machine. Unfortunately, some of the rays bounce off Al and hit Brandon. He collapses and Alfred rises from the dead as a very white guy with circles all over his skin (luckily the cell transformation changes Al's stiff corpse pants into trunks!). Dubbing himself the Outsider, the creature launches his reign of terror against the Caped Crusader and the Teenage Tsunami. Which brings us back to the "present"...

Batman and Robin have tracked the Outsider to the residence of Brandon Crawford and bust into his super-secret lab, finding the Outsider there, feeling pretty confident about a world without heroes in a couple minutes. Sure enough, as the clock strikes one hour, Robin transforms into... (what else)... his coffin! Knowing he'll follow in just a couple of minutes, Batman begins playing with dials on the super-secret, super-powerful gizmos in the lab. He gets the right combination and then levels the Outsider with a devastating right upper-cross. Exposed to the "Regenerator" machine, the Outsider's body changes back into the frail but faithful Al the butler. Brandon is promised a job at Wayne Enterprises and Batman and Robin agree that Al should not be traumatized any further. They'll keep the events of the past several months close to the vest and not mention it to their servant. Al and Harriet agree to share the spare bedroom and life goes on at Wayne Manor.

How the heck does Al survive his stay inside the coffin for a long amount of time? Was the embalming phase skipped over thanks to Wayne clout? And how does Batman's keen senses not detect breathing from Al? World's Great Detective, my ass! Well, despite a whole lot of lapses in judgement, some unending exposition, and embarrassingly clunky dialogue ("Perhaps I alone--for I am a radical individualist, always experimenting, always finding new laws of nature and science--laws which orthodox scientists do not yet admit--can bring him back to life!"), I had a good time with "Inside Story of the Outsider!" Heck, it's at least more energetic and clever than the usual dopey "Penguin robs an umbrella store" plot we've been handed over and over lately. 

I'd love to find out exactly at what point Fox decided to make the Outsider Alfred. Were the fans at the gate with pitchforks and torches demanding the return of one of the most useless supporting characters in funny book history? Or was it the success of the '66 show that necessitated lots of changes in the monthly books? So, I'll give this one a shaky thumbs up but one thing I won't throw into the recommendation is the stodgy art, about as stiff and lifeless as Al in his coffin.-Peter

Jack-Since Alfred was an integral part of the hit TV show, the folks at DC had to bring him back in order to make the comics' cast line up with that of the show. All you need to know about the show's popularity is contained in this issue's ads: Batman is everywhere! There are ads for the new movie, an ad for the newspaper comic strip, and ads for giant-sized issues of Batman and World's Finest. Batman has pretty much taken over The Brave and the Bold for the rest of its run. Holy market saturation! What bugged me most about this story were the awkward poses drawn by Moldoff, not just on the splash page but throughout the rest of the tale. I haven't seen the like since the last comic I read that was drawn by Frank Robbins!

Various

Batman #185

"Batman, Junior"

Story by Edmond Hamilton

Art by Sheldon Moldoff & Charles Paris

(Reprinted from Detective Comics #231, May 1956)

"Robin Falls in Love"

Story by Bill Finger

Art by Sheldon Moldoff & Charles Paris

(Reprinted from Batman #107, April 1957)

"Robin's New Boss"

(Reprinted from Batman #137, February 1961)

"Robin, the Super Boy Wonder!"

(Reprinted from Batman #150, September 1962)

"The Boy Wonder Confesses!" 

Story by David Vern

Art by Sheldon Moldoff & Stan Kaye

(Reprinted from Batman #81, February 1954)

"The Secret of the Ant-Man"

(Reprinted from Batman #156, June 1963)

"Robin Dies at Dawn"

(Reprinted from Batman #156, June 1963)

Jack-This 80-page giant issue of Batman focuses on the Boy Wonder, which means more corn and less excitement. Six of the seven stories are penciled by Moldoff and the other one by Mooney, which means that the artwork is not a standout. Even worse for us, four of the stories are post-1960, which means we've already covered them. Two of them are from Batman #156, so that entire issue is reprinted only three years or so since it first appeared. My favorite of the 1950s reprints is "The Boy Wonder Confesses," which is inked by Stan Kaye. It features a villain named Mr. Camera, who wears a big helmet that resembles a camera box, and the plot is one nutty event after another.

Peter- I'm the last one to ask what makes for a good solo Robin story but it might be the hilarity factor. Of the three 1950s stories, the most fun was "Batman, Junior," wherein the Boy Wonder discovers he wasn't the Dark Knight's first partner. Curiosity leads to jealousy and then, thankfully, hilarity. My favorite scene would have to be when Robin botches an intricate plan Batman and Vance (Jr's secret identity) have put into effect and then tries to make up for it. Batman's response is "er--Robin--why don't you go home and catch up on your sleep?" Priceless! The frequency of the 80-page Giants has to be due to the popularity of the TV show. DC thought it could make millions off that extra thirteen cents--and it probably did!

Next Week...
18 More Tales from
Atlas's "Tinfoil Age"