Batman in the 1960s Issue 55: January/February 1969

 

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

Novick

Detective Comics #383

"The Fortune-Cookie Caper!"

Story by Frank Robbins

Art by Bob Brown & Joe Giella

Deciding to give the most overworked butler/chef/stuntman in Gotham the night off, Batman and Robin pop into their favorite Chinese restaurant, the famous Tommy Chee's, for some won ton soup, spring rolls, Moo Goo Gai Pan, and Tommy's renowned sweet and sour pork. After scarfing down their food, the boys are presented with the requisite fortune cookies. Batman's has a cryptic "Hang on baby, I'm almost there. Love, Neal" while Robin's has the hilarious "Help! I'm a prisoner in a Chinese bakery!" Robin remarks that he'll be saving this one for Aunt Harriet, who has a particular "yen" for Asian humor.

As the Duo are exiting the establishment, they are both cuffed from behind and knocked out. When they come to, they realize the only thing missing is Robin's fortune. "Ah ha!," exclaims the World's Greatest Detective Brain™.  "This makes me think the thugs wanted that message!" When they return to the restaurant to grill Tommy, the owner explains that the humorous message in the cookie is referred to in the trade as a "Number 25." Batman gets another scrunched-up look on his face and screams, "This means something!"

Eventually, our heroes split up, with Robin visiting the bakery where the cookie was born and Bats heading down to the freight yard to investigate anything that has a "25" on it: telephone poles, manholes, discarded Adele CDs, the works. While investigating the bakery, Robin is attacked by the baker and accidentally stumbles across a pretty young lady stashed in a closet. She tells Robin she is Hu Shi, sister of the bakery's owner, Yin Yan. Unfortunately, his attention is averted by the young lady's legs and he's clobbered from behind by the baker. Unbeknownst to Robin, Hu is in cahoots with her evil brother, who emerges from the shadows to inform his sibling that when Robin wakes up, they'll force him to lure Batman to the bakery and get rid of two of their problems.

Batman finally finds the elusive "25" he's been seeking when he comes across two hoods (the same two who put the boys to sleep back at Tommy's joint) rummaging through a freight car and carefully separating a #25 crate. Bats gets a little revenge by roughing up the criminals and, in the process, accidentally destroys crate #25, which spills its valuable cargo all over the freight car floor: pearls, smuggled from the Orient!

Back at the bakery, Robin has finally come around and is talked into summoning his mentor to the scene. But Bats is three steps ahead and overhears Hu Shi and Yin Yan discussing their smuggling operation. He bursts in through a skylight and, after dressing the thousands of cuts across his body, slaps the cuffs on the pair of Won Ton villains (see what I did there?), and explains the whole scheme to his junior partner. 

How did the Boy Wonder not shout out, "Hang on a sec, Batman, why didn't Yin just slip the two hoods a note that says 'check out crate #25 in the freight yard' instead of an elaborate scheme involving random fortune cookies?" I'm amazed that the racist Asian stereotypes had hung around through 1969 in the funny books. Writer Frank Robbins has the characters spouting dialogue like "Confucius say 'little man with big mouth... get face full egg-rolls!'" while the colorist slaps a bright yellow sheen across all the foreign faces. Can you imagine the multitude of five-year-old Batman readers who went to school expecting their Asian classmates to be bright yellow?  But then, as I'm quickly reminded, the Black characters in funny books of the time were pigeonholed with equally egregious conventions. But pull all this nonsense aside and we're still left with an overly-complicated plot and half-baked (pun intended) action. The graphics are competent (in fact, stacked next to Shelly's dribbles, they're art) but someone needs to motivate Frank to write something... I don't know... maybe original.-Peter

Jack-As I read this story, I was jotting down all the offensive Asian stereotypes, but by the end I thought it was pretty good! The art by Brown and Giella is certainly smooth and one panel (on p. 13) even looks a bit like the work of Gil Kane. The level of story and art has gone up enough that even a tale like this one is enjoyable. By the way, this is the last issue to feature an Elongated Man backup story.

Cardy

Batman #208

"The Women in Batman's Life!"

Story by E. Nelson Bridwell

Art by Gil Kane & Jack Abel

"The Secret Life of the Catwoman"

Story by Bill Finger

Art by Bob Kane, Lew Sayre Schwartz & Charles Paris

(Reprinted from Batman #62, January 1951)

"Vicki Vale's Secret!"

Story by David Vern

Art by Bob Kane, Lew Sayre Schwartz & Charles Paris

(Reprinted from Batman #73, November 1952) 

"The Menace of the Firefly"

Story by Gardner Fox

Art by Sheldon Moldoff & Joe Giella

(Reprinted from Batman #126, September 1959)

"The Dilemma of the Detective's Daughter!"

(Reprinted from Batman #165, August 1964)

Peter-As usual with the reprint volumes, there's some fun stuff here, but I'm not a fan of the scattershot approach utilized, with some stories only getting a few pages here and there. Of the full-lengthers, the one I liked the most was the supremely goofy Firefly yarn and least, of course, was the dreadful Moldoff/Giella "Detective's Daughter" drivel. The Ma Chilton epilogue is a little too much for me to stomach. It's all a bit too coincidental. What ever happened to Uncle Philip, the guy who inherited Bruce and dumped him in the lap of a dead gangster's mother?

Jack-Here's where we differ! I recall that fantastic Cardy cover from childhood, and comics like this were a big part of what made me a Batman/DC Comics fan. The issue starts out with five pages of a framing story drawn by Gil Kane--not his best work, but still dynamic. Next comes a vintage Catwoman story with great, old-style art by Lew Sayre Schwartz, including a terrific splash page. A couple more pages from another old Catwoman story are followed by more framing pages by Kane.

Vicki Vale has never been one of my favorite characters (except when embodied by Kim Basinger), but the panel reproduced here shows that Schwartz could draw cheesecake with the best of them. Things quickly plummet in the art department as Shelly Moldoff wrestles away the pencil and draws the dull story with Firefly, which is included because it features Batwoman. Moldoff is also responsible for the wretched story about the detective's daughter. Things pick up with a selection about Eclipso drawn by Win Mortimer before Moldoff brings us down again with a smattering of Poison Ivy. The issue ends on a high note with a portion of Infantino's classic Batgirl story.

I have place in my heart for these Batman 80-page giants and would happily pay a quarter all over again if I saw one on a newsstand.

Adams

The Brave and the Bold #81

"But Bork Can Hurt You!"

Story by Bob Haney

Art by Neal Adams, Dick Giordano, & Vince Colletta

A big lug named Carl Bork disembarks from a tramp steamer at Gotham Harbor and is shocked to remain unharmed when a truck runs him over. To test his newfound invulnerability, Bork robs a nearby diner and feels no pain when police shoot him as he runs away.

Barry Allen (the Flash) is visiting Gotham City Police Headquarters and hears a call on the police radio about a disturbance at the waterfront. Batman rushes to the scene and sees Milo Manning, an extortionist, being confronted by Bork. When Manning's goons attack Carl, he tells them that nothing can hurt him, "But Bork Can Hurt You!" The goons switch their allegiance to Bork, who gives Batman a walloping when the Dark Knight tries to arrest him. Bork announces that he's taking over Gotham City and no one can stop him!

Within hours, Bork has given an ultimatum to the mayor, so Batman and the Flash team up to figure out the secret to his invulnerability. Using his super speed, Flash runs around the world and learns that the leader of a new African nation is sending a commando unit to Gotham to arrest Bork and bring him back for trial. Bork's mayhem continues while Flash's investigation proceeds. From a ship's captain, the Scarlet Speedster learns that natives on Desolation Island made a life-sized wooden carving of Bork and these carvings are said to possess supernatural powers. The Flash races to the island but is knocked out when a volcano erupts and the carving floats away.

Back in Gotham City, the mayor is pushing to give in to Bork's demands. The Flash recovers and goes looking for the wooden statute while Bork is jailed and easily punches his way through a wall to escape. The Flash finds the carving and sets out to destroy it, but it's no easy task--nothing seems to affect it. The African commandos have reached Gotham City and shoot Bork with a dart that wounds him, suggesting he's no longer invulnerable. Batman challenges Bork to a duel to buy time as Flash runs through outer space and destroys the carving by planting it inside the sun! Batman succeeds in knocking Bork for a loop and the menace is over. The criminal is led to a waiting plane to face justice in Africa.

Twenty-four pages of Neal Adams are a treat and the Flash is an added bonus. The story moves along quickly and doesn't waste too much time with needless fistfights, though it stretches my suspension of disbelief to accept that Flash can run through space and into the sun without having any problems with lack of oxygen or incredible cold. I wonder if Colletta inked the Flash sections and Giordano inked the Batman sections?-Jack

Peter-This one's a total winner. Clever script and knockout graphics. I'll have to do a brush-up on my Flash knowledge. How can the guy run to the sun?  Well, as I said, it was a lot of fun so I didn't let the particulars drag me down. Refreshing that Carl Bork was gifted with invulnerability and yet didn't go shopping at Villains 'R' Us for a costume. He just ran around in his work civvies. Bob Haney's best work so far. Could the good stuff finally be here now that we're near the end?

Novick

Detective Comics #384

"Whatever Will Happen to Heiress Heloise?"

Story by Gardner Fox

Art by Bob Brown & Joe Giella

"Tall, Dark, Handsome--and Missing!"

Story by Mike Friedrich

Art by Gil Kane & Murphy Anderson

While getting ready to head out on a solo patrol (Robin is off with the Titans), Batman happens upon two thugs roughing up "recently found heiress" Heloise Madigan. Bats puts the kibosh on the dastardly duo and then drives Heloise back to her place. Upon entering the huge mansion, Batman and Heloise are both surprised to hear the family lawyer proclaim that this Heloise is a fraud! The real Heloise has just turned up to claim the millions left to her in her father's will.

Slightly astonished, Batman throws Heloise #1 (who keeps spouting newspaper jargon to the Caped Crusader) in the Batmobile and whisks her away to the Gotham precinct house, where she is booked for impersonating an heiress. Batman heads out the door but his Incredible Detective Brain (the World's Greatest™ ) suddenly alerts him to the fact that the real Heloise Madigan might be in danger. Duh! He speeds back to Madigan Manor, where he finds the gorgeous redhead taking a dip in the pool and saves her from death as two criminals leap from the bushes and head for her unprotected flesh.

Batman leaps some would say a wee bit far for a human being and nabs both villains, pulling them into the pool with him. After a minor tussle, both cretins are apprehended and our hero once again hops in the Batmobile to make that long trip to the precinct house. The next day, while Bruce is sitting in his smoking jacket, enjoying a Cuban and a snifter of Henri IV Dudognon Heritage Cognac Grande Champagne, his Bat-senses once again alert him. Could Heloise #1 be in danger as well? 

After a little detective work, Batman is able to track Heloise #1 to the Rogers Real Estate Agency, where she is currently extorting money from her crooked boss. In a long and sloppy expository word balloon we discover that the stunning redhead once took dictation (and provided other secretarial functions, no doubt) for Big John Madigan, Heloise's dead father. The knowledge she gained during her employ allowed her to impersonate the heiress (who was long thought to be dead as the result of a car accident when she was six--please.... don't ask me to elucidate any further) in an attempt to lay her wicked fingers on all that dough. Drat that real Heloise showed up just then! Bad timing! Batman busts through the door, revealing he's heard enough of the backstory (well, she goes on for at least an hour) to testify in court to the beauty's bad business practices. 

I love how when the Madigan family lawyer lays out exactly how they discovered that Heloise #1 was a fraud: that morning (yes, that morning!) they had discovered a "long-lost baby rattle" and had the FBI run the fingerprints, which matched those of a "local government clerk"!!! All that in just a few hours (yes, just a few hours!) from a city that can't even keep its most wanted criminals behind bars for more than a few months at a time. "Whatever Will Happen..." is dumb as dirt and extra hard to follow but I won't deny that it's at least a wee bit entertaining as well. I do have one more nit to pick with funny book writers in general: why put dialogue in a character's mouth that must then be followed constantly by an asterisk and explanation of said dialogue?

Every Friday at exactly 1:30, Mark Hanner, a very handsome man, attracts the attention of a very special librarian. That would be, of course, Babs Gordon, daughter of Gotham's police chief (and 10-handicap golfer) and a/k/a the beautiful Batgirl. Anyway, this guy comes into the library every week and requests a copy of the Gotham Gazette until one day... he doesn't. Becoming alarmed, Babs visits the man's apartment and sees a pretty girl fleeing, leaving the door open. Immediately heading for Hanner's bathroom (!) our curvaceous crusader notices the medicine cabinet open and fears her Romeo might be in danger.

As Batgirl, Babs follows the girl to a seedy part of town and up into a very nasty apartment, where she's attacked by a gang of gunsels. She fights them off, they flee, and she turns her attention to a locked door. With one kick of her boot, she's in. It's there she finds Hanner. But is he alive? To Be Continued! It's only a small part of a bigger piece but "Tall, Dark..." beats any of the regular Bat-adventures this month in both script and art. Where can I vote for this to be the lead strip? Gil's art is gorgeous; his Batgirl is babe-alicious (a dead ringer for Gil's Mary Jane Watson) and the fight scenes are well-choreographed! Please let this strip stay good!-Peter

Jack-"Heloise" was a quick, enjoyable read, marked by a lot of large panels and not a ton of dialogue. Bob Brown continues to impress me with his art on the Batman strip. It pales in comparison to the art by Gil Kane and Murphy Anderson on the new Batgirl backup strip, which replaces the long-running strip featuring Elongated Man. Not only does Kane draw a gorgeous Barbara Gordon/Batgirl, his fight scenes are bursting out of the panels!

Novick

Batman #209

"Jungle Jeopardy"

Story by Frank Robbins

Art by Irv Novick & Joe Giella

Batman and Robin return to the Batcave and feel compelled to take the elevator upstairs before changing out of their costumes. Halfway up, they realize it's a bad idea and descend to the Batcave, but when the elevator door opens they see that the Batcave has been transformed into a jungle, where a tiger and an elephant rush toward them!

The night before, the Dynamic Duo had foiled a robbery in progress, after which some crooks who escaped met with a clever bad guy who called himself Brainwash and who had a plan to eliminate Batman and Robin. Brainwash paid a visit to the office of Commissioner Gordon and planted a small device under his desk that broadcast subliminal messages to the Commish. That night, Gordon was compelled to call Batman and Robin to dispatch them to the scene of a bank robbery. The Batmobile was parked over a manhole cover, so Brainwash popped up and planted another device on the car's undercarriage.

As Batman and Robin chased the robbers, they felt compelled to rush home to the Batcave and take the elevator upstairs. After their jungle vision, they went upstairs and saw another angry tiger in the place of Alfred the butler. Meanwhile, Brainwash and the gang are robbing the bank. The Master Detective figures out what's going on, realizing that he and Robin have been brainwashed. He removes the device from under the Batmobile and surmises that old nemesis Mr. Esper is behind this.

The Dynamic Duo head to the bank and quickly dispatch Brainwash and his gang, plugging their ears so they can't be subjected to any more subliminal suggestions. Batman pulls off Brainwash's amazingly lifelike mask to reveal Mr. Esper, who is handcuffed and headed for jail.

Another fun, full-length story with nice art by Irv Novick, "Jungle Jeopardy" is fast-moving. Robin makes an offhand remark about the elephant being African (due to its big ears) and that leads Batman to realize the jungle is an illusion, since there are no tigers in the African jungle. It's nice to learn a little something every once in a while. Oh, and that cover would definitely have made me want to buy this comic!-Jack

Peter-This one wasn't too bad at all and the Novick/Giella art is easy on the eye. But, yeah, I have some questions. The Batmobile seems to be a pretty easy target since Esper is able to plant his brainwashing device without setting off any alarms. You'd think a super sophisticated piece of weaponry like the Batmobile would have some safety measures built in, no? And I just love when our heroes are so easily fooled by the instant jungle that grows out of the Batcave. "I've never been so scared in my life, Batman! It was so real!" How could it be, Boy Blunder? It's the Batcave!!!  I'm not sure I understand why Esper was disguising himself as "Brainwash." Does he have a split personality? Is he so egotistical he wants to be two super-villains?

Next Week...
Angelo Torres Leads an
All-Star Monday!

Batman in the 1960s Issue 52: July/August 1968

 

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

Infantino/Adams

Batman #203

"The 1,000 Secrets of the Batcave!"

Story by Bill Finger

Art by Jim Mooney & Charles Paris

(Reprinted from Batman #48, September 1948)

"The Birth of Batplane II!"

Story by David Vern

Art by Dick Sprang & Charles Paris

(Reprinted from Batman #61, November 1950)

"The Secret of Batman's Utility Belt!"

Story Uncredited

Art by Dick Sprang & Charles Paris

(Reprinted from Detective Comics #185, July 1952)

"The 100 Batarangs of Batman"

Story by Bill Finger

Art by Sheldon Moldoff & Charles Paris

(Reprinted from Detective Comics #244, June 1957)

"Secret of the Batmobile"

Story by Bill Finger

Art by Sheldon Moldoff & Charles Paris

(Reprinted from Batman #98, March 1956)

"The Flying Bat-Cave!"

Story Uncredited

Art by Lew Sayre Schwartz & Charles Paris

(Reprinted from Detective Comics #186, August 1952)

Peter-One of the rare DC comic books I had as a kid (most of them were the "Giants" as, even as a pre-teen, I hated the contemporary "Jimmy Olsen: Werewolf" nonsense) and I remember with fondness cutting out the "Secrets of the Batcave" spread and hanging it up on my bedroom wall not far from the Famous Monsters of Filmland covers and Creedence 45s. As usual, this bunch is full of kinetic energy and bursting at the seams with goofiness. I would say, though, that, aside from that aforementioned spread, these stories don't dwell much on the fabulous secrets found within the Cave. I enjoyed them despite the bait-and-switch.

Jack-My favorite was "The 1,000 Secrets of the Batcave!," which features a villain named Brando and which reveals that Bruce Wayne lives in a modest suburban house! The two stories pencilled by Dick Sprang are not bad, but the Moldoff entries are snoozers. Like you, I remember this comic from early childhood!

Novick

Detective Comics #377

"The Riddler's Prison-Puzzle Problem!"

Story by Gardner Fox

Art by Frank Springer & Sid Greene

Batman is summoned to the Gotham Library, where he finds a book waiting for him. The pretty librarian informs the Caped Crusader that her office did not send for him, but the book has magically appeared on her desk. Sensing a deadly trap, the World's Greatest Detective uses a yardstick to detonate the book. Luckily, the pretty librarian was snapping a photo of her hero when the book exploded. The instant photo reveals a cryptic message: "Why is a diamond like a stew?" Yep, the Riddler is out on bail again!

The clue leads our heroes to the estate of Mr. Morland, collector of gold coins, and the boys interrupt the Riddler in the middle of his heist. Fisticuffs ensue, but Batman and Robin are triumphant and E. Nigma is hauled off to the 23rd Precinct building where he is booked for fifteen different crimes and thrown in a cell. Like clockwork, the Riddler's bail arrives five minutes later and he is released but, before heading out the door to freedom after his long nightmare of incarceration, he gives the Batman a cryptic message about his cell.

Using his computer-like brain, Batman has himself arrested and thrown into the cell once used by Nigma (instead of, I don't know, just checking the cell out after the Rogue leaves). Batman had noticed one of the question marks on Riddler's costume was missing, so he checks the cell for invisible writing. Sure enough, a message is written on the mirror--"Why is a room filled only with married people like an empty room?" That clue leads the Dynamic Duo to the Museum of India, which is displaying the priceless "Bachelor Diamond," and the boys again arrive mid-heist. A whale of a brawl kicks up but, once again, law and order reign supreme and the Riddler is slapped in cuffs. The villain sits in a cell, awaiting his obligatory release in four issues.

Unlike most adventures, the Riddler doesn't seem to have a goal this time out. It's just rob, puzzle, rob, puzzle, rob. What's with the new-look Riddler? This version looks nothing like the guy we've become so familiar with. He's demented, with scraggly hair. Perhaps Frank Springer took inspiration from the TV show, when John Astin took over for Frank Gorshin? While this event is hardly as disastrous as that TV debacle, the villain's new look is quite startling. I will say, though that, Astin look aside,  the Springer/Greene art is not bad at all. The fight scenes have choreography and dynamics that we never saw in the Shelly/Giella age. Hilarious, in our opening scene, that Batman suspects the book at the library is booby-trapped but doesn't think to ask the pretty librarian to step outside while he checks it out.-Peter

Jack-It's a decent Riddler story; better than some, worse than others. I agree that the art is a notch above Moldoff's work; in some spots, it resembles Infantino's style, while in others, it features the dynamic poses of Kane. The Novick cover is a classic and bodes well for the new artist who will soon take over the interior art too.

Brown/Esposito

The Brave and the Bold #78

"In the Coils of Copperhead!"

Story by Bob Haney

Art by Bob Brown & Mike Esposito

After Batman barely escapes being run over by an armored truck driven by crooks, a king and queen visiting Gotham City are shocked when a beggar steals the queen's tiara and reveals himself to be the Copperhead, a villain dressed like a snake who escapes by slithering up the side of a building, using suction cups on his fingertips. Batman gives chase but Copperhead escapes, which really bums out the Dark Knight.

No worries, though, since two days later Wonder Woman and Batgirl begin leaving smoke messages in the sky expressing their love for Batman! The gals fight over who is more devoted to Batman and Copperhead watches the TV news and wonders if it's all a trick. Batgirl and Wonder Woman try so hard to win Batman's love with gifts and displays of affection that he doesn't notice when a hoodlum tries to commit a robbery.

Thinking that Batman is too distracted by the hotties, Copperhead attempts to steal the priceless Casque of Montezuma, only to have Batman reveal that the whole lovefest was a ruse. Copperhead gets away again and this time the gals seem to have really fallen for Bat Guy. He's so bothered by smooches that Copperhead makes off with the Casque. Batman gives chase, only to learn that WW and BG have hidden messages revealing their secret identities for him to find. Copperhead learns of this by means of a listening device and is about to discover that WW is Diana Prince and BG is Babs Gordon when Wonder Woman intervenes.

She follows the reptilian rascal to his cave, where he knocks her out with gas. Batgirl follows and takes a kick to the head. Finally, Batman locates Copperhead's hideout and beats the living daylights out of the baddie, but not before one of Copperhead's fangs manages to inject deadly poison into the Bat bod. Fortunately, Batgirl brought along some anti-venom serum and saves the day. Copperhead is captured, the Casque is recovered, and Batman tells Wonder Woman and Batgirl, "Don't call me, I'll call you!"

First of all, Bob Brown's cover is a knockout and it looks like he and Mike Esposito put a bit more care into it than they did on the interior art, which is a bit scratchy in spots. The whole idea of Batgirl and Wonder Woman fighting over Batman is silly, and Copperhead is a wacky villain. None of this bothered me at age five, however, and I vividly recall reading this comic on the sidewalk in front of my grandmother's house in Texas. It's the first comic I remember reading.-Jack

Peter-I'd love to see the uncut version of Bob Haney's "Copperhead" script, wherein we get to view Bats as he convinces Wonder Woman and Batgirl that a large-scale public display of affection is the only thing that might work ("the toughest, most baffling foe I ever faced!"--Bruce Wayne mutters while having a lapse of reason). "No, seriously, you two laying smooches on me and generally doing things that might be construed as a public hazard will be the only way to lure this devious, treacherous rogue out of hiding!" Almost as hilarious is Gordo claiming that Batman is letting down the citizens of Gotham by not slapping the cuffs on the dopily-dressed, Grade-D villain: "If you don't catch him by the time I'm on the 18th hole, we're done!"

Say this: Bob Haney's script is no more coherent nor logical than Frank Robbins's stack of papers that became "Batman! Drop Dead... Twice!" in 'tec #378, but it's a whole lot more fun and Bob doesn't pepper his dialogue with "groovy"s or "far out"s. That's gotta be worth something, no? Fun extra: just in case none of the target eight-year-old readers know what a copperhead is, the editors provide a full-page guide to the world of serpents. Perhaps the powers that be should have noticed and provided a glossary of hippie terms over in 'tec.

Novick

Batman #204

"Operation: Blindfold!"

Story by Frank Robbins

Art by Irv Novick & Joe Giella

It's midnight in Gotham City and a blind man is chased down by a car and shot to death in an alley. With his dying breath, he scratches a message with his cane on a wall" "Commissioner Gordon...they found out I'm Batman!" The killers report to their boss, who is named Schemer, that Batman is dead. They then call the police, and soon Commissioner Gordon is at the scene.

The next step in Schemer's plan is to station blind men along the possible route of a truck carrying gold bullion. In the alley, Gordon and the cops try to figure out if the dead man is really Batman. At the waterfront, the real Batman happens to be in disguise as a blind man in order to uncover a ring of smugglers. Just as he seems to be surrounded, Robin arrives and the Dynamic Duo wrap up the bad guys before placing a call to police headquarters and hearing that Batman has been reported dead.

Batman and Robin race to meet Commissioner Gordon, but he arrests the Caped Crusader, convinced that he's a fake. Robin escapes! Riding in the back of a police car with Gordon, Batman discovers that the dead blind man in the alley had a radio receiver and a radio transmitter, and he uses them to listen in to a conversation between the schemer and his goons concerning "Operation: Blindfold!" The crooks see the truck carrying gold pass by and try to stop it, but Robin gets involved to try to prevent the hijacking. The police car carrying Batman nearly crashes into the truck carrying gold; Batman is ejected and seems to be at the mercy of one of Schemer's blind crooks. As Robin rides on the back of the truck carrying the gold and Schemer plans to rob it when it reaches the bank, Batman faces death!

This is the first issue of Batman or Detective to feature credits for someone other than Bob Kane! Think of that! For a while now, the editor in the letters column has admitted at times that other writers were involved, and any reader with a pair of eyes could see when Carmine Infantino was doing the pencils, but up till now the facade that Bob Kane was the creative mind behind these stories has been continuing unabated since 1939. Almost 30 years! This issue is credited to writer Frank Robbins, penciller Irv Novick, and inker Joe Giella, and it's about time. The story is a bit scattered, but it's also exciting and the art is Novick at the top of his game. The narrative doesn't feel padded, even at 23 pages, unlike so many stories that feature page after page of fighting. And it's continued, to boot! I think this may be the real transition to the Batman of the 1970s that we've been waiting for.-Jack

Peter-Hard to believe this turkey was advertised as "a daringly different Batman" when it's the same ol', same ol', desperate attention-grabber. Batman dies. Robin dies. Batman quits crime-fighting. Robin quits crime-fighting. Whoever believes this rot? How did DC get away with ripping off Marvel's the Owl (->) for their reboot of the Schemer in this issue? I mean, the guy's even got an owl! Is this parody, homage, or lack of imagination?

Novick

Detective Comics #378

"Batman! Drop Dead... Twice!"

Story by Frank Robbins

Art by Bob Brown & Joe Giella

Well, he's gone and done it again! Robin has thrown a hissy and quit the team, obviously upset that a reporter didn't write about all the nifty moves he put on the Riddler the month before. While watching an interview with Yoko Ono, the Boy Wonder decides that the Duo should be billed as Robin and Batman from here on out and, when Bruce challenges the idea, Dick is out the door, baby.

Meanwhile, running parallel is the story of Chino, the ward of a local mobster, who similarly wants more credit for the amount of mayhem done in Gotham. When his boss, Salvo, tries to put the kid in line, Chino cold cocks him and trucks out the door.

Dick and Chino meet at a local dumpy hotel, where they pool their resources, rent a room, and become quick palsies, baby! That is, until Chino's piece falls out of his suitcase and Dick becomes alarmed. A bit of a tussle occurs and Chino grabs the gun, pointing it right at Dick. Grayson wisely plays it ice cool and Chino reveals what's on his mind: he's going to dress Dick up like Robin, dangle him as bait until Batman shows up, and then off the Dark Knight to impress Salvo. Ironic, no? Cuz Dick is really Robin! And vice versa!

Meanwhile, on the other side of this groovy yet convoluted yapper, Salvo dresses up one of his goons as Robin to... well, essentially do the same thing as Chino. Holy coincidence, Batman! It's about this time that Bruce Wayne decides he's done a bad deed watching Dick walk out the door. After all, whiny teens should be coddled and given everything they want, right? The groovy thing to do is to go out and apologize to the kid and beg him to come home, so that's just what the big feller proposes be done (and Alfred doesn't help one bit, putting all the blame on the boss's shoulders).

Chino grabs the suited-up Dick and hangs him high above the concrete streets, knowing that Bats will get the word somehow. At the same time, Salvo has staked out his Faux-Robin on a rooftop and we see Bats swing in for the rescue. Alas, the World's Greatest Detective doesn't notice the sniper atop a nearby roof and gets one right in the back. But hang on, all you flower children: next panel, we see Batman ride up in his funky Bat-ride at the docks where his ex-partner is hanging. As he exits the vehicle, Chino takes aim and... TO BE CONTINUED

How many times in a two-year span will we see Robin lie on the floor and throw a tantrum? I searched my thesaurus for a stronger word for convoluted and all I could come up with is "stupid." That about sums up this dopey script by Far-Out Frank Robbins, a guy Jack and I "loved to death" (sarcasm) during our investigation of 1970s Dark Knight literature and who was, at this time, fifty-two years old and, therefore, not the best guy to be writing dialogue best reserved for a Buffalo Springfield single. I've no doubt worn out my welcome whining about Gardner Fox's complex and/or inane plots and dialogue but, truly, Robbins takes the cake with this abomination ("Throbbin' palpitation, Alfred!"). It's no wonder the new kid on the block, "Nefarious" Neal Adams, took a look at this crap, remembered what an iconic character this was once upon a time, and said, "Hold my beer!" Alas, that won't come our way for a bit. Till then, we're stuck with this pap. We've still got about sixteen months left in the '60s (God help us), but "Drop Dead... Twice!" is a shoo-in for Worst Story of the Decade.-Peter

Jack-Hang on, daddy-o--I dug this story the most! I got a kick out of the hood dressing up as Robin and I thought the art and storytelling were much more entertaining than what we've been getting from Fox and Moldoff. I don't like Brown's pencils as much as I do Novick's, but they're still a great leap forward from what they replaced. I like the continued stories, which is probably a sign of Marvel's influence, and I enjoy the groovy lingo.

Next Week...
More Fabulous Doodlings from
Gentleman Gene!

Batman in the 1960s Issue 51: May/June 1968

 

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

Novick

Detective Comics #375

"The Frigid Finger of Fate!"

Story by Gardner Fox

Art by Chic Stone & Sid Greene

Perennial loser Pete Maddox discovers he has an unnatural gift--he can dream the future! Through a series of mishaps, Maddox learns how to fine-tune this superpower and earn winnings from horse races. Then, one night, he dreams of killing the Batman from a rooftop and puts his plan into action. Unfortunately, like most of his dream-motivated schemes, Maddox can't pull off the assassination of the Dark Knight but, without any evidence of wrongdoing, he's free to go. A few days later, Dick Grayson points out a newspaper story to Bruce Wayne. Pete Maddox has died in a meat locker.

This was one of the shortest synopses I've ever been assigned to write (and yet, I feel I should be paid double my usual salary for having to wade through this mess) because, thanks to Gardner Fox, there's not much of a story. I do have to admit that  "The Frigid Finger of Fate!" provided me with several guffaws thanks to the increasingly escalated requirements for Maddox's dreams to come true. When his second dream goes awry, he stumbles upon the fact that he must be in a freezing cold temperature to make the power work. Then, later on, after another stumble, he realizes that if he tells anyone about his dream, it won't come true! I was waiting for the third tier where poor Pete has to whistle "Tiptoe Through the Tulips" while standing on his head in the Arctic. Alas, it didn't show.

The Chic Stone-Sid Greene art is awful--I mean, Shelly Moldoff awful--with beloved characters who look nothing like they have in the past and awkwardly posed fight scenes. Irv Novick's cover (an "homage" to the Kennedy assassination?) is the lone saving grace. I'd love for Mr. Fox to explain to his readers how Batman tosses a trio of goons off a roof and they survive. Oh, and I think Gardy forgot to include Maddox's motivation for putting a bullet through the Caped Crusader's eyes. How was that going to make him a millionaire?  Truly abysmal stuff.-Peter

Jack-What an odd story! I perked up at the mention of "wild talents," which I think is a reference to the work of Charles Fort, and I had to look up the meaning of "oneiromantic." There was some unintentional humor when Maddox was shown sitting on a big block of ice in his boxer shorts, and the end, where he froze to death, was certainly unexpected. Despite the mediocre artwork, are we seeing a turn to the dark side for Batman? The cover is one of several around this time at DC where the hero is riding in a car and waving to a cheering crowd.

Novick

Batman #201

"Batman's Gangland Guardians!"

Story by Gardner Fox

Art by Chic Stone & Joe Giella

The Penguin has gathered six other members of Batman's Rogues Gallery in a secret location to deliver surprising news: a West Coast syndicate is about to invade Gotham City and they've planned a series of robberies that include death traps for the Caped Crusader! The Penguin suggests that after Batman is gone, the syndicate will target the rogues, so they'd better save Batman!

Helpfully, the Penguin heard a voice telling him where the syndicate would strike and the nature of their death traps. The next evening, the Fowl Fiend saves Batman from an explosion at the Gotham City Museum before Batman spends a few pages beating up two syndicate goons. The following night, the Mad Hatter prevents Batman from being blown up by a giant pearl after the Dark Knight beats up three jewel thieves in Gotham Square Park, and Batman begins to wonder if he has a guardian angel.

Another day passes, and that night the Cluemaster prevents Batman and the Bat-copter from being blown to bits by an exploding cloud above Meadowland Amusement Park. Yet another night, and Batman confronts smugglers in Gotham City Harbor, where Johnny Witts keeps an exploding buoy from killing Batman. A group of fake police accuse Batman of also being a fake and of masterminding a smuggling racket, but when they line him up to shoot him, he disappears through a trap door rigged up by the Getaway Genius. Back at the Batcave, Batman figures out that Mr. Esper was sending him messages that told him where to go to intercept each crime, but the man in the cowl never learns the identity of "Batman's Gangland Guardians!"

Much more could have been done with this story, which is basically a series of explosions followed by fisticuffs. The first problem is that half of "Batman's greatest villains" are nobodies--Johnny Wits? The Getaway Genius? Where's the Riddler? And why don't the Joker and Catwoman save Batman? Other than making corny jokes, they have no role in the story. The second problem is the lack of suspense. We know Batman will get away, so why not have the rogues barely avoid being noticed? It would be more interesting if Batman came close to figuring out who his guardian angels were. Finally, the biggest problem is the art. It has dawned on me that what Moldoff was doing for years and what Stone is doing now is an intentional imitation of Bob Kane's art style. Perhaps these pencillers and inkers could have done better had they not had to keep up the facade that Kane was drawing the stories. In the letters columns, the editor continues to let readers think that Kane is involved, at least when the artist is not someone with such a personal style as Carmine Infantino.-Jack

Peter-The conceit, that all of Gotham's Rogues team up to save Batman's life, is a cute one, but it perfectly illustrates how juvenile the titles have become. Fox's needless last-second twist overcomplicates things. I'm not sure how, in some adventures, Batman can find a frayed shoelace and deduct that the criminal was five foot eleven, weighed one-eighty, and had a blonde mustache, but couldn't figure out what was at play here. Maybe he's the World's Greatest Part-Time Detective?

Andru/Esposito

The Brave and the Bold #77

"So Thunders the Cannoneer!"

Story by Bob Haney

Art by Ross Andru & Mike Esposito

It must be 1968, because the Brotherhood Express is on the move across America; it's a train whose cars contain exhibits of the greatest treasures and accomplishments from countries across the world! What could go wrong? Some quick reconnaissance by Batman demonstrates security lapses all around Gotham City, leading Commissioner Gordon to reroute the train, but he's being watched by the Cannoneer, who is shot from a cannon and bursts through the window of Gordon's office, where he scoops up the plans for the new route.

Shortly, at the Dulcamora Grand Imperial Circus, the Cannoneer comforts Lilli de la Pooche, a pretty midget who laments the fact that the Queen Bee is a half inch shorter! The Cannoneer gives Lilli a pill that he promises will shrink her and she faints dead away. The next day, the train pulls into Gotham but it and all of the priceless works of art aboard it are fakes! Batman discovers that a tiny person must have bypassed the train's security features, so he places a call to Ray Palmer, who transforms into the Atom and races to Batman's aid. The real Brotherhood Express is on a spur outside Gotham City and the tiny person who got aboard is none other than Lilli, who did not expect the pill to shrink her to the size of the Atom.

At the circus, Batman discovers that the Cannoneer and Lilli are missing. Titanic Tex is certain that the Cannoneer is behind it and Batman figures out what happened. He and the Atom zip off in the Bat-copter and locate the real train; Batman fights various crooks, including the simian Dum-Dum, while the Atom battles the shrunken Lilli. Eventually, Batman locates the Cannoneer and they fight atop the speeding train. Batman manages to defeat his foe and the Atom does the same to Lilli. With the help of the circus folk, they manage to stop the Brotherhood Express from crashing and, in the end, Lilli is returned to normal size and accepts Tex's marriage proposal. The Atom hops aboard the express to ride home and all is well in Gotham City.

Bob Haney sure knows how to pack a lot into a 24-page story! "So Thunders the Cannoneer!" is filled with nutty asides and wacky characters, all of which adds to the fun. The Cannoneer is dead ringer for the Golden Age hero, Bulletman and, while I'm not exactly clear on why the Atom needed to be involved, he's a cool hero and he has a great costume.-Jack

Peter-This goofy team-up was the most fun I had reading a Bat-Adventure this month and, by process of elimination, the easiest on the eye. Lots of highlights here: Gordo (see left), looking for all the world, like he's been dropping acid on his lunch break, guarantees no baddie will get near the train while a stack of parole papers for Catwoman, Penguin, Joker, Mr. Freeze, and the Riddler lie waiting to be signed on his desk; Bob Haney's caption: Shortly at the Dulcamora Grand Imperial Circus--in the dressing room of Lilli de la Pooche--beautiful circus midget...; the Atom, getting his ass kicked but not wanting to use force on the aforementioned Lilli because she's "too beautiful to hit"; and as the cherry on top, the circus acts rebuilding a train track in mere minutes! This strip has it all!

Novick

Detective Comics #376

"Hunted or Haunted?"

Story by Gardner Fox

Art by Chic Stone & Sid Greene

Let's take a little trip to a post-apocalyptic future (Year 543 after Destruct Day of the Null-Nuclear War to be exact), where we listen in as the members of the "Batmaniacs" debate whether the Caped Crusader was a myth--or a man! Just then, their leader, the bald-as-an-egg Tomas, arrives after a time trip to 1968 Gotham.

Tomas relates the story of his adventure in Gotham City, following around the real-life Batman and Robin. With just a hint of coincidence, Tomas arrives at just the right place and time to witness the Caped Crusaders assist Commissioner Gordon in retrieving some stolen papers designed to put the FBI's Most Wanted, Harve Pelley, behind bars for... well, however many years hardened criminals serve in Gotham. Tomas is able to remain invisible while he follows our heroes around town; still, Bats has a sinking feeling he's being watched!

Thanks to Batman's insanely skilled detective brain, Pelley is caught and delivered to the authorities and Tomas returns to Mad Max World, able to confirm that, yep, Batman really existed. In fact, unknown to Tomas, he is the direct descendant of Bruce Wayne--Tomas Wayne!!!

It's great to know that 500+ years after a civilization-ending nuclear war, the world has built itself back up with technology even more advanced than pre-mushroom clouds. Despite the obvious loss of hair (which I've dealt with just fine), these Batmaniacs actually look like they're having a good time. Gordo's flashback within Tomas's flashback is "Holy Confusing, Batman!" I kept having to turn the pages back and forth to make sense of the goings-on. In fact, the whole magilla stretches the boundaries of patience and brain power. The most inventive aspect of this turkey was the idea that a cult builds up around the mythology of Batman. How did these guys get models of the Batmobile and Bat-copter? From etchings on the side of a cave? Chic and Sid have obviously never seen the Commish portrayed in the funny books, since Gordo looks more like Mr. Monopoly than the number one cop in Gotham.-Peter

Jack-I recall Superman stories from the '60s where people of the future had extremely large bald heads because their brains were so big and advanced, so I presume that's what's going on with the future folk in this story--in one panel, Tomas's head is extra-large, although it seems more normal in the rest of the panels and his cohorts among the Batmaniacs all seem to have heads that fit the classic Bat mask perfectly. As in a few stories we've read lately, the most interesting event happens right at the end.

Novick

Batman #202

"Gateway to Death!"

Story by Gardner Fox

Art by Chic Stone (?) & Sid Greene

"Menace of the Motorcycle Marauders!"

Story by Mike Friedrich

Art by Chic Stone (?) & Joe Giella

A cop on the beat is shocked to see bricks rise from a trash can and hurl themselves through the window of a jewelry store! Batman and Robin respond quickly and conclude that this is the work of the Psychic Plunderer, who recently robbed a bank by having a gun appear out of nowhere and point itself at a teller. At the Batcave, Alfred announces that he knows the crook's identity, but he seems to pass out and can only mumble when he tries to tell the Dynamic Duo the name.

Alfred mentioned an "eternal gate," so Batman and Robin head for the Eternal Gate Cemetery, where Batman is knocked out by an unseen force. After he awakens, he and Robin follow footprints to a mausoleum, but before they enter, they insert earplugs and nose filters. Inside the mausoleum, they discover a tall man, a short man, and a bald man. The short man screams, emitting a powerful sonic wave, but the earplugs prevent any damage. The bald man uses his mental powers to send stone urns and bronze jars flying at the Dynamic Duo, but they avoid the objects. As the good guys trade punches with the bad guys, the tall man breaks a glass vial that emits a green gas, and when Batman and Robin are punched, they accidentally inhale some gas.

This slows them down a bit, but they use their wits to prevail. Bruce and Dick visit Alfred the Butler, who is in bed, recovering. He explains that he once met the Great Norman, who could make objects fly across the stage. Norman saved Alfred from an explosion during WWII, but the butler lost track of the magician until recently, when he saw him at the cemetery. Alfred knew at once that Norman was the Psychic Plunderer, but when he tried to reveal this to Batman, his mind couldn't take the strain of betraying the man who had once saved his life.

"Gateway to Death!": is poor from start to finish. It all stems from a jewelry store robbery and Batman has no difficulty finding the crooks. Nearly half of the story's fourteen pages are taken up with Batman and Robin fighting the trio of crooks. Not for the first time, Gardner Fox throws in a reference that was sure to make the young readers scratch their heads; here, it's when Batman sees the bad guys and remarks that "'They look like the original "Unholy Three"!'" The reference is to a Lon Chaney movie from 1925 that was remade in 1930, and I doubt many readers in 1968 knew what the Caped Crusader was talking about.

Dick Grayson gets all dressed up for a school assembly because he's giving a speech and hoping to be elected class president. On his way to school, Dick observes a motorcycle gang called the Hornets causing mayhem, so he changes into his Robin costume and goes after them. All but one of the bikers escape, so Robin returns to the Batcave and disguises himself as Jimbo, the one biker who didn't get away, with the goal of infiltrating the gang and stopping the "Menace of the Motorcycle Marauders!"

In disguise, Robin rides Jimbo's motorcycle to the gang's hangout where, as soon as they're all assembled, he tears off his disguise and knocks them senseless. Back at Wayne Manor, Dick is upset because his crime fighting detour caused him to miss giving his speech and he lost the election.

As tough as it is to take the Stone/Greene artwork on the lead story, the Stone/Giella art on the backup is even worse. Robin makes a questionable choice when he decides to take on an entire motorcycle gang singlehandedly; it's compounded when it causes him to miss an important school event. Surely, capturing the Hornets could've waited another day?-Jack

Peter-Holy Coincidence, Batman! Norman saves Al's life decades before and the World's Greatest Butler stumbles across his old friend days before the guy is going to pull off a heist. Not sure how, with all the super-powered freaks flying around Gotham and elsewhere, Al could positively identify the perpetrator as his long-lost buddy. The Robin solo, with its Hell's Angels hook, is typical pulp paper aside from that last panel, which shows us a heartbroken Dick. Just when he thinks he can have a teenage life, the hoods pull him back in!

Next Week...
A Wally Wood/Joe Orlando
Team-Up!