Tony Abbott’s Latest Tool For Combatting Illegal Immigrants

This…will obviously lead to this…

and then this…

Batmobile At ACMI

Here’s a couple of photos that I took.

Batman Meets Fatman

No really…

The Batmobile must be pretty wide to fit Batman, Robin and Fatman on the front seat.

Obviously the Batman writers were taking the piss here…

This is another “unique” Bat-story of the 1950s that shows just why most people disregard this era of the Caped Crusader’s career.

Perhaps DC should put out a collection of Weird Tales from Gotham City. It could be filled with all the stupid stories from the 1940s, 50s and 60s such as the one above. It could feature the ‘many strange transformations of Batman, like the stories where he turned into a giant, merman, gorilla etc. There could also be a section on all the many times Batman travelled back in time, fought aliens or met others that he inspired such as Fatman, Batboy, Mogo the Bat-gorilla, Batmite, Ace the Bathound, Batman Jones etc. I’m not sure it would sell many copies although I am sure some people would pick it up just for a laugh.

The Crimes Of Kite Man

Batman may have the greatest rogues gallery in all of comicdom but there are also a few duds too. The Eraser comes to mind as does Crazy Quilt and the Ten Eyed Man, but I think Kiteman takes the cake.

I wonder whether there is a Kiteman origin story.

Very Interesting

I see that my post on The Joker’s Comedy Of Errors has exploded in the last 24 hours. Over 1300 views so far in the last day. I haven’t seen this much traffic since someone posted a link on Twitter of my post on Lois Lane – I Am Curious Black about a year and a half ago. Obviously someone has stumbled across this post, been amused by all the Joker’s talk of exposing Batman to his boner, and decided to link it to Twitter. Not bad for something I posted in February 2009. It just goes to prove how childish some people can be as I have posted many much better stories such as The Challenge Of The Headless Baseball Team, Detective Chimp, The Joker’s Rumpus Room Revenge and Jack Kirby’s Kamandi The Last Boy On Earth.

The origin of Two Face

This poster advertising the 1941 film version of Dr Jeckyll & Mr Hyde served as an inspiration to the look of Batman’s arch villain Two Face, who debuted that year.

The 1931 film version of Dr Jeckyll & Mr Hyde is said to have influenced the character as well, in the way Two Face would behave. Apparently Bill Finger used Frederic March’s performance as a template for the character’s actions.

I will do a review of both of these films in the next couple of weeks are see how they compare with each other.

Batman – The Funny Man Crimes

I haven’t posted many comic book stories for a few months and with good reason. Both DC and Marvel have cracked down on these sorts of posts in recent months and lots of stuff that has been online for years has disappeared.

This story does feature some quite ugly art work, especially one of the drawings of the Joker on the last couple of pages. Some of the work evokes Dick Sprang but if I hazard a guess I would say Jerry Robinson was the main artist for this story.

Batman Teaches How To Safely Cross The Road

This is something that I originally posted on my other blog way back, but whoever posted it onto Youtube had it taken off. Back in the original incarnation of Sesame Street Filmation used to animate little segments featuring Batman and Superman. These segments had the superheros trying to teach important things to kids in the same spirit as Sesame Street.

Here we have Batman teach Robin about the safest way to cross the street. Unfortunately he doesn’t seem to be worried about the Joker, who has been knocked over by a truck and fallen down a man hole. Poor Joker!

Take It from Buzzy

Here’s a positive article regarding comic books from a 1949 edition of TIME magazine, not long before the comicbook medium would be demonized by Estes Kaufauver and Frederick Wertham.

Take It from Buzzy
Monday, Aug. 29, 1949

The comic book, Gang Busters, usually a hectic free-for-all of ricocheting bullets, cold-blooded criminals and implacable law enforcers, played host last week to a mild-mannered youth. In the midst of its bimonthly gallery of firebugs, homicidal maniacs, fight fixers, railroad wreckers, waterfront thugs and redblooded, straight-shooting minions of the law stood a pale blond youth named Buzzy. He was there to advise action-loving gangbuster fans not to join the ever-growing band of “stayouts” who decide each year that seeking their fortune in the world is more exciting than completing their public-school education.
Buzzy is the first enlistment in a new campaign mapped out by the National Social Welfare Assembly (representing the Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Family Service Association and 55 other organizations) in cooperation with National Comics Publications, one of the largest U.S. comic-book publishers (37 magazines, 10 million circulation). Their purpose: to present “socially constructive” messages, exchange ideas on how best to make all comic books (with a monthly sale of 50 million) more acceptable to youth leaders, educators, psychiatrists and parents. Before the year is out, U.S. kids will get wholesome advice about racial tolerance, participation in community affairs and health education from such comicbook favorites as the Batman, the Green Arrow, Superboy and Superman.
Gradually the assembly hopes to thin out some of the blood and muffle the thunder of the average comic rip-roarer. Most conspicuous sample of their influence to date: “Brooklyn,” a raggle-taggle Boy Commandos’ character with bad grammar and warped diction has been transformed into a junior Brooks Brothers type who speaks impeccable English.”

Some of the wholesome advice about racial tolerance, participation in community affairs and health education that was mentioned has been posted here, here, and here.

The Valley Of Giant Bees!

When people complain that the Batman TV show was really camp and unjustly tarnished the image of the Caped Crusaders I think that they are forgetting that there was a bit of camp in the comic book too. Especially in the 1950s when Batman was not allowed to battle arch villains like Two Face and the Joker.

Here is perhaps the campest of camp stories that demonstrates how dumb the book became in the 1950s and early 1960s.

Robin is practising for next year's Sydney Mardi Gras