Batmobile (Batman (1966 TV series))
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Perhaps the most famous Batmobile[1], the one from the 1966-1968 live action television show, began life as a Ford concept car called the Lincoln Futura, built over a decade earlier in 1955.
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[edit] Origins and design
The body of the Futura was fabricated by Ghia, whose artisans hammered the car's panels over logs and tree stumps carved as forms to create the sleek manta ray-like car.
In 1959, the Futura was featured sporting a fresh red paint job in the film It Started with a Kiss, starring Debbie Reynolds and Glenn Ford.
In 1965, ABC-TV chose famed Hollywood customizer George Barris to design a "Batmobile" for their soon-to-go-into production BATMAN show. With only three weeks, Barris decided that rather than build a car from scratch, it would be best to transform the Lincoln Futura (bought from Ford for $1.00)[citation needed] into the famous crime-fighting vehicle of TV's caped crusader. Barris hired Dean Jeffries to do the metal modifications to the car. When filming for the series began, several problems arose due to the age of the car: It overheated, the battery went dead, and the expensive Indy type tires provided by Mickey Thompson kept blowing. By mid-season the drive train and chassis including a new 428 C.I.D. engine from a 1966 Ford Galaxie was installed replacing the original Lincoln Mark II units that were modified to create the Lincoln Futura.
Barris built three fiberglass copies of the original Batmobile for exhibition on the car show circuit (one of which was used for exhibition drag racing). Eventually, the three copies were covered with a black velvet "fuzz" paint, presumably to hide stress cracks in the fiberglass bodies. Later, all three were restored to their gloss black paint job. The 3 replicas are all based on a 1965-1966 Ford Galaxie. Barris has retained ownership of the original TV car, which is currently on display at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, California. The three Barris copies all reside in private collections.
[edit] Specifications
- Curb weight: 5500 lb
- Wheelbase: 129 in
- Length: 230 in
- Width: 90 in
- Height: 48 in
- Fins: 84 in
- Engine: 390 in³, V-8 (atomic turbine)
- Transmission: B&M Hydro Automatic (2nd transmission)
[edit] Gadgetry[2]
This Batmobile had a nose-mounted chain slicer, lasers, rockets, an on-board telephone, radar, dash monitor, on-board computer, and police beacon. If needed, the Batmobile is capable of a quick 180° "bat-turn" thanks to two rear-mounted 10' parachutes, and it is equipped with a smoke emitter and a nail spreader to discourage pursuit. Some changes were made during the run of the series, including different license plates, a change in steering wheel, and the addition of extra gadgets such as the rear-facing camera and battering ram.
[edit] Full list
- Bat-glove Compartment
- Infrared Bat-dust (glows in light and in dark, but only visible when viewed through the Batmobile's specially tinted windshield)
- Emergency Bat-turn Lever (releases the Batmobile's parachute that enables quick turns)
- Bat-deflector (diverts a criminal tracking signal, leading them to a miniature Batcave in the middle of nowhere)
- Bat-ray (can do many things, such as open van doors)
- Super-powered Bat-magnet (for opening steel doors from a distance)
- Odour Sensitometer Radar Circuit (puts a certain scent on the radar screen)
- Ultrasonic Recorder (also records regular sounds)
- Batmobile Parachute Pickup Service Signal (calls aforementioned service to pick the Batmobile's parachute off the city street)
- Emergency Bat-trunk Lock
- Bat-zooka (can fire explosive blasts, or is used to fire bat-ropes to tops of very tall buildings)
- Anti Mechanical Bat-ray (renders mechanical apparati useless)
- Bat-tering Ram (also known as the Bat-ram, used for knocking down reinforced doors)
- Library Paste Bat-dissolving Switch
- Bat-safety Belt
- Bat-radarscope
- Bat-alert Buzzer (in all Bruce's cars, indicates when the Batphone in the Batcave is ringing)
- Bat-scope (television screen that can be used to monitor someone's movements)
- Anti-theft Activator (can be disguised as the Start button, fires fireworks from the car)
- Anti-fire Activator (fills Batmobile with extinguishing foam)
- Bat-ray Projector (fires blue ray from headlights that shut down a car's ignition)
- Hidden Bat-laser Beam
- Homing Receiver Scope
- Inflatable Batmobile (kept in Batmobile for use as a decoy)
- Anti-crime Recorder (with remote radio pick-up, kept in trunk)
- Ultrasonic bat-ray (used for flushing villains out of hiding places)
- High Energy Radar (for probing large, potentially dangerous objects)
- Anti-theft Device (to prevent undesirables from stealing Batmobile)
- Bat Armor (protects Batmobile from explosives; unfortunately leaves tires unprotected
- Automatic Tire Repair Device (automatically repairs Batmobile's damaged tires)
- Bat-o-meter (for tracking radioactive material within a 50 mile radius)
- Tiny TV Transmitter (sends TV signal from Batmobile to Batcave)
- Emergency Bat-turn Lever (for making 360 degree turns when at full stop)
- Super-speed Afterburner (when engaged, the Batmobile goes very fast)
- Bat-smoke (pressing this button releases a smokescreen)
- Remote Control Batmobile Circuit (should a villain steal the Batmobile, Batman can control it by starting this circuit via a relay link in the Batcave)
- Bat-scope (basically a TV which picks up the local stations)
- Bat-photoscope (works in conjunction with the Microfilm Crime File back in the Batcave. Through this device a photo from the crime file can be reproduced in the Batmobile.)
- Alf-cycle
[edit] Appearance in the comics
The live action television series was so popular that its campy humor and the sleek Batmobile designed by George Barris were quickly introduced into the Batman comic books. But the high camp and general silliness of the television show did not sit well with long-time Batman comic book fans. So, when the series was canceled in 1968 the comic books reacted by becoming darker and more serious.
[edit] In other media
- In the movie Rock Star, Mark Wahlberg's character is given to extravagant spending; one of his first purchases is the original Batmobile from the TV Series.
- An episode of The Simpsons guest-starred Adam West with the Batmobile. Another episode featured the Batmobile in a museum of famous cars next to Herbie the Love Bug and a car from Mad Max. The latter episode featured a live Batman and Robin in the vehicle, who had both tried poorly to conceal the fact that they were not dummies.
- On an episode of The Man Show, a lucky guest won a ride in the Batmobile with Adam West in the "Wheel of Destiny" segment.
- The Lincoln Futura version of the Batmobile is seen in the movie The Benchwarmers, driven by Jon Lovitz.
- The Batmoblie appears as an Easter Egg in the video game King's Quest II: Romancing the Throne, accompanied by a version of the 1966 TV theme.
- In 2003, Adam West and Burt Ward reunited for a tongue-in-cheek telefilm titled Return to the Batcave: The Misadventures of Adam and Burt which combined dramatized recreations of the filming of the original series (with younger actors standing in for the stars), with modern day footage of West and Ward searching for a stolen Batmobile.
[edit] Lasting impact
The most frequent visual influence is that later Batmobiles usually have a rear rocket thruster that usually fires as the car makes a fast start.
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Batmobiles 1966-1979
- The Batcave - 1966 Batmobile Replica Info / Builders
- Click on the title to see die-cast vehicles from that movie or TV series.
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