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What if there was a Batman TV show in the 50's instead of Superman's...

Started by NewEnglandGothic,

9 posts in this topic

NewEnglandGothic

NewEnglandGothic

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What if the dark and macarbe producer Robert J. Maxwell had developed The Dark Knight instead of the Adventures of Superman in 1952? Would it have made Batman bigger than he ever was and led to a 1980 film produced by Michael Uslan instead of the Superman Richard Donner one? Watching the brooding and violent crime-noir stories of Season #1's Superman on DVD is more fitting for The Batman really. Dames are slapped around, crime bosses sometimes meet their maker by the end of episodes, etc. They never used the familiar stable of super-villians, but two-bit thugs for Superman to easily tackle. I'm my opinion they were more suited for Batman.

 

...and with that Superman would have had the campy TV show during the mod 60's, full of annoying star cameos as super-villians. Which seemed to make more sense having that character in a brighter enviroment. Heck, Supergirl could have showed up by the third season like Yvonne Craig did on Batman.

 

I think it would have made Batman an even bigger player than he is now in the DC universe, if they followed up those serials with that well-fed Batman with a Saturday Morning TV show. Super would have just faded into obscurity of camp programming instead, where Batman had to claw his way out of with the Tim Burton vision decades later.

 

Thoughts?

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Davenport

Davenport

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Giving it some thought I'm going to say... No.

 

The Adventures of Superman was bigger than the tv screen, comic books or superheros. Superman was the Man of Tomorrow and the 50s was all about a better tomorrow.

 

That, and I'm thinking Batman would've come off as Dragnet with masks. Again, the 50s. Too dark and moms would've kept kids away from it. Probably the same reason they put in Robin in the first place. To get away from the Bela Lugosi-as-crimefighter aspects of Batman. So it might've been a fun quirky crime show, but nowhere near a Superman.

 

(*see 1966's T.H.E. Cat with excellent acting by Robert Loggia. Very well written, but lasted a single season. Too dark knight and heavy, my guess.

"Out of the night comes a man who saves lives at the risk of his own. Once a circus performer, an aerialist who refused the net. Once a cat burglar, a master among jewel thieves. Now a professional bodyguard. Primitive... savage... in love with danger. The Cat!")

 

Interesting thought exercise though.

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Batman

Batman

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What if the dark and macarbe producer Robert J. Maxwell had developed The Dark Knight instead of the Adventures of Superman in 1952? Would it have made Batman bigger than he ever was and led to a 1980 film produced by Michael Uslan instead of the Superman Richard Donner one? Watching the brooding and violent crime-noir stories of Season #1's Superman on DVD is more fitting for The Batman really. Dames are slapped around, crime bosses sometimes meet their maker by the end of episodes, etc. They never used the familiar stable of super-villians, but two-bit thugs for Superman to easily tackle. I'm my opinion they were more suited for Batman.

 

...and with that Superman would have had the campy TV show during the mod 60's, full of annoying star cameos as super-villians. Which seemed to make more sense having that character in a brighter enviroment. Heck, Supergirl could have showed up by the third season like Yvonne Craig did on Batman.

 

I think it would have made Batman an even bigger player than he is now in the DC universe, if they followed up those serials with that well-fed Batman with a Saturday Morning TV show. Super would have just faded into obscurity of camp programming instead, where Batman had to claw his way out of with the Tim Burton vision decades later.

 

Thoughts?

With you all the way NEG (thumbs u ... I'd quite happily sacrifice Superman to stop that 60s series from being made ;)

 

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NewEnglandGothic

NewEnglandGothic

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What if the dark and macarbe producer Robert J. Maxwell had developed The Dark Knight instead of the Adventures of Superman in 1952? Would it have made Batman bigger than he ever was and led to a 1980 film produced by Michael Uslan instead of the Superman Richard Donner one? Watching the brooding and violent crime-noir stories of Season #1's Superman on DVD is more fitting for The Batman really. Dames are slapped around, crime bosses sometimes meet their maker by the end of episodes, etc. They never used the familiar stable of super-villians, but two-bit thugs for Superman to easily tackle. I'm my opinion they were more suited for Batman.

 

...and with that Superman would have had the campy TV show during the mod 60's, full of annoying star cameos as super-villians. Which seemed to make more sense having that character in a brighter enviroment. Heck, Supergirl could have showed up by the third season like Yvonne Craig did on Batman.

 

I think it would have made Batman an even bigger player than he is now in the DC universe, if they followed up those serials with that well-fed Batman with a Saturday Morning TV show. Super would have just faded into obscurity of camp programming instead, where Batman had to claw his way out of with the Tim Burton vision decades later.

 

Thoughts?

With you all the way NEG (thumbs u ... I'd quite happily sacrifice Superman to stop that 60s series from being made ;)

Thanks buddy. :)

I just picked up the Adventures of Superman Season 1 dvd this morning and have been flipping through the first six episodes. It's amazingly violent for being a Saturday morning kids show from the 50's. Phyllis Coates has a gun pressed against her heart in the fourth episode and gets punched in the face in the sixth, another woman was apparently beaten after her husband is killed (offscreen) during the same episode Night of Terror and lays comatose, Jimmy's is forced to then almost kill them execution style later on. I could go on. This is Gotham City style stuff for Batman to infiltrate and I think it would have been a better fit. It feels like a 50's version of Criminal Minds.

 

I do know the Superman show lightened up considerably until it's eventual cancellation '58. I just think Superman would have been a better Silver Age fit in the 60's, inho with the groovy villain budget to fit the light-hearted tone too.

 

But, Davenport made a very good point earlier. Something too dark and nightmarish at that time would have never been embraced by parents for too long.

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Batman

Batman

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This has certainly sparked my interest in the old George Reeves show. It's been so many years since I've seen an episode, I've forgotten what it was like. I'll try and dig up a copy!

 

I think a darker, grittier Batman would have been good but yes, wouldn't have lasted. I remember the complaints when Batman: The Animated Series first appeared on Saturday morning shows in the 90s... "Too scary" parents said and that was just a cartoon!

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