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Aired March 14/16, 1967

Hollywood legend Tallulah Bankhead gives her final performance as the menacing Black Widow.  Her plot is so simple, even the Batcomputer can't work it out - robbing banks in Gotham in alphabetical order.  As simple as the plot may seem, there is something very endearing about the episode, one that has remained a favorite of John's to this very day.  He's joined in this discussion by Batman at 45 author Chris Gould.

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Aired March 8/9, 1967

King Tut returns to lay claim to Gotham City and to get his revenge on Batman.  But he has a new wrinkle in his scheming.  He is looking for his Cleopatra and he thinks he's found her in the form of Lisa Carson (Lee Meriwether).  John and his guests have not been kind to Tut in the past.  Will the third time be the charm for Monarch of Crime as John discusses the episode with longtime Batman 66 fan, Robert Long?

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Robert Long is a full time grapgic designer and independent filmmaker.  As a first generation Batman syndication kid, he manages the 1966-68 Batman Television Series Group on Facebook.  He has had the pleasure to meet and work with Adam West and Julie Newmar with various projects in the past.  Visit Robert's production company - Smash or Trash Independent Filmmakingto learn more about it.

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Aired March 1/2, 1967

The Green Hornet arrives in Gotham City and looks like he's gunning for a piece of the action.  But to Batman, muscling in on the trading stamp racket seems low-key for such a high profile gangster.  And what does the foreman of the Pink Chip Stamp Company have to do with it?  Is the Hornet the real evil in this plot or is it the unusual Colonel Gumm with his penchant for alphabet soup?  Van Williams and Bruce Lee guest star in this episode as their respective characters, The Green Hornet and Kato, from their own ABC series in this crossover as an attempt to generate better ratings for the fledgling show.

Joining John to discuss this episode and the most important character who doesn't get enough recognition is Justin Michael of Batman The Animated Podcast.

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Justin Michael is an actor, writer / director and LA native. He's one half of the sketch comedy group Tremendosaur, a member of the Harold team Winslow, co-host of the podcast Before You Were Funny at UCB Sunset, and host of Batman the Animated Podcast. His UCB credits also include: Wilhelm (the improvised movie), Tournament of Nerds, The It SUCKed! Awards, UCB Thanksgiving Day Parade, Urban Legends, Tremendosaur Sells Out, UCB Summer Blockbuster, CDR Sketch, Tremendosaur's Big Hollywood-ish Sketch Show, Sketch Cram, Let's Do This!, UCBWCW, Cagematch, The Passover Show, Mookie & Dave: It's a Guy Thing, Matt Besser's Prop 19 Show, and Not Too Shabby. He is the co-creator of Friendship All-Stars of Friendship, a stop-motion animated series he wrote, directed, voiced, and produced for L Studio and Stoopid Buddy. He has written/directed/acted for Comedy Central, Funny or Die, Above Average, Nickelodeon and Adult Swim. He was a staff writer on Matt Besser's Comedy Central special, "This Show Will Get You High." He's performed at San Francisco Sketch Fest, Austin's Out of Bounds Festival, The Del Close Marathon, and toured various colleges across the country. If you'd like to continue your relationship beyond this bio follow @heyjustin on Twitter.

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Aired February 22/23, 1967

Julie Newmar makes her final bow as the Catwoman in an episode many fans remember fondly.  Catwoman decides to follow the straight and narrow as she enters college.  But the theft of a statue of Batman from the college and a found beanie cap are all the clues Batman needs to figure out Catwoman is up to something.  

Joining John to discuss this episode and Julie Newmar's legacy as the Catwoman is View from the Longbox's Michael Bailey.

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Michael Bailey has an illness.  While most people would call his comic book collecting a hobby he knows what it really is - a hopeless addiction.  Luckily he has harnessed this personality defect into a weekly Internet radio show.  Mike is a DC guy but likes Marvel just fine.  He prefers the super-hero genre but frankly as long as it is a solid read he’ll try just about any sort of comic.

Mike is a Pieces, (his birthday is February 29th as a matter of fact) enjoys cold weather and enjoys a variety of hobbies that rarely involve the outdoors.

Currently Mike lives in the Fortress of Baileytude, which is carved into the side of a mountain above scenic Fayetteville, GA.  Somehow he has lucked into having a beautiful wife named Rachel, who is very much an enabler and, for some reason, puts up with his dumb ass.  Together they own a small poodle named Boo, the cutest six pounds of evil you will ever see.  His day job is acting like a department manager for a big box office supply store.

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Aired Febraury 15/16, 1967

The Joker returns to Gotham City with a scheme to take over one of the major financial institutions of the metropolis.  And he's engaged the services of a group of unusual goons to help him - a group of robots.  These robots are stronger and faster than the Dynamic Duo, but they're also mute, save for Mister Glee.  This gives Josie, the moll, more of a role in this episode.  And as all this is going on, Batman schemes to thwart Joker, but his plan backfires and he finds that he's placed Bruce Wayne in financial and mental jeopardy.

Joining John to discuss this episode is longtime Batman 66 fan. Robert Long. 

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Aired Febraury 8/9, 1967

The Riddler is back in town and he needs $3,000,000 in order to acquire a device that will give him absolute control over Gotham City.  Can Batman and Robin solve his baffling clues in time?  Will they realize the Riddler's looking a little different this time around?  The whole thing is heading for an explosive climax as John Astin takes on the role of the Prince of Puzzlers.

Joining John to talk about John Astin's performance and how it differs from Frank Gorshin's Riddler portrayal is Gotham City 14 Miles editor, Jim Beard.

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Aired January 26 and February 1/2, 1967

It's another three part adventure story as The Penguin and Marsha, Queen of Diamonds team up with a scheme that could only happen in Gotham City.  For some fans, this is another example of where the show has been failing in its second season, but as John and his guest discuss, there are a number of elements that elevate this story if one looks closely enough.  In some respects, it has the markings of a first season episode and at the same time, it's got some of the goofiest bits you would find in the third season episode.

Joining John to discuss this episode is professional photographer and co-moderator of the batman66 discussion board, Ben Bentley.

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Aired January 19 & 25, 1967

The Catwoman is back in Gotham City and she's training a protege in the form of sing Lesley Gore as Pussycat.  Catwoman's scheme is to get Batman and Robin under her control with a new drug she's designed.  With their help, she's hoping to rob the Gotham Mint.   How does this episode fair compared to other Catwoman episodes?  What did John and his guest think of the inclusion of not one, but two performances by Lesley Gore?  Just how ironic was it that Robin was hitting on Pussycat? 

Joining John to discuss this episode is Dan Greenfield, creator and author of the 13th Dimension website.

This episode is dedicated to the memory of Lesley Gore.

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Dan Greenfield of 13th Dimension joins John to discuss the Caped Crusaders' aide in the war on crime, the Batmobile.  In this special episode, the two look briefly at its origins, its role as a parter of the two, memorable moments, merchandising, the Batman 66 comic, and personal experiences with the vehicle.  Plus, they announce the winners of the East Coast Comic Con prize package giveaway.

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The Joker sneaks The Penguin into Gotham City to help him with his latest scheme, a series of crimes dictated by the astrological signs of the Zodiac.  It starts with the Aries, the Ram and ends with Capricorn, the Goat.  What or who is the final target in this scheme?  What role or roles does the lovely Venus have in this scheme?  Does this episode hold up as an anniversary story, celebrating one year of Batmania?  

The answer to these questions and more will be answered in this double length episode as John is joined by Gotham City 14 Miles editor Jim Beard, writer Glenn Greenberg, and independent filmmaker and lifelong Batman fan, Robert Long.

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Glenn Greenberg is an award-winning editor and writer. He worked extensively for Marvel Comics and DC Comics on such properties as Spider-Man, the Hulk, Superman, Star Trek, Star-Lord, the Silver Surfer, Thor, Iron Man, and Dracula, as well as Web-based tie-in projects for the film Superman Returns and the weekly comic-book series 52. His work has also appeared in such publications as TIME Magazine For Kids, Scholastic News, Time Out New York, Back Issue, and Smoke. Glenn has also written several works of prose Star Trek fiction for Simon and Schuster, and is now making the jump to The X-Files for an upcoming fiction anthology that will be published by IDW. He avidly covers all aspects of popular culture on his blog, “Glenn Greenberg’s Grumblings” (http://glenngreenbergsgrumblings.blogspot.com), and welcomes anyone and everyone to check it out.    

Robert Long is a full time grapgic designer and independent filmmaker.  As a first generation Batman syndication kid, he manages the 1966-68 Batman Television Series Group on Facebook.  He has had the pleasure to meet and work with Adam West and Julie Newmar with various projects in the past.  Visit Robert's production company - Smash or Trash Independent Filmmaking to learn more about it. 

A native of Toledo, Ohio, Jim Beard was introduced to comic books at an early age by his father, who passed on to him a love for the medium and the pulp characters who preceded it. After decades of reading, collecting and dissecting comics, Jim became a published writer when he sold a story to DC Comics in 2002. Since that time he's written official Star Wars and Ghostbusters comic stories and contributed articles and essays to several volumes of comic book history.

His prose work includes GOTHAM CITY 14 MILES, a book of essays on the 1966 Batman TV series; SGT. JANUS, SPIRIT-BREAKER, a collection of pulp ghost stories featuring an Edwardian occult detective; MONSTER EARTH, a giant monster anthology; and CAPTAIN ACTION: RIDDLE OF THE GLOWING MEN, the first pulp prose novel based on the classic 1960s action figure.

Currently, Jim provides regular content for Marvel.com, the official Marvel Comics website, and is a regular columnist for Toledo Free Press.

Websites:

http://www.facebook.com/thebeardjimbeard

http://www.sgtjanus.blogspot.com