Batman was a 15-chapter serial released in 1943 by Columbia Pictures. 1943 Batman serial This is a copyrighted promotional photo with a known source. ... Year 1943 (MCMXLIII) was a common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Bob Kane (born Robert Kahn, October 24, 1915 – November 3, 1998) was an American comic book artist and writer credited as the creator of Batman. ... Lewis Wilson (1920 - 2000) was an American actor from New York City who was most famous for being the first actor to play the DC Comics character Batman in live action (1943s Batman). ... Douglas Croft (1926-1963) was an early American child actor who is best remembered for being the first actor to portray the DC Comics character Robin, the Boy Wonder in a 1943 serial simply titled Batman. ... J. Carrol Naish or Joseph Patrick Carrol Naish (January 21, 1897 - January 24, 1973) was an American actor born in New York City, New York. ... Earl Turner is a fictional character in The Turner Diaries. ... The Columbia Pictures logo from 1993 to the present Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. ... April 15 is the 105th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (106th in leap years). ... Year 1943 (MCMXLIII) was a common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Batman and Robin was a 15-chapter serial released in 1949 by Columbia Pictures. ... See also: 1948 in film 1949 1950 in film 1940s in film 1950s in film years in film film Events Top grossing films North America Adams Rib Jolson Sings Again Pinky I Was a Male War Bride, The Snake Pit, Joan of Arc Academy Awards Best Picture: All the... See also: 1942 in film 1943 1944 in film 1940s in film years in film film // Events Top grossing films North America For Whom the Bell Tolls The Song of Bernadette This is the Army Stage Door Canteen Random Harvest Star Spangled Rhythm Casablanca Journey Into Fear Academy Awards Best... The Columbia Pictures logo from 1993 to the present Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. ...

The serial starred Lewis Wilson as Batman and Douglas Croft as Robin. J. Carrol Naish played the villain, an original character named Dr. Daka. Rounding out the cast were Shirley Patterson as Linda Page (Bruce Wayne's love interest), and William Austin as Alfred (called Alfred Beagle in this serial instead of Alfred Pennyworth, his name in the comics). Lewis Wilson (1920 - 2000) was an American actor from New York City who was most famous for being the first actor to play the DC Comics character Batman in live action (1943s Batman). ... Douglas Croft (1926-1963) was an early American child actor who is best remembered for being the first actor to portray the DC Comics character Robin, the Boy Wonder in a 1943 serial simply titled Batman. ... J. Carrol Naish or Joseph Patrick Carrol Naish (January 21, 1897 - January 24, 1973) was an American actor born in New York City, New York. ... William Austin (1884-1975) was a British character actor (born in British Guiana) who appeared in many films and serials between the 1920s and the 1940s, though the vast majority of his roles were small and uncredited. ... Alfred, normally named in full as Alfred Pennyworth, is a fictional character who, in the series of Batman comics published by DC Comics, is the butler of Bruce Wayne. ...

The film is notable for being the first filmed appearance of Batman. Also, the film introduced "The Bat's Cave". The name was altered to the Batcave for use in the comic books as well as the Grandfather's clock entrance. Also, the comic Alfred was overweight and clean-shaven prior to the serial's release. Austin was trim and sported a thin moustache. The comic Alfred's appearance was altered to match that of Austin's, and remains the same to this day. The Batcave. ...

Plot

The film's plot dealt with Batman and Robin's struggle against Dr. Daka, a Japanese spy who invented a device that turns people into pseudo-zombies. A group of actors portraying zombies in a film A zombie is an animated human body devoid of a soul. ...

Production and release notes

The film was made during World War II, and like numerous works of popular American fiction of the time, contains anti-Japanese slurs and comments (in one scene, Robin tells Daka, "You're as yellow as your skin!"). The film also suffered from a low budget, indicative of many Columbia serials. No attempt was made to create a bona fide Batmobile, so a black Cadillac was used by Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson, as well as Batman and Robin. Alfred chauffered the Dynamic Duo in both identities. Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... The Batmobile is the fictional personal automobile of comic book superhero Batman. ... Cadillac is a brand of luxury vehicles, part of General Motors, produced and mostly sold in the United States and Canada. ...

The serial was released on home video in the late 1980s in a heavily edited format that removed the offensive racial content. A reviewer for the magazine Cinefantastique commented, "The changes aren't surprising when you see that Columbia is now owned by Japan's Sony Corporation. It appears that some of Daka's operatives escaped Batman's justice and were rewarded with positions at the new George Orwell department at Columbia." It should be noted that the edited version was not released by Columbia, but Goodtimes Home Video, an independent distributor. This article cites very few or no references or sources. ... Cinefantastique is a horror, fantasy, and science fiction film magazine started in 1970 by publisher/editor Frederick S. Clarke. ... Sony Corporation ) is a Japanese multinational corporation and one of the worlds largest media conglomerates with revenue of $68. ... Eric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903[1][2] – 21 January 1950), better known by the pen name George Orwell, was an English author and journalist. ...

However, in the early 1990s, the cable network American Movie Classics, aired both Batman serials on Saturday mornings, with the 1943 serial uncut and uncensored.

Sony released the serial on DVD in October 2005. The DVD release is an unedited version, with the exception of Chapter 2, which is missing its "next Chapter" sequence

Cast

• Lewis Wilson as Batman/Bruce Wayne
• Douglas Croft as Robin/Richard 'Dick' Grayson
• J. Carrol Naish as Dr. Tito Daka/Prince Daka
• Shirley Patterson as Linda Page

Lewis Wilson (1920 - 2000) was an American actor from New York City who was most famous for being the first actor to play the DC Comics character Batman in live action (1943s Batman). ... Batman (originally referred to as the Bat-Man and still referred to at times as the Batman) is a DC Comics fictional superhero who first appeared in Detective Comics #27 in May 1939. ... Douglas Croft (1926-1963) was an early American child actor who is best remembered for being the first actor to portray the DC Comics character Robin, the Boy Wonder in a 1943 serial simply titled Batman. ... Look up robin in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... J. Carrol Naish or Joseph Patrick Carrol Naish (January 21, 1897 - January 24, 1973) was an American actor born in New York City, New York. ...

Chapter titles

1. The Electrical Brain
2. The Bat's Cave
3. Mark of the Zombies
4. Slaves of the Rising Sun
5. The Living Corpse
6. Poison Peril
7. The Phony Doctor
8. Lured by Radium
9. The Sign of the Sphinx
10. Flying Spies
11. A Nipponese Trap
12. Embers of Evil
13. 8 Steps Down
14. The Executioner Strikes
15. Doom of the Rising Sun

Trivia

Lewis Wilson's son is Michael G. Wilson, producer of the James Bond movie franchise. Michael G. Wilson (born 1943) is the stepson of the late James Bond producer Albert R. Broccoli and half brother to current James Bond producer, Barbara Broccoli. ... Flemings commissioned image of James Bond to aid the Daily Express comic strip artists. ...

See also

• List of film serials

// COLUMBIA PICTURES Perils of the Wilderness- western Directed by Spencer Gordon BennetStarring Dennis Moore Blazing the Overland Trail-western Directed by Spencer Gordon BennetStarring Dennis Moore REPUBLIC PICTURES Panther Girl of the Kongo-jungle Directed by Franklin AdreonStarring Phyllis Coates King of the Carnival Directed by Franklin Adreon COLUMBIA PICTURES...

External links

• Batman at the Internet Movie Database
• Dr Hermes Review of Batman
• Batman Serials & Interviews @ Legions Of Gotham
• Serials @ Batman: Yesterday, Today, & Beyond
• Batman Site www.GothamCity.com.br
• Batman article at Todd Gault's Movie Serial Experience
• In The Balcony
• The Serial Squadron