''New Adventures of Batman and Robin, the Boy Wonder'', also known as simply ''Batman and Robin'', is a 15-chapter serial released in 1949 by

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc., Trade name, doing business as Columbia Pictures, is an American film Production company, production and Film distributor, distribution company that is the flagship unit of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group ...

. It is a sequel to the 1943 serial ''

Batman Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...

'', although with different actors. Robert Lowery plays

, while Johnny Duncan plays Robin. Supporting actors include Jane Adams as

Vicki Vale Victoria Vale (usually called "Vicki") is a fictional journalist appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with the superhero Batman. Her character often serves as a potential love interest, character in pe ...

and veteran character actor

Lyle Talbot Lyle Talbot (born Lisle Henderson, also credited Lysle Talbot; February 8, 1902 – March 2, 1996) was an American stage, screen and television actor. His career in films spanned three decades, from 1931 to 1960, and he performed on a wide ...

as Commissioner Gordon. The serials were re-released as Video On Demand titles by RiffTrax, the alumni project of former ''

Mystery Science Theater 3000 ''Mystery Science Theater 3000'' (abbreviated as ''MST3K'') is an American science fiction comedy television series created by Joel Hodgson. The show premiered on WUCW, KTMA-TV (now WUCW) in Saint Paul, Minnesota, on November 24, 1988. It then ...

'' members Michael J. Nelson, Kevin Murphy and Bill Corbett. As of September 2014, the entire serial has been released.

Turner Classic Movies Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie channel, movie-oriented pay television, pay-TV television network, network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcas ...

has broadcast the film serial from June to November 2015 and from October 2021 to January 2022 in a weekly half-hour slot on Saturday mornings.

Plot

The dynamic duo face off against the Wizard, a hooded villain with an electronic device that remotely controls vehicles and a compulsion to set challenges for Batman and Robin. The Wizard's identity remains a mystery to the caped crusaders until the end.

Cast

* Robert Lowery as Bruce Wayne / Batman * Johnny Duncan as

Dick Grayson Richard John "Dick" Grayson is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with Batman, Teen Titans and Justice League. Created by writer Bill Finger and artist Bob Kane, he first appeared in ' ...

/ Robin * Jane Adams as

as Commissioner Jim Gordon *

Ralph Graves Ralph Graves (born Ralph Horsburgh; January 23, 1900 – February 18, 1977) was an American screenwriter, film director and actor who appeared in more than 90 films between 1918 and 1949. Biography Born in Cleveland, Ohio, Graves had already ...

as Winslow Harrison * Don C. Harvey as Nolan, a

henchman A henchman is a loyal employee, supporter, or aide to some powerful figure engaged in nefarious or criminal enterprises. Henchmen are typically relatively unimportant in the organisation: minions whose value lies primarily in their unquestioning ...

* William Fawcett as Professor Hammil * Leonard Penn as Carter, Hammil's valet, and The Wizard, Carter's

evil twin The evil twin is an Antagonist (literature), antagonist found in many different fictional genres. The twin is physically nearly identical to the protagonist, but with a radically inverted morality. In films, they may have a symbolic physical dif ...

Rick Vallin Rick Vallin (born Eric Efron; September 24, 1919 – August 31, 1977) was an actor who appeared in more than 150 films between 1938 and 1966. Early years Born in Feodosia, in the Crimea, Russia, Vallin came to the United States at age three w ...

as Barry Brown, a tabloid radio gossip * Michael Whalen as Dunne, a private investigator * Lee Roberts as Neal, a henchman * Greg McClure as Evans, a henchman * House Peters Jr. as Earl, a henchman * Jim Diehl as Jason, a henchman *

Rusty Wescoatt Norman "Rusty" Wescoatt (August 2, 1911 – September 3, 1987) was an American supporting actor who appeared in over 80 films between 1947 and 1965. Early life The son of Mr. and Mrs. W.W. Wescoatt, he was born on August 2, 1911, in Maui, Hawai ...

as Ives, a henchman * Eric Wilton as

Alfred Pennyworth Alfred Thaddeus Crane Pennyworth, originally Alfred Beagle and commonly known simply as Alfred, is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, most commonly in association with the superhero Batman. Alfred is ...

* George Offerman Jr. as Jimmie Vale, Vicki's brother and henchman

Production

''Batman and Robin'' is, according to historians Jim Harmon and Donald Glut, one of several Katzman productions which involved money-saving measures. The Batman costume had a poorly fitting cowl and the Robin costume added pink tights to cover the "hairy legs" of both the actor and the stuntman. The

Batmobile The Batmobile is the fictional land vehicle driven by the superhero Batman, used both to patrol Gotham City looking for crime and to engage in car chases or vehicular combat with the city's criminal underworld. The Batmobile is one of a suite o ...

is again excluded, but instead of a limousine as in the first serial, the duo drive around in a 1949 Mercury. Several mistakes and failures of logic occur in the serial. One example is that the film shows the

Bat-Signal The Bat-Signal is a distress signal device appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, as a means to summon the superhero Batman. It is a specially modified searchlight with a stylized emblem of a bat affixed to the light, allowing i ...

working in broad daylight. Another occurs when, despite the fact that the heroes' utility belts had been replaced by normal belts with no pockets or pouches for this serial, in order to escape from a vault, Batman pulls the nozzle and hose of an oxy-acetylene torch from his belt to cut through a steel door (the tanks for the torch are not shown); to compound this mistake, it is a full-sized oxy-acetylene torch that would have been impossible to carry unseen on his person. Harmon and Glut suggest that this was probably scripted to be a miniaturised 3-inch torch, as used in the comics, but the filmmakers improvised in following the directions for a "blowtorch".

Release

In the wake of the success of

Tim Burton Timothy Walter Burton (born August 25, 1958) is an American filmmaker and producer. Known for popularizing Goth subculture, Goth culture in the American film industry, Burton is famous for his Gothic film, gothic horror and dark fantasy films. ...

's ''

'' in 1989,

GoodTimes Entertainment GT Media, Inc. was an American home video company that originated in 1984 under the name of GoodTimes Home Video. Though it produced its own titles, the company was well known due to its distribution of media from third parties and classics. The ...

released the serial on VHS, splitting the entire serial into two separate, budget-priced tapes recorded in LP mode. The GoodTimes edition was slightly edited, as well, with several minutes of the opening chapter mysteriously cut. In 1997, Columbia TriStar Home Video re-released the uncut serial (in SP mode) as a complete 2-tape VHS set.

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Inc. (abbreviated as SPHE) is the home entertainment distribution division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony. Background SPHE is responsible for the distribution of the Sony Pictures libra ...

released the serial on

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...

in 2005, timed to coincide with the theatrical release of ''

Batman Begins ''Batman Begins'' is a 2005 superhero film directed by Christopher Nolan, who co-wrote the screenplay with David S. Goyer. Based on the DC Comics character Batman, it stars Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne (Dark Knight trilogy), Bruce Wayne / B ...

''. Unlike its predecessor, ''Batman and Robin: The Complete 1949 Movie Serial Collection'' has been given a restoration. In February 2014, Mill Creek Entertainment released ''Gotham City Serials'', a two-disc DVD set that includes both the 1943 Batman serial and the 1949 Batman and Robin serial. RiffTrax released a Video On Demand of the first installment of the short on July 16, 2013, featuring a running mocking commentary from Michael J. Nelson, Kevin Murphy and

Bill Corbett William Daniel Corbett (born March 30, 1960) is an American writer and performer for television, film and theatre. He was a writer and performer on the cult television show ''Mystery Science Theater 3000'' (''MST3K''), for which he voiced Crow ...

of ''

'' fame. The final episode, "Batman Victorious", was released with commentary on September 19, 2014.

Chapter titles

_Source:

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Batman And Robin (Serial) 1949 films 1940s action films 1940s superhero films American superhero films Live-action films based on DC Comics American action films American sequel films Batman films Columbia Pictures film serials Films directed by Spencer Gordon Bennet Robin (character) films American black-and-white films 1940s English-language films Films with screenplays by George H. Plympton Films with screenplays by Joseph F. Poland 1940s American films Films based on DC Comics Superhero film serials English-language action films Films produced by Sam Katzman