Announcements: Adam West R.I.P

Adam West R.I.P.

1928-2017

Adam West, better known to millions of his fans as ‘Batman’ from the 1960’s has left our world after a short battle with leukemia. He was 88 years old.

Mr. West passed peacefully in his sleep surrounded by his family - wife Marcelle, six children, five grandchildren, and two great grandchildren. 

Adam West aka Batman

LIFE Magazine / March 11, 1966

“Our dad always saw himself as The Bright Knight and aspired to make a positive impact on his fans' lives. He was and always will be our hero,” his family said in a statement.

Mr. West played a number of film roles in his lengthy career - West played a wealthy Main Line husband who meets an early end in Paul Newman’s The Young Philadelphians (1959), was one of the first two humans on the Red Planet in Robinson Crusoe on Mars (1964) and contributed his velvety voice to the animated Redux Riding Hood (1997), which received an Oscar nomination for best short film.

It was a character for a Nestle’s Quik commercial (Captain Quik) that garnered the attention of Batman producer William Dozier that forever associated Mr. West with the role of Batman / Bruce Wayne in 1966.

It was a very different world back when the show ended in 1968 and typecasting was the norm making it very hard throughout the coming years for the good natured West. As true as the hero he played on TV, Mr. West took every job imaginable as his alter ego in order to support his family - shopping center openings, car shows, and state fairs - nothing was beneath him as he took it all in stride.

West returned to voice his iconic character in such cartoons throughout the years as The New Adventures of Batman, Legends of the Superheroes, and SuperFriends: The Legendary Super Powers Show.

Lookwell! Pilot Written by Conan O'Brien and Robert Smigel / 1991 / NBC

He later starred in a rejected 1991 NBC pilot episode called Lookwell — written by Conan O’Brien and Robert Smigel — in which he portrayed a once-famous TV detective who thinks he can solve crimes in real life. 

Adam West then had a resurgence as animator Seth MacFarlane made it his mission to include him in the long running Family Guy series as ‘Mayor West of Quahog’.  

The Best of Adam West / Family Guy

“I had done a pilot with Seth that he had written for me. It turned out we had the same kind of comic sensibilities and got along well,” he said in a 2012 interview. “When Family Guy came around and Seth became brilliantly successful, he decided to call me and see what I was doing. He asked if I would like to come aboard as the mayor, and I thought it would be neat to do something sort of absurd and fun.”

Adam West Gets His Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame / 2012

In 2012, after a long and storied career, Mr. West’s kids fought and finally won his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, captured in wonderful documentary aptly titled: Starring Adam West.

Starring Adam West (2012 Trailer) / Filmbuff / Chromatic Films

When Batman was canceled, “The only thing I thought is that it would be the end of me, and it was for a bit,” West told an audience at Comic-Con in 2014. “But then I realized that what we created in the show … we created this zany, lovable world.

“I look around and I see the adults — I see you grew up with me, and you believe in the adventure. I never believed this would happen, that I would be up here with illustrious people like yourselves. I’m so grateful! I’m the luckiest actor in the world, folks, to have you still hanging around.”

The gang here at Pittsburgh Underground loved Adam West. He was our Batman growing up. He inspired us to build our own ‘Batcave’ and always fight for what was good and just no matter what you were up against -  most importantly, the challenges of the real world. Sometimes it’s not as black and white as fighting the Joker, Penguin, or Catwoman - sometimes it’s continuing on when the powers that be try to stop you because of who they think you are as opposed to who you truly are. 

Adam West will always be our example, our teacher, and our hero. Our condolences to his wife and family. Godspeed Mr. West - we’ll always keep the Batsignal lit for you. 

Batman 1966 Television Series Opening & Closing

Movies That Have Everything: Wonder Woman Starts TODAY!!!

She's finally here, the crown jewel of the Justice League. Wonder Woman graces the big screen starting today! Check out the trailer below!

Wonder Woman (2017 Trailer / DC Comics / Warner Bros.)

Directed by Patty Jenkins and starring Gal Gadot in the role she was born to play, this is an origin story of  Diana, the princess of the Amazons and a lucky American pilot named Steve Trevor (played Chris Pine) who crash lands on the shores of Paradise Island as the first man she ever meets during the war to end all wars. Knowing the threat could affect her homeland, Diana joins the conflict to discover her true powers and her destiny. 

1st Appearance of Wonder Woman / All Star Comics 1941

Wonder Woman first appeared in All Star Comics back in 1941, created by American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (who was also the inventor of the lie detector) and artist Harry G. Peter. Sculpted from clay by her mother Queen Hippolyta and given life by Aphrodite along with the super powered gifts from the Greek Gods, her new origin has been updated to depicted her as the daughter of Zeus, but raised by her mother Hippolyta and her aunts Antiope and Menalippe to be the warrior princess of Themyscira aka Paradise Island.

Wonder Woman  Illustrated by Darwyn Cooke / DC Comics: New Frontier

She's gone through many changes throughout the years from her costume to even her physical stature, but most of her powers have remained the same - super strength, indestructible bracelets, a tiara (that served as a projectile), and her famous Lasso of Truth. One of the shifts from the comics to cinema is that Wonder Woman was actually created during World War II, not WWI where her story will start on the silver screen (you can thank Marvel's Captain America for that change). 

She's been through as many phases in the comics as she has been in media as well. William Dozier of 1960's Batman fame attempted to bring her to the small screen in 1967 with Ellie Wood Walker in the title role. Check out this link to see the one and only pilot episode (and the goofiest version of our fair princess ever made!).

From there, ABC aired the 1974 movie with Cathy Lee Crosby in the title role, although she bared little resemblance her comic book counterpart. Check out this clip below.

Wonder Woman with Cathy Lee Crosby / 1974 ABC TV Movie

The ratings for this TV movie of the week weren't exactly wonderous, but it did spark interest in the character which led to our favorite incarnation of the character played by the beautiful Lynda Carter one year later in 1975. The first year of the show found Diana Prince back in 1941 fighting in WW2 along side Steve Trevor played by Lyle Waggoner, but did an unexpected (and unexplained) time jump to modern day 1976 for the last two years of it's three year run. Check out the famous TV series intros for each season below!

Wonder Woman Starring Lynda Carter / 1975-1777 TV Intros

Twenty four years later, animation master Bruce Timm brought us Justice League: The Animated Series on Cartoon Network in 2001 with a brand new and incredibly faithful version of Wonder Woman (voiced by Susan Eisenberg) as she joined Batman, Superman, The Flash, Martian Manhunter, Green Lantern, and Hawkgirl. Check out some her more famous action sequences below:

Wonder Woman in Justice League: The Animated Series /

DC Comics / Cartoon Network 2001-2004

Fast forward sixteen years later and the line "you've come a long way baby" would be far from an understatement when it comes to Princess Diana of Themyscira. Wonder Woman starts in theaters today and we can hardly wait to enjoy her once more!