Season Overview
The first season is generally regarded by bat-fans as the ‘golden season’ of the series. 16 writers worked on this, including the son of executive producer William Dozier who wrote episodes 5 & 6. The most influential writer was Lorenzo Semple Jr. As for a start, he was the man behind the vitally important pilot episode but most importantly, many bat-fans attribute his influence of setting the tone of the show being what gave the show its ‘X-Factor’. He was involved in writing the movie but beyond that was hardly involved in the stories – which many believe ultimately attributed to the decline in quality in the later seasons.
My personal favourite story of the series appears in this season – it being ‘The Purr-Fect Crime/Better Luck Next Time’. As it was great to see Julie Newmar portraying a more serious stance on the Catwoman character before she ‘falls in love’ with Batman in the next season. The story was released on the view-master, which has become a popular collectors item. Frank Gorshin’s Riddler is heavily featured throughout the season, we won’t see him again until a single standalone episode in the third season. The popular ‘Batusi’ dance debuted and seen for both its appearances in the series, during episode 1 and 28. Personally I can not say anything negative about any part of this season, if you was to press me I would probably say the Zelda episodes (9 and 10) are my least favourite, note these were the first of two stories where no bat-fight took place.
The Episode Guide
Episode #1 Hi Diddle Riddle Part 1 6028-Pt. 1 12 Jan 66
The Riddler uses a trumped-up lawsuit to try to unmask Batman in court. Batman is forced to break the law himself, and Robin ends up in the master-fiend’s evil clutches. Watch for the latest dance craze: the Batusi!
Guest Stars: Frank Gorshin, Jill St. John
Episode #2 Smack in the Middle Part 2 6028-Pt. 2 13 Jan 66
The Riddler tries to lure Batman into a trap using Robin as the bait.
Guest Stars: Frank Gorshin, Jill St. John
Episode # 3 Fine Feathered Finks Part 1 8703-Pt. 1 19 Jan 66
Disguised as his alter ego, Bruce Wayne, Batman infiltrates the Penguin’s umbrella factory in an attempt to track him down. Thinking he is merely a spy from a rival factory, the Penguin orders that he be quickly dispatched in his 12,000 degree furnace.
Guest Stars: Burgess Meredith
Episode # 4 The Penguin’s A Jinx Part 2 8703-Pt. 2 20 Jan 66
Narrowly escaping a fiery death, Batman and Robin decide that the Penguin’s next move is to kidnap a famous actress. Rushing to the scene, the lovely actress begins to fall for the caped crusader just as Penguin makes his move.
Guest Stars: Burgess Meredith
Episode #5 The Joker is Wild Part 1 8709-Pt. 1 26 Jan 66
The Joker has escaped from prison and plots to design his own utility belt to combat the caped crusader. Just as the Dynamic Duo attempt to unmask the villain, they are stopped by sneezing powder, and the Joker moves in to unmask Batman on live TV.
Guest Stars: Cesar Romero, Nancy Kovack
Episode #6 Batman Is Riled Part 2 6 8709-Pt. 2 27 Jan 66
Thanks to the Joker, Gotham descends into its worst crime wave ever. Joker takes Batman and Robin back to his lair, demanding that the S.S. Gotham be handed over to him, or he will behead the Dynamic Duo.
Guest Stars: Cesar Romero, Nancy Kovack
Episode #7 Instant Freeze Part 1 8707-Pt. 1 2 Feb 66
Mr. Freeze is raising havoc with his flame-freeze gun, and Batman and Robin rush to the rescue. The Caped Crusader and Boy Wonder try to foil Freeze’s attempt to steal the Circle of Ice Diamond, but Freeze freezes them in their steps with his deadly ice-gun and drives away.
Guest Stars: George Sanders, Teri Garr
Episode #8 Rats Like Cheese Part 2 8707-Pt. 2 3 Feb 66
Batman and Robin are thawed out, but Freeze has kidnapped Gotham City’s star ballplayer just before the big game. Freeze’s terms are a fair exchange: the ballplayer for Batman.
Guest Stars: George Sanders
Episode #9 Zelda The Great Part 1 8705-Pt. 1 9 Feb 66
Crooked escape artist Zelda the Great nearly falls for Baman and Robin’s attempt to trap her with a homing device disguised as a large jewel. But Zelda’s real plan is revealed when Dick Grayson’s Aunt is kidnapped, held for ransom, and suspended over a vat of boiling oil!
Guest Stars: Anne Baxter, Jack Kruschen
Episode #10 Death Worse Than Fate Part 2 8705-Pt. 2 10/2/66
A few minutes before Zelda the Great is about to deep-fry Aunt Harriet, Batman makes contact with her and they arrange to pay the ransom. Harriet is safely returned, but a match book leads Batman and Robin into a trap set by Zelda’s evil associate Eivol Ekdol.
Guest Stars: Anne Baxter, Jack Kruschen
Episode #11 A Riddle a Day Keeps The Riddler Away Part 1 8711-Pt. 1 16 Feb 66
Riddler disrupts the arrival of visiting King Boris and leaves a mysterious clue at the Miss Galaxy pageant. Batman and Robin rush to the Royal Mushroom Club, only to be trapped and strapped to a generator drive shaft, awaiting their doom.
Guest Stars: Frank Gorshin
Episode #12 When the Rat’s Away, The Mice will Play Part 2 8711-Pt. 2 17 Feb 66
After King Boris places his Queen of Freedom statue in Gotham’s Museum of Fame at a special ceremony, Riddler sends word to Commissioner Gordon that the statue contains a time bomb which he will deactivate only after the city delivers $1,000,000 to him. For help, Gordon calls upon wealthy Bruce Wayne, who is really Batman.
Guest Stars: Frank Gorshin
Episode #13 The Thirteenth Hat Part 1 8719-Pt. 1 23 Feb 66
When a number of hats, along with their owners, disappear around Gotham City, Batman and Robin realize that the Mad Hatter must again be on the loose and trying to kidnap each member of the jury who convicted him. The trail leads to a sculptor’s studio, and a horrendous, statue shattering melee ensues. Robin is clonked, and the Hatter gleefully buries Batman in Super-Fast Hardening Plaster.
Guest Stars: David Wayne
Episode # 14 Batman Stands Pat Part 2 8719-Pt. 2 24 Feb 66
Batman and his chum escape from their plaster prisons and crack their adversary’s scheme. The Hatter purposely leads Batman and Robin to his fiendish hat factory, stocked with terrifying torture machines.
Guest Stars: David Wayne
Episode #15 Joker Goes To School Part 1 8715-Pt. 1 2 Mar 66
Commissioner Gordon alerts Batman that Joker is again on the prowl, seeking to undermine student morale in order to recruit high school drop-outs into his gang, the Bad Pennies. The Dynamic Duo are kidnapped strapped into an electric chair-like seat and faced with a shock of 50,000 volts if the slot machine in front of them turns up three lemons!
Guest Stars: Cesar Romero
Episode #16 He Meets His Match, The Grisly Ghoul Part 2
In the nick of time, Gotham City is struck with a massive power failure that turns off Joker’s 50,000 volt charge. Batman and Robin are rescued, and Robin agrees to infiltrate the Bad Pennies in a dangerous undercover mission.
Guest Stars: Cesar Romero
Episode #17 True Or False Face – Part 1 8715-Pt. 2 3 Mar 66
Batman and Boy Wonder deduce that False-Face is plotting a counterfeit money caper and find themselves on a deserted subway platform, supposedly his hideout. But wait! Treachery triumphs once again, as False-Face knocks out Batman and Robin and epoxys them to the subway tracks.
Guest Stars: Malachi Throne
Episode # 18 Holy Rat Race Part 2 8713-Pt. 1 9 Mar 66
Alfred manages to short out a circuit and free Batman and Robin just as the subway train rushes past. Thank heavens! They beat the masked marauder at his own game during a daring bank robbery, foiling False-Face’s putrid plot.
Guest Stars: Malachi Throne
Episode # 19 The Purr-fect Crime Part 1 8713-Pt. 2 10 Mar 66
Catwoman breaks into a museum to steal a priceless gold cat statuette. Following Catwoman to her hideout turns deadly when the two are captured and separated. Batman, sealed in a room with two doors is told to pick one, and a giant tiger leaps out from behind.
Guest Stars: Julie Newmar
Episode # 20 Better Luck Next Time Part 2 8721-Pt. 1 16/3/66
Using his suction Batcups, Batman escapes the tiger and rescues Robin from more hungry jungle cats. They discover that Catwoman is not merely after the gold statuettes, but Captain Manx’s buried treasure — whose map is visible when the statues are fitted together.
Guest Stars: Julie Newmar
Episode #21 The Penguin Goes Straight Part 1 8721-Pt. 2 17/3/66
Penguin announces his Penguin Protective Agency, established to compete with the Dynamic Duo in guarding society’s wealth against hoods and mountebanks. The Caped Crusader and Boy Wonder are captured and strung up behind a balloon shooting gallery at Penguin’s gala party. The Feathered Felon invites Gordon and Chief O’Hara to take a couple of pot shots, which they do, not realizing that the pop guns are loaded with real bullets.
Guest Stars: Burgess Meredith
Episode #22 Not Yet, He Ain’t Part 2 8723-Pt. 1 23 Mar 66
In a dynamic double flash, Batman and Robin lift their feet and deflect the bullets with their bullet-proof Batboot soles, and Batman cuts himself and Robin loose with his Bat-claw knife blade. When Penguin discovers their escape, he rallies Gotham’s leading citizens to demand the apprehension of the dirty duo.
Guest Stars: Burgess Meredith
Episode # 23 Ring of Wax Part 1 8725-Pt. 1 30 Mar 66
Riddler makes off with The Rare Old Book on The Lost Treasure of the Incas, leaving a trail of clues which leads to Madame Soliel’s Wax Museum. There, a Revolutionary War Tableau comes to life, and Riddler shoots doped darts into the Caped Crusader and Boy Wonder. Spiriting them back to his hideout, Riddler and his two goons dangle Batman and Robin over a vat of boiling wax preparatory to a fatal double dip.
Guest Stars: Frank Gorshin
Episode #24 Give Em’ The Axe Part 2 8725-Pt. 2 31 Mar 66
Batman and Robin blast themselves free of their fetters and clear of the awful wax to the floor below. Meanwhile, Riddler has gone after the Sarcophagus at the Gotham City Museum, where it awaits an airtight case for display.
Guest Stars: Frank Gorshin
Episode #25 Joker Trumps An Ace Part 1 8727-Pt. 1 6 Apr 66
Joker is on the loose again, and his apparent target is the solid-gold golf clubs of the Maharajah of Nimpah – until Batman and Robin arrive to witness him kidnap the 350-pound Maharajah himself! The Peerless Pair trace Joker to his Old Re-finery hideout and burst in to rescue His Highness. But Joker locks the Dauntless Duo into a very high chimney which he begins to fill with lethal gas!
Guest Stars: Cesar Romero
Episode #26 Batman Sets the Pace Part 2 8727-Pt. 2 7 Apr 66
When the Joker sees that Batman and Robin have escaped his death trap, he trundles off to hatch another. Joker’s ransom demand is for Batman to endorse the Maharajah’s personal check for one-half million dollars, which he will cash at Gotham City State Bank the next morning.
Guest Stars: Cesar Romero
Episode #27 The Curse of Tut Part 1 8729-Pt. 1 13 Apr 66
The evil King Tut wants to claim Gotham City as his kingdom. Batman and Robin decide to do some undercover investigating at the Gotham Museum’s Egyptian exhibit. After being gassed by phony ambulance drivers, Tut’s henchmen in disguise, Bruce finds himself careening down a hill on a stretcher, headed for a 300-foot cliff.
Guest Stars: Victor Buono
Episode #28 The Pharoah’s in a Rut Part 2 8729-Pt. 2 14 Apr 66
After barely escaping death, Batman goes on television to say he has rescued Bruce Wayne and is headed to Egypt to do some research. Tut falls for this ruse and kidnaps Bruce/Batman, subjecting him to Theban Pebble Torture at his secret hideout.
Guest Stars: Victor Buono
Episode #29 The Bookworm Turns Part 1 8717-Pt. 1 20 Apr 66
Bookworm lures Batman and Robin to Police Headquarters and confounds them with a series of book-clues. Batman and Robin cleverly suspect a trap and question Bookworm’s moll Lydia, who spills a false clue as she has been directed by her master. Batman races off and leaves Robin with Lydia, who gasses him and helps Bookworm strap the kid to the clapper of the giant bell that will toll in just one minute.
Guest Stars: Roddy McDowall, Jerry Lewis
Episode # 30 While Gotham City Turns Part 2 8717-Pt. 2 21 Apr 66
Batman zooms to the Bell Tower and barely saves Robin’s life. But Bookworm traps the Dynamic Duo inside a giant cookbook, which fills with steam and threatens to cook Batman and Robin alive.
Guest Stars: Roddy McDowall
Episode #31 Death in Slow Motion Part 1 8731-Pt. 1 27 Apr 66
Disguised as Charlie Chaplin, Riddler strikes the box office of a silent film showing. Following his riddles leads Batman and Robin to the scene of his next robbery, a bakery payroll, where the Riddler and his gang are disguised as a location film shoot. The crooks then crash a party, where they spike the punch and escape with Robin as their hostage.
Guest Stars: Frank Gorshin
Episode #32 The Riddler’s False Notion Part 2 8731-Pt. 2 28 Apr 66
The Riddler escapes, but Batman captures a hostage of his own, the Riddler’s moll, Pauline. After taking her back to the Batcave, The Caped Crusader uses his amazing scientific equipment to get her to confess a riddle that leads him to the Chessman Building. Batman narrowly saves Robin before solving a skywritten riddle that leads them to the house of a silent film producer.
Guest Stars: Frank Gorshin
Episode #33 Fine Finny Fiends Part 1 8733-Pt. 1 4 May 66
Penguin and his “finny fiends” kidnap Alfred and hypnotize him to divulge the secret location of Bruce Wayne’s Multimillionaires Annual Award Dinner. Before Batman and Robin can intervene, Alfred is home safe with no memory of being kidnapped. A hook found on his coat seems fishy, so the dynamic duo journey down to the pier, where Penguin traps them in a vacuum tank and begins to suck out the air.
Guest Stars: Burgess Meredith
Episode #34 Batman Makes The Scenes Part 2 8733-Pt. 2 5 May 66
Surviving an airless vacuum chamber, Batman escapes and revives Robin. Batman tells Alfred the location of the multi-millionaires’ dinner, knowing that the butler will act on Penguin’s post-hypnotic suggestion and tip off the crooks. At the dinner, Batman and Robin stand in for Bruce Wayne. The Penguin’s moll Finella jumps out of a cake and gasses the audience. Will the Dynamic Duo save the day?
Guest Stars: Burgess Meredith
