Deco King

Looking forward to the forthcoming take on The Joker in the next new Batman movie brings me back to the non appearance of those fabulous kitsch camp TV episodes from the 1960's.

Will Fox EVER release these cult classics on DVD / Blu-Ray whatever?

The Monkees

Never

pmreed

WHAM!! BAM That's too bad. POW!! CRACK

Phil

Bluelitespecial

You can already buy the movie from the 60's isn't that enough?

MovieExchange

Last I heard (early 2005), the head of Rittenhouse trading cards wanted to do a card set based on the 60's Batman TV show, and DC told him absolutely no way, as they don't want that version of Batman out on the market (the car is apparently OK, but they don't want to remind people of the camp factor).

The only reason the movie is out is because someone other than DC / Warner owns the distribution rights.

I know we say "never say never," especially with WKRP finally coming to DVD (despite being horribly butchered), but Batman is about as close to never as you're going to get. If DC didn't want to capitalize on Batman's popularity by releasing this as part of the promotion for last year's movie, then I don't see them ever releasing it.

And I know people hate to hear this but every year that DC / Warner neglects to release the series, the more people finally break down and buy bootlegs - thus reducing the demand for the product.

fryinpan1

It will never be released. I chose to buy a poor quality fan-made set as opposed to never seeing the episodes again.

Joseph B

There are just too many legal entanglements right now - in addition to the feud between Fox and Warners/DC.

But I *do* think there will come a day when the set will be released. I'm just not sure if it will be this decade.

sparks

Try www.skaryguyvideo.com

taffer

I loved the 60s Batman when I was a kid, but I don't think I would enjoy it the slightest bit now. Some things are best left to nostalgia.

dvd-4-life

Could it be released in another region without the legal battles it faces here?

rw2516

It's actually better as an adult. Most of the camp and humor is over the head of kids.

areacode212

Yep. When I watched it as a kid, I liked it because nothing could be better than live-action Batman. Then as a teenager, I hated it because of the "this is NOT the Batman of the comics!!" factor. But when I watch it now, I love it again because the humor and camp make it hilarious.

DVD Josh

Or don't, because there's no Batman listed anywhere on that site, which, sells bootlegs by the way (reason #2 you shouldn't check it out)

Peep

Since Warner just announced "The New Adventures of Batman" (http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/newsitem.cfm?NewsID=7151), it seems to me like it's more of a rights/licensing/control issue than anything.

GuruTwo

I seriously doubt this. Warner Bros. has released pretty much everything else "Batman" and "Superman" related (plus Sony has released the theatrical "Batman" serials) regardless of how campy and cheesy it is. "Batman Forever" and "Batman & Robin" are available on DVD.

I mean, they included the "Superpup" pilot in the "Ultimate Superman Collection".

There has to be some sort of dispute over rights or something because there's money to be made in this release and that's all Warner Bros. cares about, not how the public thinks of the Batman character, and let's be serious here, the existence of the old "Batman" series has never stopped "grim & gritty" Batman stories from succeeding in any medium.

If there's anything holding this release up it's that Fox (who presumably owns the series) and Warner Bros. (who owns the actual characters and trademarks) each want sole ownership of it.

MovieExchange

Batman Forever and Batman & Robin are not as campy as the old Adam West series. Sony releasing the serials could be the same type of situation that keeps the movie released - DC might own the characters, but another company owns distribution rights.

I can only tell you what the owner of a trading card company, an avowed fan of the series, heard when he asked DC directly. I don't see any reason he would have to lie about it.

IDrinkMolson

Not positive, but I thought I heard somewhere, that the problem was with the car. Whoever owns the rights to it, refuses to give a license out for DVD's.

Pitchman

Granted, it is animated, but if Warner Bros. has no problem releasing this, then obviously there is another issue here besides the "camp" factor. This cover image is a dead-ringer for the '60s TV Batman look, and the set features Adam West and Burt Ward.