I watched the tv series and just can’t recall the Batboat. Maybe I just forgot after 40 years. The show was syndicated in the 70’s. I’m not sure if I ever saw the movie with Adam West.
Anyway it looks pretty cool.
As they noted, it was used in the 1966 movie to battle the bad guys’ submarine. When the second season of the TV show began, they had a new Batcycle to replace the one they used in the first Catwoman episode, and I believe the Batboat and Batcopter were used in a couple of others, but I couldn’t tell you which right offhand.
Seems to me the Batcopter got a makeover for the TV series too, but I can’t remember how it looked then.
But where oh where is Batgirl’s motorbike: it had actual frills on the fairing {also she’s apparently riding it on the stand in that photo, but who’s counting?}.
Notice how the windscreen seems to disappear when she actually needs it the most:
The green screen was very primitive back then. IIRC nearly every scene with the batmobile or batbike was on a fixed prop with green screen showing traffic.
I wouldn’t want to be wearing those costumes in the batboat. Weren’t they wool? You’d sink like a stone if you fell out of the boat.
I definitely remember it from the movie. Not sure about the series.
But… if you can wait until November 11th and have and extra $270 to spare they are releasing the full series on Blue Ray! I’m sure we can then figure out which episodes it is featured in.
Yes, I will be getting my copy. I grew up with the TV show and dreamed of being Batman someday so this will be likely as close as I get. I’ve never bought a set like this before and likely will never again, but to me this one is worth it.
Is the Adam West movie going to be on the Batman Blu-Ray too?
No I don’t think so. But there are 3 hours of extras, but this is the first time all 120 of the original episodes are available in a set. The movie has been available for some time on DVD. If you don’t want Blue Ray you can get the DVD set for $70 less.
Back to the boat… it is a Glastron which was a very cool boat for the time. They were also used in some of the Bond movies. I would guess it may go for even more even though it wasn’t the one used on screen (but an official promotional copy). I’m not willing to bet on it, but I’ve seen boomers spend massive amounts on other icons from their childhood.
Despite the text saying that this isn’t the boat from the show, rather, it is the promo boat, did you notice they aren’t the same? I’m suspicious - they were both modified by Glastron, presumably at the same time, yet they aren’t the same. Aside from the obvious difference of the steering wheel being on the opposite side, the “eyes” aren’t the same. On the real BB, they slant back at the outside, on the one for sale, they angle forward. They also don’t have the same number of fins under the red beacon (5 vs 6 on the real one).
I wouldn’t go so far as to say it is a deliberate forgery, but I would be very careful on provenance before I spent any money.
Restoration Blog. I guess this is the same Bat Boat?
Whoops. This was a restoration of a replica Batboat.
Heres day 1 when he bought it.
Supposedly the one selling in Britain is the real thing.
Talk about TMI. There are a ton and a half of closeups of fiberglass repair. Many blogs of just fiberglass fiberglass fiberglass. Get to the good stuff, dude! 
God, I’m glad I wasn’t the first one to notice that!
$270? :eek: Dear god, that’s $90/season. I’d been looking forward to this, being a fan of the show in all of its silly glory, but I think I’l settle for the digital “Batman '66” comic for my Bat-fix.
It’s a blessing.
And a curse.
I could almost guarantee you that neither West nor Ward ever piloted or occupied the original in water, they would have used stuntmen (the masks making it all the easier to conceal this). The actors were probably only ever in it during the rear projection close-ups. I doubt either actor had any say about it, just union rules…
I noticed the different sweep over the eyes as well. Since these were custom built, it wouldn’t surprise me to see a few small differences like that; nor would it surprise me very much if it’s a fake.
I’d have to check, but the movie ends with B&R forcing Penguin’s submarine to the surface and then boarding it from the batboat. There were likely some close-ups in that sequence that would have required the real actors. Now, if you look carefully, you can see wrinkles in the sky in the background, so it was probably filmed in a tank somewhere, but technically they were in water.
I read somewhere that West hated driving the Batmobile, as it was too heavy for its suspension and handled terribly.
I would imagine that insurance concerns had a lot to do with using doubles. Also, there’s really no need to tie up the series’ stars when all you need to film is long shots with everyone in costume. It would be a waste of their time, especially when they’re in almost every scene of every episode.
Robert Conrad, BTW, insisted on doing his own stunts on Wild, Wild West, at least until he took a major fall and ended up in the hospital. Production had to shut down until he recovered fully.
The floor was concrete. IIRC, he ended up with a fractured skull, and was out of commission for a lot longer than one week.
The late great James Garner did the same with The Rockford Files. In fact the show only ended because he injured himself too much, not because of ratings. NBC then proceeded to try and cheat him out of royalties, using the infamous ‘creative accounting’ line to say that in fact the show made no money. A decade plus lawsuit eventually ruled in Garner’s favor.