when did the original batman tv show air
Batman (TV series) Batman is a 1960s American live action television series, based on the DC comic book character of the same name. It stars Adam West as Batman and Burt Ward as Robin â€“ two crime-fighting heroes who defend Gotham City from a variety of arch villains.[1][2] It is known for its camp style, upbeat theme music, and its intentionally humorous, simplistic morality (aimed at its largely teenage audience). This included championing the importance of using seat belts, doing homework, eating vegetables, and drinking milk.[3] It was described by executive producer William Dozier as the only situation comedy on the air without a laugh track. 120 episodes aired on the ABC network for three seasons from January 12, 1966, to March 14, 1968, twice weekly for the first two and weekly for the third. In 2016, television critics Alan Sepinwall and Matt Zoller Seitz ranked Batman as the 82nd greatest American television show of all time.
Batman in film Over the course of seven years, Warner Bros. commissioned Darren Aronofsky for an adaptation of Batman: Year One and Wolfgang Petersen for Batman vs. Superman before deciding to reboot the film franchise in 2005 with Batman Begins, directed by Christopher Nolan and starring Christian Bale. Nolan returned to direct two further installments through the release of The Dark Knight in 2008 and The Dark Knight Rises in 2012, with Bale reprising his role in both films. Both sequels earned over $1 billion worldwide, making Batman the second film franchise to have two of its films earn more than $1 billion worldwide.[3] Referred to as The Dark Knight Trilogy, the critical acclaim and commercial success of Nolan's films have been credited with restoring widespread popularity to the superhero, with the second installment considered one of the best superhero movies of all-time. Ben Affleck became the newest actor to portray Batman in 2016 with Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, which began a sequence of DC Comics adaptations that Warner Bros. refers to as the DC Extended Universe, including Justice League, a crossover film featuring other DC Comics characters, in 2017, and a stand-alone Batman film starring Affleck and directed by Matt Reeves that is set for release in 2019.