Was the "Joker's Wild" prison escape from the comics?

[bat-rss]

We know that much of "The Joker's Wild"/"Batman is Riled" was based on "The Joker's Utility Belt" in Batman issue 73 (1952). But the "spring" prison escape is not in that story, and I feel as if somewhere (a search of the board turned up nothing) I heard that that idea was lifted from a different Batman comic. Any idea where it came from?

[Therin of Andor]

Mmmmm. Just saw in Wikipedia that The Joker's henchwoman, Queenie, originated in the comic books in the 1940s. In that story, as the Joker's cohort, she learned Bruce Wayne was Batman but was killed, taking the information with her.

[bat-rss]

Mmmmm. Just saw in Wikipedia that The Joker's henchwoman, Queenie, originated in the comic books in the 1940s. In that story, as the Joker's cohort, she learned Bruce Wayne was Batman but was killed, taking the information with her.

Interesting! Didn't know Queenie was from the comics.

[Chuck Williams]

WOWZERS!

[AndyFish]

From BATMAN COMICS #5-- which also happens to be the story which debuts the first of what most people consider The Batmobile, with the big Bat Head in the front. Before this Batman drove a convertible red roadster that may or may not have had a Bat hood ornament depending on who drew it.

[Lou Szabo]

Wow, I remember reading that issue. Thanks for the context

[Jim Akin]

I've read a lot of Joker stories from the comics, and while I'm sure I don't recall them all perfectly, I think I'd have picked up on any that included that spring-loaded pitcher's mound. There are also plenty of stories I haven't read, of course, but I suspect most of us comics fans here on the board have read more Joker stories than Bill Dozier or Lorenzo Semple ever did.

Which is to say, aside from comics issued in 1965 or 1966, including the all-reprint issue Batman #176 that featured The Joker's Utility Belt and other stories Greenway adapted into scripts, I don't think there's much to suggest the TV brain trust dug into the annals of bat comics for inspiration. Most of what they got, they found on newsstands, and the comics from that period have been widely reprinted. So, I personally doubt we'll uncover a similar jailbreak in an obscure back issue.

A less literal inspiration may lie in Dick Sprang's cover art for Batman #73, the original source of "The Joker's Utility Belt." The illustration, which was reproduced in miniature on the Batman #176 cover in late 1965, features a stylized rendition of Joker's belt with its various gimmicks springing (Sprang-ing?) out of their compartments like jack-in-the-boxes, each topped by a Joker head. I wouldn't be surprised if that sparked the idea for the episode's jack-in-the-box-y escape.

On a related note, I'm not convinced the Queenie who appears in Batman #5 can be cited as inspiration for the Nancy Kovack character. (As someone who does loads of web research, I've learned to take Wikipedia with a lot of salt.) For starters, in that 1941 story, "The Riddle of the Missing Card," Joker renames Queenie The Black Queen, and that's how Batman knows her. But more importantly, there's no evidence I've seen that the TV team was aware of that story or character. The earliest reprint of the tale I've been able to find was in 1992, as part of a comprehensive Archive reissue of Golden Age Batman stories. I think it's doubtful Semple came across a 25-year-old comic in the course of his research. Furthermore, assigning Joker a moll with a playing card-inspired name strikes me as the kind of thing Semple easily could have landed on without an example from the comics.

This is all surmise, so if my hunches prove wrong I'll be grateful to know better.

[BatmiteReturns]

WOWZERS!

These comic panels always irked me. How can you forget to draw the bat symbol on his chest?

[bat-rss]

I don't think there's much to suggest the TV brain trust dug into the annals of bat comics for inspiration. Most of what they got, they found on newsstands, and the comics from that period have been widely reprinted. So, I personally doubt we'll uncover a similar jailbreak in an obscure back issue.

Perhaps not, but some of what they found on the newsstands was reprints. Thus they ended up adapting a number of stories originally printed in the '40s and '50s, including "The Joker's Utility Belt" (1952). So, they certainly didn't go through the full annals of Batman, but they did read and adapt some older stories. Would be interesting to find out what else had been reprinted in 1965 or so.

[AndyFish]

Forgetting the emblem was often the result of insane deadlines, there's a famous story about a group of artists holding up in an apartment (ironically the same building I lived in many years ago in the Upper East side of New York) and producing 64 pages of art and stories over a weekend during a huge snowstorm. The characters were also only a year or two old so they weren't at an iconic stage yet.

As for the comics themselves, back when I was a freelancer for DC you could request any story from their archives before all the reprints were available and E Nelson Bridwell would provide you with a Xerox. My understanding of the early 60s was when DC was pushing the Batman show to be made by the producer of The Lone Ranger with Mike Henry (Tarzan) the likely star they had a package of vintage comics photocopies that were part of the package they were using a story ideas. It's likely all of the Early Joker stories were included and this is how Queenie gets a part. I think it's far more likely that BATMAN #5 was reprinted somewhere in those giant books or annuals but that's my guess.

[Mr. Glee]

... aside from comics issued in 1965 or 1966, including the all-reprint issue Batman #176 that featured The Joker's Utility Belt and other stories Greenway adapted into scripts, I don't think there's much to suggest the TV brain trust dug into the annals of bat comics for inspiration.

The Garcia/Desris book mentions that Bob Kane gave ABC's Douglas Cramer some comic books “with important stories in Batman’s history.” Per the book, Cramer then passed these comics along to Dozier - so Dozier & company may have had access to some of the older stories in the Batman canon.

[bat-rss]

Wow, Andy, didn't realize you'd worked at DC! Interesting about the photocopies.

Mr Glee, thanks, I knew I had read SOMEWHERE that some comics were passed along to Dozier, but I couldn't remember where. I looked at the Cinefantastique Batman issue, but it just said that Dozier said he bought some comics. As usual, everybody remembers things differently!

[bat-rss]

Going back to listen to the 134th episode of TO THE BATPOLES, our discussion of the early scripts for THE JOKER'S WILD, I'm reminded the Robert Dozier had originally written this scene with a THE ZODIAC CRIMES-style helicopter with a rope ladder as Joker's method of escape. Paul and I guessed it was changed because the giant spring could be had more economically than a chopper. Which doesn't mean the spring idea couldn't have come from a comic book, but just an interesting aside.

[Scott Sebring]

Going back to listen to the 134th episode of TO THE BATPOLES, our discussion of the early scripts for THE JOKER'S WILD, I'm reminded the Robert Dozier had originally written this scene with a THE ZODIAC CRIMES-style helicopter with a rope ladder as Joker's method of escape. Paul and I guessed it was changed because the giant spring could be had more economically than a chopper. Which doesn't mean the spring idea couldn't have come from a comic book, but just an interesting aside.

Maybe it was inspired by the idea of using the phrase "springing out of jail" as a literal, "The Devil, he Sprung himself!" added to the script and method of escape. It plays out more to the campy pun humor along with the budget of the show (just use an off camera sound effect and film two reactions but don't show it happening and then reveal the spring) rather than the comic sort of narrative. Just a thought.

[bat-rss]

Maybe it was inspired by the idea of using the phrase "springing out of jail" as a literal, "The Devil, he Sprung himself!" added to the script and method of escape. It plays out more to the campy pun humor along with the budget of the show (just use an off camera sound effect and film two reactions but don't show it happening and then reveal the spring) rather than the comic sort of narrative. Just a thought.

Yeah, it may have been as simple as that!