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The Batmobile is the fictional personal Automobile of Comic Book Superhero Batman . The car has followed the evolution of the character from comic books to television to films. TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION The standard features of the vehicle include a laser beam, chassis with heavy armor plating, a nuclear bomb strapped to the back, a button for calling in Superman for backup, a high performance engine, sometimes with rocket boosts for increased speed, special devices to improve maneuverability, and mounted Weapon s to disable vehicles and remove obstacles. In addition, the vehicle typically carries the highly intelligent Computer that is remotely linked to the Batcave 's main computer, a remote control function, a field Forensic kit and a personal small Helicopter held in the trunk called a whirlybat. The vehicle has changed frequently over the decades. In the early stages of Batman's career, the Batmobile was a modified Sedan with armor but it has evolved into a technologically advanced custom-built automobile. The Batmobile has sometimes been described as being powered by Nuclear Generation Of Electricity . It was part of the launch checklist from the 1966 Television Show ("Atomic batteries to power. Turbines to speed!"). And, in '' Batman Returns '', one of the Penguin ’s schemes to kill Batman is to turn the Batmobile into "a H-bomb on wheels." HISTORY Before the Batmobile - 1939 Batman made his very first appearance in ''Detective Comics'' No. 27 ( May 1939 ). Although the Batplane was introduced only four issues later, in ''Detective Comics'' No. 31, the strip's creators didn't seem to realize the need for a comparable ground vehicle until a year and a half later. Initially, Batman simply drove around in several ordinary cars. ''Detective Comics'' No. 30 ( August 1939 ) is the first instance of Batman's automobile being identified as anything other than a standard product of Detroit . Readers learn that the Batman drives a "specially built high-powered auto". Except for the unusually long hood, it looks very much like a 1937 Ford Coupe (especially in the grill treatment). The first Batmobile - 1941 In ''Detective Comics'' No. 48 ( February 1941 ) the name "Batmobile" was first applied to Batman and Robin 's automobile. History of the Batmobile: 1941 But it was not the distinctive black car with the tall scalloped fin and the intimidating bathead on the front that for decades was instantly recognized as "the" Batmobile. Instead, it is a bright red convertible whose only distinguishing mark is a small bat-shaped hood ornament. It is, however, so fast that bystanders cannot believe their eyes. The classic Batmobile - 1941 ''Batman'' No. 5 (Spring to crash in the ravine below. This inauspicious beginning did not taint the Batmobile's career, however. Another, identical Batmobile was streaking through the panels of the very next story in the same issue. The “Batmobile of 1950” . (''Detective Comics'' No. 156)]] It took Detroit a few years after World War II to switch from wartime production back to turning out new cars. But, by 1950, new, sleeker designs were hitting the streets and the Batmobile of the 1940s was starting to look a little old-fashioned. So it probably wasn't a big surprise that the February 1950 issue of ''Detective Comics'' told the story of the creation of a brand new Batmobile. History of the Batmobile: 1950 Batman and Robin constructed the new Batmobile right in the Batcave . It is interesting to see that they do all the work themselves. Later stories had the Batmobile built by a mechanic who owed his life to Batman but, in 1950, they didn't need outside help. The new Batmobile was sleek and modern looking (by the standards of the time) and it was equipped with a large array of crime fighting equipment, including rocket tubes in the rear for super-acceleration and speed, a radar antenna in the fin, radar and television screens in the dash, a complete crime laboratory in the rear, a search light that projected a Bat-signal or a special infrared beam, and a razor sharp blade in the Bat-mask on the front of the car to cut through barriers. As Batman said, ''"It's ten years ahead of anything else on wheels."'' The “new look,” 1964 By ). The “discreet” Batmobile, 1971 The Live Action Television Series was so popular that its campy humor and the sleek Batmobile designed by George Barris were quickly introduced into the Batman comic books. But the high camp and general silliness of the television show did not sit well with long-time Batman comic book fans. So, when the series was canceled in 1968 the comic books reacted by becoming darker and more serious. They abandoned many of the character's traditional accouterments and emphasized Batman's role as a detective. He no longer operated out of Wayne Manor or the Batcave . He and Alfred moved to a penthouse in Gotham . Robin, the "Boy Wonder", was also gone (quite reasonably, Dick Grayson had grown up and left for college). Part of the change was a complete redesign of the Batmobile. Instead of flashing lights and scalloped fins, the new Batmobile was a discreet Roadster with little to distinguish it from any other street vehicle except for the subdued bat-mask on the hood. History of the Batmobile: 1970 Although not as visually interesting as the other Batmobiles, this version was typical of the decade and representative of the strong desire of the creative teams producing the series to re-establish it as a "serious" title. As seen in the panel at left (from Batman #234, 1971 ), the roadster is not a real automobile but does combine the major design elements from two well known cars of the late 1960s , the Mustang and Corvette . A return to style, 1980 )]] This Batmobile, used throughout the TV Batmobile, as was the rather small turbine exhaust nozzle in the rear of the car. The open cockpit was also like the TV Batmobile, but it was also similar to the sports car Batmobile from the early 1960s . A multiplicity of styles, 1990s to the present . (''Batman'' No. 694)]] Beginning in the 1990s , the number of comics featuring Batman mushroomed with spin-off titles, Limited Series , and Graphic Novel s. At the same time, there was considerable experimentation with styles of illustration. With different illustration styles appearing in so many different books, there was naturally a corresponding diversity of designs for the Batmobile. This has continued with designs for the Batmobile ranging from conservative and practical to highly stylized to outlandish. In Frank Miller 's '' The Dark Knight Returns '' for example, the Batmobile appears as a Tank, a look that Chris Nolan adopted for his movie franchise. In the '''', establish that Batman has a large ground vehicle fleet of various makes and models as well as Utility Vehicle s to use when the Batmobile would be too conspicuous. IN OTHER MEDIA Movie serials, 1943 and 1949 .]] Before television, , was produced in 1949 . History of the Batmobile: 1949 Both suffered from low budgets and the “Batmobile” in each was simply a regular civilian automobile. TV Batmobile, 1966 Perhaps the most famous Batmobile History of the Batmobile: 1966-1979 , the one from the kept blowing. By midseason the drive train and chassis including a new 428 C.I.D. engine from a 1966 Ford Galaxie was installed replacing the original Lincoln Mark two units. Barris built three fiberglass copies of the original Batmobile for exhibition on the car show circuit (one of which was used for exhibition drag racing). Eventually, the three copies were covered with a black velvet "fuzz" paint, presumably to hide stress cracks in the fiberglass bodies. Later, all three were restored to their gloss black paint job. The 3 replicas are all based on a 1965-1966 Ford Galaxie. Barris has retained ownership of the original TV car, which is currently on display at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, California . The three Barris copies all reside in private collections. Cartoons, 1968 - 1986 From the late 1960s through the 1980s , several Saturday morning cartoon series featured DC’s superheroes, including Batman. These shows were '' The Batman/Superman Hour '' ( 1968 – 1969 ), '' The New Adventures Of Batman '' ( 1977 ), and '' Super Friends '' ( 1973 – 1986 ). Each show had a different design for the Batmobile, some taking influence from the popular 1960s television program. The movies, 1989 - 1997 The next live-action depiction of Batman was a radical departure from the campy style of the 1960s TV series. In the and was built on a Chevy Impala chassis. Gadgetry included twin retractable machine guns, and small bombs ejected from the wheels. To prevent tampering, the Tim Burton Batmobile featured an armored "cocoon" mode, a hard layered shell that would cover every inch of the vehicle, including the wheels. In '''' episode called "Don't Tug on Superman's Cape", an episode which shows that some collectors had apparently stolen the Batmobile. As the 1990s Batman films were handed over to director Joel Schumacher , the design for the Batmobile became increasingly fanciful, as decorative lighting was added to the vehicle's rims, sides and front edge, and the wing-shaped fins reached further into the air. New abilities included a grappling hook allowing the Batmobile to drive up walls, as well as the speed to perform large jumps from surface to surface during chases across Gotham City's elevated freeways and gigantic statues. The second Shumacher era Batmobile also did not feature either a passenger seat nor a canopy. '' Batman Forever '' was originally supposed to have a Batmobile designed by famed designer H. R. Giger , but Giger backed out of the project when Warner Brothers rejected his design. ''Batman: The Animated Series'', 1992-1995 ''.]] The same year that the second Batman movie, ''Batman Returns'', was released, a new television series began. '''' used a distinctive visual combination of Film Noir imagery and Art Deco designs with a very dark color scheme, with elements of the Fleisher studios' Superman shorts. The show created an "otherworldly timelessness" by combining "vintage" design elements like police Blimp s and pre- World War II vehicle styles with modern components like jet propulsion and computers. The Batmobile for the series also combined style elements from various eras to produce a long, low vehicle with square lines, long fins, and a blunt nose with a massive chrome grill that could have been from any time from the 1930s to the 1990s. History of the Batmobile: 1992 Among its features were: smoke and oil dispensers, wheel slasher hubs, a missile rack, tear gas dispensers, ejection seats, titanium alloy wheels and body panels, and reversible jet exhausts. It also had a "shield" mode to prevent people from tampering with the car when it was left unattended, though it was not as overt as the "cocoon" used on the 1989 movie Batmobile. Despite the obvious presence of the jet exhaust, the show frequently used sound effects from a reciprocating engine for the Batmobile's driving scenes. While the Batmobile in the series has two seats inside, it is shown having only one seat in the film, ''''. ''The New Batman Adventures'', 1997-1999 '' television series.]] This sequel to ''Batman: The Animated Series'' introduced a style with simpler lines and shapes that was similar to the style used on ''''. The Batmobile was also updated for the show, this time as a sleek two passenger coupe. Like the earlier cartoon, the only traditional Batmobile features it retained were the fins and split windshield. History of the Batmobile: 1997 Like other Batmobiles, it also had jet thrusters, although they were now a pair of long, thin slits on the rear bumper. Though '' The New Batman Adventures '' ended its TV run in 1999 , this car design would be used throughout the comics based on the series and was the car used in the later '' Justice League '' series. ''Batman Beyond'', 1999 The animated series '' Batman Beyond '' had a flying vehicle referred to as the Batmobile (in the show's future era, flying cars had become commonplace). History of the Batmobile: Batman Beyond ''The Batman'', 2004 In the animated series ''''. ''Batman Begins'', 2005 The Batmobile depicted in the over the course of nine weeks. The full-sized vehicles were driven and filmed on the streets of Chicago . Batmobiles on display , in front of .]] A collection of original Batmobiles are on display at the roller coasters. List of Batmobiles in other media
THE BATMOBILE IN POPULAR CULTURE
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