Batman: 1971

This year in Bat-history is perhaps best known for introducing Ra's Al Ghul and his daughter Talia. It was also the year Two-Face returned to the Bat-verse (in Batman 234.) Outside of those three stories, things fall pretty neatly into one of two subjects: the generation gap / environmentalism (handled a bit clumsily) and the self-contained supernatural-detective stories (repetitive but fun enough.) 

I'm not spending much time on the editors in these posts; I probably should. I assume anyone who wants to has tracked down any of the thousand and one tributes to or overviews of Julius Schwartz and Murray Boltinoff. And those who haven't simply haven't the interest, or just haven't gotten to it yet. 

WORLD'S FINEST

(issues 202, 207)

Writers: Len Wein, Denny O'Neil. Artist: Dick Dillin

Batman only appears in two World's Finests in 1971. Both of which are fine but not particularly mind-blowing. In the one above, a mummy's return wreaks havoc. In another, Dr. Light attempts to destroy Superman with a bizarre plan that of course goes tits-up.

Beginning in the 60s, Julius Schwartz began removing many of the elements of Mort Weisinger's Superman that he (and many fans) perceived as having become gimmicky. (The super-pets, the abundance of Kryptonite on planet Earth, etc.) In World's Finest #207, he excises the character of the Super-robots, another hallmark of the Weisinger era.

My father grew up with Weisinger's version of the character, and I remember how he blew my mind circa 1984 by rattling off to me all these weird details about gold kryptonite and Kandor and the super-pets. To ten-year-old-me, this was like discovering someone in my immediate family knew Steven Spielberg or something. This more than likely laid the groundwork for my enduring affection for that 1950s/ early 1960s era of Superman. This anecdote * ends on all-too-familiar note: my grandmother threw out a small fortune of my Dad's old Superman comics when he went to Vietnam. (Not that he was all that particular about them as a collection, just in hindsight.)

* I've likely told this one before. I'm terrific at repeating myself. I usually add another $1k onto the value of the disposed.

JLA

(issues 87 - 95)

Writer: Mike Friedrich. Artists: Dick Dillin, Neal Adams

Not the best year in JLA history.

Batman doing his best Crimson King impersonation.

This was an era where fans could routinely get a gig writing freelance by simply writing in repeatedly to the editor, particularly when that editor was Julie Schwartz. If you leaf through the letter's pages in 1971 alone, you see letters from Martin Pasko, Michael Barr, Alan Brennart, Dave Sim, and Bob Rozakis, all of whom (except Sim, to my knowledge) ended up writing Batman stories in the years to come. Another such fan was Mike Friedrich, who Schwartz hired to write first back-ups and then take over JLA.

 Friedrich went on to pen some memorable tales, but this stretch of JLA is pretty bad.

The worst comes in issue #89. As noted in The Comic Book Heroes:

"Nearly every story he wrote for Julie Schwartz was laden with political stances, hip references, and contemporary characterizations, all too obvious. He showed how different the new wave of writers was from the old, seeking to legitimize the passions of his fan days with a seriousness beyond his ability. Gardner Fox once wrote a cute tale around an 18th century novelist Henry Fielding meeting The Atom; (in JLA #89) Friedrich had a dark, tormented genius named Harlequin Ellis help the JLA, ever haunted by "the crash-pounding of his creative soul." 

Not only is the story hijacked by this completely intrusive "Harlequin Eliss" author stand-in, there's this horrific panel above, where a) the fourth wall is pointlessly broken, b) the "mystery" of who Harlequin Ellis is supposed to be is confessed so absurdly, and c) there's even a damn dedication to Harlan Ellison. Like I say, he got better, but even for its anything-goes era, this is just fifty layers of awful.

THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD

(issues 93 - 99)

Writers: Denny O'Neil, Bob Haney.
Artists: Neal Adams, Nick Cardy, Bob Brown, Jim Aparo.

 The first thing that jumped out at me about this stretch of stories was how much of a global traveler Batman was in 1971. Nearly every tale takes him far afield of Gotham City and sometimes from continent to continent all in a single story.

The roster of guest stars begins with the House of Mystery, albeit somewhat obliquely:

Oh fine, whatever, Cain.

 

The one with Wildcat is okay  but probably the weakest of the bunch.  Whereas the one with the Teen Titans is really, really Now. Maybe that's "blaaaaow!" as in "whoah, man, blaaaaow!"

Holy Hippies, Batman.

In more than one of these stories, Batman is recruited as an emissary between the establishment and "young dissidents." ("They'll listen to you, Batman!") This particular story recalls the movie Wild in the Streets, something also recalled more recently in LXG Century: 1969 (or perhaps it was Black Dossier, I forget.) I think it's safe to say no one involved in the making of the movie would have predicted it would cast even a flicker of a shadow much less such a long-lived one in the comics world.

Next up:

Hint:

it's Plastic Man.

Sgt. Rock, an issue where people seem to be going out of their way to not say "Batman."

The Phantom Stranger:

Also included in this issue: a reprint of the character's first appearance.

 

And the Flash in a story that put me in mind of Evil Dead 2:

THAT THING IN THE CELLAR... IS NOT MY MOTHER!

It all leads to what was undoubtedly meant as a watershed moment for Bruce Wayne:

The Batman's self-diagnosis turns out to be a bit... optimistic.

BATMAN

(Issues 228 - 237)

Writers: Mike Friedrich, Robert Kanigher, Denny O'Neil, Frank Robbins.
Artists: Neal Adams, Irv Novick, Frank Robbins

 The January and July issues were giant-sized all-reprint issues -

and a few issues appear to have missed shipping. As a result, Batman only published six issues with new stories in 1971. Most of which fall under one of the umbrellas (i.e. the generation gap / supernatural self-contained mysteries.)

"Like -- we give him the business together!" is a line for the ages.

The generation gap is explored (about as convincingly as it is the Beach Boys' "Student Demonstration Time," also released in 1971) in Robin's back-up stories.

And some more supernatural ambiance:

One tale notable for its visual confusion:

The Two-Face tale (issue #234) is probably the best of the lot, and while well before my time it has the distinction of being the first (thanks to that Greatest Batman Stories TPB) Two-Face tale I ever read.

DETECTIVE COMICS

(issues 407 - 418)

Writers: Frank Robbins, Len Wein, Marv Wolfman, Denny O'Neil.
Artists: Neal Adams, Gil Kane, Bob Brown, Don Heck, Irv Novick

Again, pretty much an even split between haunted houses -

 

and the hippie thing.

Sometimes both at the same time.

Issue #416 features the return of Man-Bat.

While I'm still not the biggest fan of the character, I enjoyed this description (again from The Comic Book Heroes:)

"Man-Bat was much like Ditko and Lee's The Lizard, but he was something new to DC: a morally ambivalent foe. And he provided a very different view of the effects of science from the Schwartz science-heroes of the past."

Speaking of science-heroes from DC's past, among the back-ups is this gem from the Silver Age, begging for a big-screen debut:

Private Eyes of Venus (1957)

The lead stories are unexpectedly outdone by the Batgirl back-ups, which I found pretty zany and with some great art by Don Heck. Batgirl wrangles with Phantom Bullfighters, gets involved in a Zoolander-esque models-as-terrorists conspiracy, and best of all, a Haunted Wigs mystery (shades of Halloween III.)

The fists take the day.

 Batgirl also deals with the growing divide between straight and radical / student and establishment:

He's never come out and said so, but I'd like to think this storyline was what Ice T was on about.

AND THE BEST BATMAN STORY 

OF 1971 WAS...

 

More my favorite, I guess, not "best." A less eccentric choice would be either of the Ra's Al Ghul tales, or the Two-Face one, or Detective Comics 410 where Batman saves the flipper-kid (an issue with intense and atmospheric art, to be sure.) But for my money, it's this team-up with the Phantom Stranger from The Brave and the Bold.

This is the first Batman story illustrated by Jim Aparo but by no means the last. We'll be seeing quite a bit more of him in the posts to come.

The story is more than a little reminiscent of the previous year's The Demon of Gothos Mansion, but who cares?

"Hmmm... That's not the wallet inspector..."

The plot has a lot of strange implications. First, we learn that Batman is godfather to a previously-unknown old friend's young boy. Next, the Batman learns there's something... different about his godson.

 

(This sure happens to Batman a lot.)

 

Things escalate.

SATAN.

To get to the bottom of things, Batman does what anyone would do: he kidnaps his godson and subjects him to three days of horrifying psychological torment.

Worst. Godfather. Ever.

Whereupon he discovers his old friend actually had twins, and it's the other brother who's the emissary of Satan. A few punches to the jaw and swirling mists and apparitions later, case closed. Sorry, kid. Good luck with the PTSD.

All in all, an entertaining if fairly run-of-the-mill (but what a mill!) year for the Batman and friends.

Top 10 Harold Faltermeyer Film Themes

There are more people on this planet right now who are familiar with the music of Harold Faltermeyer than just about any other film composer this side of John Williams, I'd wager, yet his name is perhaps not as well-known.

Then.

Now.

After studying at Munich's prestigious Hochschule für Musik und Theater, Faltermeyer, like many German and Bavarian musicians of his generation, decided to explore electronic music. 

Circumstances led to his working with Giorgio Moroder at the famous Musicland Studios. And this is where he co-wrote a song for Donna Summer destined to net him substantial royalties for several decades and counting.

Then.

2009. (RIP, Donna Summer)

My friend and co-conspirator of epic deeds over at The Von Klum Letters used to work at the New Neon Movies in Dayton, OH. Working at a movie theater gives you an entirely different relationship with trailers and before-movie commercials, as you hear and see them  multiple times on a daily basis. Time bends, in other words. And although it was probably only two or three months that the Neon played the trailer for The Full Monty before every film, for my friend, it felt more like two or three years. I remember I could trigger a physical cringe or shudder during this time if I so much as whistled any part of "Hot Stuff" to him or sang Don't want another night on MY own... (caps on account of how Donna Summer sings it.) 

Anyway, I can't hear "Hot Stuff" to this day without chuckling about that. I used to go and hang out there when he was working, back in the days when you could just loiter places and smoke cigarettes in the lobby, so I saw that trailer a few hundred times, myself. 

From there Faltermeyer made the jump to Hollywood and began scoring films, whereupon he became an inescapable presence for anyone who had cable for (at least) the next ten years. Here are my top 10 Harold Faltermeyer tunes. (I'll just embed the YouTube videos, so hopefully these will stay up there and active for awhile.)

10. 

Tango and Cash 

That's the whole thing - the rest of the videos won't be the full soundtrack. But it's such an 80s action movie soundtrack, damn. Showcasing it in its entirety seems an appropriate way of including it here. Tango and Cash is one of those Stallone movies that should be way better than it actually is, (unlike, say, Cobra or Nighthawks) but it's cast an especially long shadow. Have you noticed that? I always ask people when the last time they saw it was. Usually the answer is something like the early 90s. 

Anyway, the soundtrack is as musically evocative of its era as bell bottoms or Mondrian mini-dresses are for their respective ones, visually.

9. 

Cop Out 

After retiring from film soundtracks to raise a family back in Munich, Faltermeyer returned to Hollywood in 2009, first with High School with Adrien Brody, and then this little gem from Kevin Smith's Cop Out. Which I've never seen, but Kevin Smith hasn't made a film I've enjoyed since Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, so I'm in no rush. If this was the best part of the proceedings, I wouldn't be at all surprised.

8. 

The Running Man 

Hoo boy! This movie. What a ridiculous mess. But what can you do? The Ahhnold Era of Moviemaking was, at least at the time, irresistible. This Lordhelmchen guy, by the way, has edited together a few dozen of these soundtrack suites on YouTube - these get me through many a workday. He does commendable work.

7. (tie)

Fletch - Exotic Skates

and

Fletch - Diggin'

This soundtrack is 80s gold, by the way, every last track. My 13-month-old daughter agrees with me on this. (More on that, though, when we get to #4.) If I could watch a montage of my day to day, I would like it scored to either of these. (Well, anything from here on down to #1. Or by John Carpenter.) 

6. 

Kuffs 

I know I've seen this movie, but damned if I can remember anything about it. I was happy to discover Leon Rippy's (and Bruce Boxleitner's) name in the credits, though.

Nothing too fancy with this one, just straight up synthpop. Parts of it remind me a bit of the Happy Mondays.

5. 

Thief of Hearts

Same for this one - know I saw it back in the day but couldn't tell you anything about it. Though looking at the wiki, I see both David Caruso and George Wendt in the cast, which makes George Wendt the only guy to appear in more than one film in our countdown. (The other being Fletch.) My blog header-photo will undoubtedly be tickled pink by this unexpected coincidence.

I'm shocked this won a Razzie for worst soundtrack! Okay, not really. But really, sort of. It's the sort of thing you normally hear in giallo films or anthology cable shows of the late-80s/ early-90s. But I include it here - and pretty high on the list - for its acoustic time travel qualities. If you were alive when this sort of stuff was the rule and not the curious artifact, it is a TARDIS of the highest order.

As is this next one.

4. 

Fletch - Running for Love 

The Fletch soundtrack has two versions of this - the other has vocals by Dan "I Can Dream About You" Hartman instead of the synth doing the melody. (Same saxophone solo, though, don't worry.) I adore Hartman's version, and it would definitely be my number one karaoke choice everywhere I went if that was a possibility. But it's relatively hard to find, even on the web (no YouTube link for example, though you can hear one of his other tunes on the soundtrack "Get Out of Town." Go north to Alaska / or south to Rio! )

I've always loved this instrumental version, too. And I now love it even more for the time it lulled my daughter to sleep in my arms while we were dancing to the Fletch soundtrack one afternoon. Something that will likely make me the only guy at the nursing home 2050-ish who will be bawling his eyes out when Fletch comes round for Geezer Movie Night.

3. 

Beverly Hills Cop - Axel F 

It's difficult to tell which is the Faltermeyer tune more well-known, this or "Hot Stuff," but it's definitely one or the other. I think everyone in my elementary school and junior high could play this on the piano in the music room. 

It's been remade and remixed and paid tribute to multiple times over the years, but my personal favorite nod might be the one from Family Guy. It's hard not to sing the melody like Peter Griffin does here, when I hear it now.

2 

Fletch - Main Theme 

There are shorter versions out there, but this 7-minute version (on vinyl no less) is my personal favorite.

I don't know how many times I've seen Fletch over the years. It's one of those movies that I'm powerless before when I'm cable-flipping. Beetlejuice is another one. These are habits my wife has chided me for on more than one occasion.

And finally:

1. 

Top Gun 

Co-written by Steve Stevens, who plays the guitar on this. 

Also known as that other guy in all those old Billy Idol videos.

Sidenote: Steve Stevens' old band, Atomic Playboys, was very likely the last pop-metal I ever absorbed completely uncritically. I used to love that tape. Sometime between its release in 1989 and the release of Ratt's Detonator in 1990, I developed a "Say... this is ridiculous, isn't it?" self-consciousness. (I blame those girls I used to work with who got me into The Cure, Love and Rockets, Siouxsie and the Banshees, et al.)

Nowadays, of course, that ridiculousness is a great deal of fun. So Ivory Tower Man / Was it part of the plan? / Turn the sea into sand / with a one way ticket to the promised laa-an-nnd / ATOMIC PLAYBOYS! / WE ARE RADIATION RO-ME-O-S!

Ahem.

Anyway, this theme from Top Gun is as over the top as it gets. It's the 80s movie equivalent of the solo from Pink Floyd's "Comfortably Numb." When you hear it, you can't help but visualize playing the guitar atop a fifty-foot wall before hundreds of thousands of swaying concertgoers. Or waving the stars and stripes from atop Mount McKinley. 

Or starting World War III while out on patrol but being celebrated as the conquering hero upon your return instead of as Greg Stilson.