I know THE DARK KNIGHT RISES Movie comes out very very soon but I wanted to share this excellent Podcast Review of an older Bat-Film, BATMAN FOREVER. Yes, ha ha, the 1995 Movie starring Val Kilmer & directed by Joel Schumacher. Our friends over at the YEAH IT'S THAT BAD Movie Review Podcast just did an episode (#78) where they discuss the film. I gotta say that it's pretty entertaining and even if you love this movie you will still enjoy it. Here's a LINKto check it out.
Our Friends over at the BATMAN CITY website are having a contest right now where you can win, not one, but three BATMAN Trading Card Sets! The Sets include: Topps BATMAN The Movie - Series 2 (1989), Topps BATMAN RETURNS (1992), and Topps BATMAN FOREVER Ultra (1995). Just to be clear, the BAT-BLOG isn't running this contest, ha! For more information, Click HERE!
According to my Bat-History Files today is Actor JIM CARREY's Birthday. He was born in 1962 and will always have a place in Batman lore as the Actor who played THE RIDDLER in the 1995 BATMAN FOREVER Movie. Shown up above are just a small example of products bearing his image. This was the film that starred Val Kilmer as the Dark Knight and I fondly remember thinking that Jim Carrey did a really decent job of portraying the "Prince of Puzzles". He had just the right amount of crazy zaniness, just check out the video down below. HAPPY BIRTHDAY JIM CARREY!!
LA-LA LAND RECORDS has just released a Special Limited Edition 2-Disc CD Set of the Original Music Movie Soundtrack to 1995's BATMAN FOREVER! You know this film, this is the one with Val Kilmer as the leading Dark Knight. It also starred Tommy Lee Jones as Harvey Dent ( Two-Face ), Jim Carrey as Edward Nygma ( The Riddler ), and Chris O’Donnell as Robin. It's also the 1st bat-film directed by Joel Schumacher. This special 2-Disc Set will be very limited to only 3500 copies. For more information, just click HERE!
Now, while the BATMAN FOREVER Movie from 1995 has not been a favorite bat-film of mine I have always thought that the Batmobile from that movie was OK. This video shows a Replica Car somebody made and no matter what you think about the real car this replica is extremely well done. I especially like the interior work with all the gauges, buttons, & knobs. The outside is nice too, very well done!
OK, today I'm on sort of a "foreign kick"! That means I'm focusing on some of the extremely cool Batman Merchandise & Toys made in other countries. But trust me, this stuff is pretty cool to see so you'll like it, ha!
The 1st example is an extremely RARE item. This is a packaged Bat-Ball Toy made in Italy in 1966. This Italian Toy is almost non-existent in the US. It's probably even hard to find over there! I love the vintage-style graphics. Plus, this is one of those toys where the packaging is "everything". I mean, once you open it & there's just that generic rubber ball, then it's no longer a "character item".
The next item is fun because it's Japanese & we all know that some of the coolest Bat-items come from Japan! It's a Video Game Disc for the Sega-Saturn by Aklaim. It's also tied-into the BATMAN FOREVER Movie.
Third, is this BATMOBILE Diecast Toy Car from the UK. It's a Hot Wheels Colour Shifters Car made by Mattel.
Now, the last photos, these are really great! I really love these! This is a complete set of 6 BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES Jelly Glasses from France. I think these might have been for the UK market too. If anybody remembers those Welch's Grape Jelly Glasses we have here in the US then I think these are a little smaller. Now, you might be looking at the photo & saying, "Hey, There's 12 Glasses?!" Yes, this photo shows both the front & back of each glass. The 6 on the left are the "front". The "fronts" have Batman & the "backs" have villains. Well, one of them has the Batmobile, ha, but you get the idea.
OK, I'm hoping somebody who reads this either learned something or at least enjoyed it! What do you think? Do YOU have any wacky Batman "foreign items" you would like to share? If so, then please shoot us a pic, or pics! Remember, the main focus of the Bat-Blog is to share the love & joy of collecting.
OK, Here's a very cool Christmas gift idea for you Millionaires out there! This is a Super Modified Race Car with BATMAN/RIDDLER graphics. Of course it's the "Jim Carrey Riddler" from the 1995 BATMAN FOREVER movie. It's being sold by James McKeefery, who lives in Northern California. The cost is around $32,000.00. For more information, just click HERE!
Alright, I don't want to be flamed with negative comments about this post, please. I know, I know that this is one of the "Schumacher Films" but it is a part of bat-history. So, here we go! This is the TV commercial that appeared on the VHS Video Tape of the 1995 BATMAN FOREVER movie. It's for the film's music soundtrack. There are a few very small samples of music in it. Now, while doing this post, I went to Amazon to research it a little bit I found out that they have a flash player embedded on their site where you can listen to longer ( better ) samplings of the songs. That's kinda cool. Plus, I noticed that you can buy this CD ( used ) for one penny! Yes, 1 cent! Now, that's a good deal right there, ha ha! Here's a link if ya wanna check it out, just click HERE!
This is sort of painful to see but it is a part of bat-history so here we go! This is the Original TV Commercial for the 1995 BATMAN FOREVER Movie Soundtrack as found on the VHS film release ( the music is kinda neat to hear again ). Also, in this video clip, you get you see Val Kilmer as Batman, Tommy Lee Jones as Two-Face, Jim Carrey as The Riddler ( Carrey was actually pretty decent as that character ) & Chris O'Donnell as Robin.
For awhile now we have been featuring some awesome Batman Vinyl Model Kits made by our good friend known as SKINNYBIRD. He sent us some nice pics of his personal collection of models he has built & painted. Every now & then we feature one and the cool thing is that they're always very popular. Now, here's the one he did of TWO-FACE from the BATMAN FOREVER movie ( 1995 ). Of course he was played by Tommy Lee Jones. OK, to be honest, this is one of my least liked Batman films. It was really really bad & practically ruined the franchise. But I don't want that to take away from the fact that Skinnybird did an incredible job on this model kit. Just check it out, the paint job is extremely well done & I like the custom base he made too. If you look at TWO-FACE's Double-Sided Jacket it a ton of detail to it, with the animal print patterns, that must have taken forever to paint ( Get it? "forever", Sorry, bad joke ). Before I go I wanna say three things: 1. I wanna thank Skinnybird for sharing his pics with us, all the models are great & I love sharing them. 2. OK, I know that some people just totally love this movie. It might have been their 1st introduction to the Batman Universe & I totally respect that. So, please just take my comments about this being a crappy film with a grain of salt. It's actually worth viewing as a part of Bat-History. Also, if you go into with a certain attitude, it's really not that bad & can be kind of enjoyable. 3. If you would like to see more of Skinnybird's work then just click on the word "skinnybird" in the Labels Area down below. Also, look for more kits in the future.
Here's another Batman Model Kit built by our good friend known as "Skinnybird". This is THE RIDDLER from the 1995 BATMAN FOREVER Movie Starring Val Kilmer. OK, while this was not one of my favorite Batman movies, I thought that Jim Carrey did a pretty decent job of his performance for The Riddler. He's the sort of character actor who's good at playing a regular lovable guy one minute & then somebody who's totally insane & crazy the next. I also remember thinking that his Riddler costume was kind of accurate & very well made. I like his "Question Mark-Shaped Cane", a nice touch. Plus, if you're gonna be the Riddler, you gotta sport that famous Bowler Hat. Whoops, sorry about getting into the movie & Jim. This post is about the actual Vinyl Model Kit, ha ha! This Model Kit was made by Revell. It is 1/6th Scale so it's pretty big & great for display. I remember when these kits came out & my friend Steve bought this one. It's not bad! The details are very accurate & the face resembles the actual actor pretty well. I gotta say one thing. Our buddy Skinnybird did an extremely excellent job with this one! He sent us many photos of a large amount of Batman models he has made & we're gonna feature them every now & then. So, in the future, just click on the Label Word "Skinnybird" down below & all the posts with his kits will appear...it's really worth a look, pretty interesting stuff!
The Batmobile has been spotted in Pennsylvania...at a TOYS R US in Cheltenham, PA to be exact! A friend to the Bat-Blog, named Michael, just recently saw this BATMAN FOREVER MOVIE Vending Machine Toy Ride-On Batmobile & had to send some pics to us. I like how it looks sort of "cartoony" ( I just invented that word ). Plus, it's always fun to see one of these things. Now I know a lot of people totally hate this film but I actually kinda like that it is so bad. Now obviously I would have prefered for the film to be good, or even great, but since it's not we might as well accept it. "Don't cry over spilled milk", my Grandmother used to say. I wanna thank Michael for taking the pictures for us, I really appreciate that, it's a very cool car!
A new Bat-Friend named Markus sent us some extremely cool photos the other night & he said, "My name is Markus and I'm from Sweden, 20 years old. I'm a big Batman Fan and really enjoy your blog. I have two major Batman pieces in my collection. I have the Original Robin Mask worn on screen by Chris O'Donnell in the 1995 BATMAN FOREVER movie . I also have the original Batman Cowl worn by George Clooney in BATMAN AND ROBIN ( 1997 ). I know most fans dislike these movies but the suits themselves are pretty cool and extremely well made. As a Batman Fan I really enjoy owning these pieces." Thanks Markus, the photos are awesome & I can only imagine how cool it is to see these amazing pieces of bat-memorabilia, in real-life, everyday! I know that the "Joel Schumacher films" are sort of laughed at today but they are a part of bat-history & actually, "Batman Forever" wasn't too bad, ha ha. I know that for a lot of younger Batman Fans these movies were sort of their introduction to the character & for that reason, when they get older, these movies will be very special to them. Something to think about is that every fan sort of has their "own Batman"...the one they loved a s a kid. So, looking at it that way, these Movie Props are sort of guaranteed to become even more special & valuable in the future. I think these are great pieces, I even like the display cases, & thanks again for sharing these pics. The Bat-Blog is all about the joys of collecting & I appreciate the time it took for you to send these. If any other readers have cool stuff to share then send it...today!
Every single time I look at this awesome photo I totally crack up, ha ha! A friend named Scott sent me this pic he took last year at the West Midlands Safari Park in England. They had one of those 1995 BATMAN FOREVER BATMOBILE CAR Vending Machine Rides outside. You know what I'm talking about. You see these sometimes at Grocery Stores. I really like the inventive creativity of some of these. I almost consider then ART! He looks to be a little too big to ride this but he did it! Thanks Scott for sharing this wonderful pic, I appreciate that...and needed a good laugh.
Here's a really interesting TV commercial from back when the BATMAN FOREVER movie teamed up with McDonalds Fast Food Restaurants. Since we're not getting any kid's "Happy Meal" toys for The Dark Knight ( in the USA anyway ) I thought I would post this!
Posted here for your viewing pleasure are these 3 extremely funny BATMAN HUMOR photos. The 1st one was sent in by our friend Brian & shows a nice assortment of lovely Catwomen. It looks like a very vintage photo, maybe 1940's, so that's cool. ( Thanks Brian ). The next two pictures are ones I found on Flickr. This is a home-made Folk Art Yard Statue of Batman made out of scrap metal & accessories, like a real flashlight, clock, & toaster on his bat-belt. I have seen this before because this guy's artwork is a very famous landmark in southern California. He does all kinds of great stuff like this & it's always funny & extremely creative. The last photo is more cute than funny. It shows a precious little girl dreaming about being Batgirl while riding in the BATMAN FOREVER Movie Batmobile ( Vending Machine Car ). Oh man, I would love to have that car for my collection ...but where would I put it? It's HUGE! Yeah, I would find a place for it, Ha ha!
How does Batman stay in such good physical & mental shape? Why, he eats McDonald's crap of course! Ha Ha, here's a really great Retro TV Commerical for Batman's favorite late-night snack, the Superhero Burger!
OK, I've done a few posts in the past about this amazing auction company called PROFILES IN HISTORY. This company gets the most incredible Hollywood memorabilia to sell. Recently ( around Dec 14th, 2007 ) on eBay, they sold the original RIDDLER COSTUME worn, on screen, by Jim Carrey in the BATMAN FOREVER movie ( 1995 ). It sold for $10,000.00. Yes, you read that right, ten thousand dollars!! Then, they also sold the authentic RIDDLER COSTUME GREEN HAT. It went for $4000.00. I've been following this auction service for years & I'm sort-of a Fan. They have a very cool website you might like to check out sometime. Right now they're promoting a sale where you can get an original Terminator Movie 6 Ft-Tall Exo-Skeleton Statue ( used in the movie, extremely detailed ) & an original Jack Skeleton figure & Sled used in the Stop-Motion Animation of The Nightmare Before Christmas! These guys always have totally insane museum-quality items!! Here's a link!
Every Bat-Blog reader knows that on Wednesday we post 2 brand new Batman Desktop Wallpapers but tonight I need some extra space on my PC so I'm gonna give you not two, but four, Batman Wallpapers! The 1st one is a Golden Age image of Batman & Robin in a spotlight originally drawn by Jack Burnley, a Classic! I love the 2nd one. This is one of those vending machine rides you see outside grocery stores but I have never never never seen this one before! It's the Batmobile Car from the BATMAN FOREVER Movie!! The 3rd one is well known among Aurora Model Kit collectors. It's the 1960's Burry's Cookie Store Display with an ad for the Vintage Aurora 1966 Batmobile Model Kit...sweet! The last one is a wallpaper from the Official DC Comics website. Please feel free to use them in a MySpace Layout or just to brighten your desktop...enjoy!
Remember, we post 2 NEW Batman Wallpapers every Wednesday! For today I thought I would go with a "Vintage Black & White Photo" Theme. Here are 2 really great graphics! The 1st one features 3 original Batmobile Cars: The 1966 Batmobile customized by George Barris for the 1960's TV Series, The 1980's Batmobile from the 1989 Batman Movie, & the 1990's Batmobile from that crappy movie ( Ha Ha! ). Seeing all three cars together is a real treat! Then, in the 2nd Batman Wallpaper is a RARE vintage 60's photograph showing the original Batman creator Bob Kane with Adam West & Frank Gorshin in a special "Behind the Scenes" moment during the 1966 Batman TV Show. We hope you like one, or both, of these & be sure to check the Bat-Blog ARCHIVES for a ton more! Also, please feel free to use them as a background in a Live Journal or MySpace Layout. I guess they could also liven up your PC's desktop, ha ha.
