Adam West dies

[Swerd]

Adam West, better known as Batman, died at age 88.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/adam-west-batman-actor-dead-at-age-88/

The TV show was meant to be funny, and Adam West made that work, but he also got to drive the Batmobile! RIP Caped Crusader.

 

[Ponzio]

Batman was in color TV?

that's when i knew we might not be as rich as i thought.

Peace to West

 

[speakerman39]

Grew up watching this show. Always liked it. Heartfelt condolences to Adam West's family and friends. Very well done. May he RIP!


Phil

 

[Bucknekked]

Adam West always had the right touch both on screen and off when it came to this show and character. Here was a man that ran around in tights trading barbs with villains in party city outfits. For all the goofiness of the show, he made it work and I remember being entertained and enjoying it. Now that we are in 11.1 (or who knows what) multiplex/gigantiplex sound with atmos-spheric coverage and 10,000 watts of power displayed on 85 inch plasma screens, I don't know that we can go back and relive the 25 inch color or black n white we watched Adam West run around on. But we can have fond memories.

 

[MR.MAGOO]

West was in an episode of Emergency! in which his character was...an actor! He had been bitten by a bear on a movie set and the paramedics rescued him. To show his gratitude he invited Gage and De Soto to a bash at his estate. Gage looked in a celebrity gossip magazine for ideas of what to wear to a Hollywood bash. Gage and DeSoto showed up at the bash in tuxedoes, everyone else was dressed casual!

 

[Swerd]

Several months ago, I had a conversation with my kids and their cousins (my daughter was born in 1983 and my son in 1984) about how types of humor come and go over the decades. It seems different generations have different preferences. My generation (I was born in 1948, a baby boomer) likes very different humor than the Millennial generation of my kids. It can be hard to describe the differences. For example, my generation likes parody and satire, no matter how heavy handed it was. We especially liked to make fun of authority figures, or at least the authority figures held in esteem by older generations. As far as I can understand, Millennials like comedy when things become very awkward or embarrassing for someone. The more awkward or embarrassing the better. I always found that difficult to watch, and distinctly not funny.

Batman was a comedy where the central character didn't seem to be in on the joke. Nearly everyone else was. And that was the appeal. In fact, Batman had that in common with two other widely popular comedies of the mid 1960s, Get Smart (Don Addams) and Inspector Clouseau (Peter Sellers) of The Pink Panther movies. All of those characters were either clueless, inept, or both. In the 1960s, we thought that was hilarious. A few examples:

Batman, as he picked up the Batphone in the Batmobile:

"Batman speaking"​

Robin to Catwoman:

"You can't get away from Batman that easy."​

Batman to Robin:

"Easily, Robin. Good grammar is essential."​

Robin to Batman (as he pulled a fish seemingly from out of thin air):

"Where'd you get a live fish?"​

Batman to Robin:

"The true crime-fighter always carries everything he needs in his utility belt."​

I don't claim to really understand what the Millennial generation likes in humor. The passing of Adam West made me realize how popular the Batman TV show was at the time. So I thought it was a good time to bring up the subject. If anyone has anything to say about this, please speak up.

 

[Pogre]

Man, all my childhood heroes are dying... I've been seeing a lot of these threads lately it seems. Getting old sucks.

 

[Irvrobinson]

A little known fact about Adam West...

It doesn't seem like there are many car guys on this forum, but if you are you know who Richard Griot is. Adam West was his "surrogate father" and mentor, and if not for West car enthusiasts might not have one of the most generous and community-oriented members of US car culture.

http://autoweek.com/article/car-news/holy-car-guy-how-batman-changed-richard-griots-life-and-enthusiasts-everywhere-are

 

[Bucknekked]

Several months ago, I had a conversation with my kids and their cousins (my daughter was born in 1983 and my son in 1984) about how types of humor come and go over the decades. It seems different generations have different preferences. My generation (I was born in 1948, a baby boomer) likes very different humor than the Millennial generation of my kids. It can be hard to describe the differences. For example, my generation liked parody and satire, no matter how heavy handed it was. We especially liked to make fun of authority figures, or at least the authority figures held in esteem by older generations. As far as I can understand, Millennials like comedy when things become very awkward or embarrassing for someone. The more awkward or embarrassing the better. I always found that difficult to watch, and distinctly not funny.

Batman was a comedy where the central character didn't seem to be in on the joke. Nearly everyone else was. And that was the appeal. In fact, Batman had that in common with two other widely popular comedies of the mid 1960s, Get Smart (Don Addams) and Inspector Clouseau (Peter Sellers) of The Pink Panther movies. All of those characters were either clueless, inept, or both. In the 1960s, we thought that was hilarious. A few examples:

Batman, as he picked up the Batphone in the Batmobile:

"Batman speaking"​

Robin to Catwoman:

"You can't get away from Batman that easy."​

Batman to Robin:

"Easily, Robin. Good grammar is essential."​

Robin to Batman (as he pulled a fish seemingly from out of thin air):

"Where'd you get a live fish?"​

Batman to Robin:

"The true crime-fighter always carries everything he needs in his utility belt."​

I don't claim to really understand what the Millennial generation likes in humor. The passing of Adam West made me realize how popular the Batman TV show was at the time. So I thought it was a good time to bring up the subject. If anyone has anything to say about this, please speak up.

Comedy and humor are tough to define and even tougher to pull off. I have made a living for nearly 40 years, among other things, speaking on technical subjects to non technical people. Humor, and the ability to warm up an audience and get them on your side is an essential tool. Humor makes a lot of technical garbage taste better.

There are people who absolutely, positively can not tell a funny story or a joke. You can pick those people out pretty quickly because they're the ones that when a story or joke falls flat, they start explaining the joke to help you get it. Being able to deliver a line, or a punchline, is all about timing and delivery. Adam West, Don Adams, Peter Sellers and others had the timing for their generation. New comedians and story tellers today have it for their own constituents. It's as much art as a language skill.

Some of my favorite comedians, the guys who make me bust a gut, are masters of delivery and timing. @Swerd I get what you're saying about generational humor. I love Lewis Black. I love Ron White. I detest Louis CK. Lewis Black and Ron White tell stories and put things in contexts that make me laugh as hard as I ever do for a performance. Louis CK (what I would call a millennial humorist) makes my skin crawl. He makes me uncomfortable (your point about millennials) rather than make me laugh. But, the millennials in the audience eat it up so there's talent and material that hits home with the guy. Just not with me.

Some comedy also lasts the test of time, while other stuff falls flat on its butt as it ages. Since we're talking about old comedy, there's a movie called "Its a Mad, Mad, World". Super funny back in the day. Watched it, or tried to watch it, not too long ago and the comedy was absolutely painful to watch. I'm wagering you could fire up a Batman episode with Adam West and it would still play pretty well.

 

[shadyJ]

Several months ago, I had a conversation with my kids and their cousins (my daughter was born in 1983 and my son in 1984) about how types of humor come and go over the decades. It seems different generations have different preferences. My generation (I was born in 1948, a baby boomer) likes very different humor than the Millennial generation of my kids. It can be hard to describe the differences. For example, my generation liked parody and satire, no matter how heavy handed it was. We especially liked to make fun of authority figures, or at least the authority figures held in esteem by older generations. As far as I can understand, Millennials like comedy when things become very awkward or embarrassing for someone. The more awkward or embarrassing the better. I always found that difficult to watch, and distinctly not funny.

Batman was a comedy where the central character didn't seem to be in on the joke. Nearly everyone else was. And that was the appeal. In fact, Batman had that in common with two other widely popular comedies of the mid 1960s, Get Smart (Don Addams) and Inspector Clouseau (Peter Sellers) of The Pink Panther movies. All of those characters were either clueless, inept, or both. In the 1960s, we thought that was hilarious. A few examples:

Batman, as he picked up the Batphone in the Batmobile:

"Batman speaking"​

Robin to Catwoman:

"You can't get away from Batman that easy."​

Batman to Robin:

"Easily, Robin. Good grammar is essential."​

Robin to Batman (as he pulled a fish seemingly from out of thin air):

"Where'd you get a live fish?"​

Batman to Robin:

"The true crime-fighter always carries everything he needs in his utility belt."​

I don't claim to really understand what the Millennial generation likes in humor. The passing of Adam West made me realize how popular the Batman TV show was at the time. So I thought it was a good time to bring up the subject. If anyone has anything to say about this, please speak up.

I think you are making some sweeping generalizations here, but there is also some good points. Younger generations seem to like all sorts of humor, but yes, you don't see that 'awkward situation' humor in older comedies. Personally I mostly don't enjoy that sort of humor at the time I am watching it, but sometimes it is much funnier remembered than watching it at the time.
I do think you start to see it crop up in some of Woody Allen's comedies in the 1980s. I am sure it predates that stuff though. It would be interesting to trace the emergence of certain styles of humor in culture to see how much comedy really is generational. I think what formed the sense of humor for me and my friends were shows like The Simpsons, Married with Children, early-90s SNL, and even Beavis and Butthead and so on, just for a few examples. I would say this stuff is satirical, somewhat subversive, and self-deprecating. It would be hard to overstate how much The Simpsons shaped the sense of humor for anyone around my age group and social milieu, we will be making Simpsons references all the way to our grave, for better or worse.

 

[Bucknekked]

Yes, please don't think I would paint large groups of people with the "all" or "nothing" or blanket paintbrush. I re read my post and I just want to make sure I don't do that. I don't know that Swerds post was an over generalization, but I think we can agree there's shades of grey (maybe 50 of them) everywhere you look.

 

[lovinthehd]

Adam West was a character in all the best ways. May he RIP.

 

[Swerd]

Adam West, Don Adams, Peter Sellers and others had the timing for their generation.

They also had some very good writers. Buck Henry wrote most of the early stuff for Get Smart. There were others I don't remember.

I liked your point about Lewis Black, Ron White and Louis CK. Love Black, mostly I also love White, and CK makes me listen but not laugh.

I thought "It's a Mad, Mad, World" bit off more than it could chew. It had way too many comedians in the cast. Even back in the day, I thought it wasn't funny. It compares poorly to "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum" which was made about the same time.

I think you are making some sweeping generalizations here, but there is also some good points. Younger generations seem to like all sorts of humor, but yes, you don't see that 'awkward situation' humor in older comedies.

I wasn't trying to make sweeping generalizations, although it could easily be read as doing that. I was trying to talk about something I noticed today as I read a fairly long obit on Adam West in the Sunday Washington Post. I think you largely get what I meant.

I didn't get what you meant when you said "I do think you start to see it crop up in some of Woody Allen's comedies in the 1980s." Please clarify. I always thought of Woody Allen humor as self-deprecating. But my favorite movie of his, "Sleeper" didn't do that exclusively.

It would be interesting to trace the emergence of certain styles of humor in culture to see how much comedy really is generational.

Yes! That says what I was thinking in my above post. Not all comedy is generational, but there does seem to be a theme for various generations.

I don't know anyone who doesn't love The Simpsons, regardless of their age.

 

[Swerd]

Getting old sucks.

Yes, but it beats the alternative .

 

[lovinthehd]

Yes, but it beats the alternative .

Assume you don't mean getting more youthful in mind/body?

 

[Pogre]

Assume you don't mean getting more youthful in mind/body?

That was my thought too! There could be better alternatives. Science is really starting to zero in on a "cure" for old age. I'll bet there are a lot of folks alive today who will live well into their hundreds.

 

[lovinthehd]

That was my thought too! There could be better alternatives. Science is really starting to zero in on a "cure" for old age. I'll bet there are a lot of folks alive today who will live well into their hundreds.

Not that I really want to live that long, I already stopped my income stream and what with the pugnigans efforts to eliminate SS, good luck with working until you drop without. Medical business as we know it in the US will undoubtedly bill the poop out of any meaningful extensions in any case, so won't likely be available to most of us. Just saying more that the alternative to death and usual medical advice can take other directions....just look at the benefits of cannabis that "normal" medicine is avoiding dealing with....

 

[Pogre]

Not that I really want to live that long, I already stopped my income stream and what with the pugnigans efforts to eliminate SS, good luck with working until you drop without. Medical business as we know it in the US will undoubtedly bill the poop out of any meaningful extensions in any case, so won't likely be available to most of us. Just saying more that the alternative to death and usual medical advice can take other directions....just look at the benefits of cannabis that "normal" medicine is avoiding dealing with....

Yeah, I've thought about living 150 years. 50 more years of work to go with it.

I'm feeling you on the medical money machine too. There's some dark poop going on there with the drug companies. I just re-upped my medical card last week. I'm enjoying some benefits right now.

 

[Dan]

I don't know anyone who doesn't love The Simpsons, regardless of their age.[/QUOTE]

You've obviously forgotten about our mother and sister.

 

[j_garcia]