Batcave Frank Springer

[bqvwvpd]

Batcave Frank Springer
Batman #203 (1968)


Batcave Frank Springer inked Sketch




The appearance in Giant Batman #203 is the original. A black-and-white version appeared on the cover of that issue.

In the late 1960s, the 80-page Giant Batman was primarily a reprint series that appeared twice a year. Generally, there was a theme to each issue (such as stories about major villains, or about the women in the Caped Crusader's life). As you can see, for #203, the issue theme was "The Secrets of the Batcave." Each issue's table of contents stated where the material in the issue had originally appeared, and occasionally indicated that the content was new to that issue.*

The contents page in #203 lists

A BATMAN SPECIAL
THE BATCAVE 1968

which indicates that the plan of the cave was new content.

Batcave 1968

The original black-and-white artwork for the two-page spread in #203 was evidently retained by DC and reused several times with different color schemes, including full-color versions and the 1969 red-and-white duotone. For example, a poster of one recolored version was given away in 1977 as a prize for high-achieving students in the SRA independent reading program used in may American elementary schools (including mine).

SRA Poster

A further question is who produced the artwork. The Giant issue #203 actually falls right at a changeover in the art for the Batman series. The previous issue, #202, had been credited to Bob Kane, one of the co-creators of Batman and Robin. However, Kane had apparently be getting the issues drawn and ghostwritten by others for years. With issue #204, however, a new creative team was credited, including pencil artist Irv Novick and inker Joe Giella. The Batmobile in the "Secrets of the Batcave—1968" is practically identical to the way Novick drew the the Batmobile starting in #204. (The small rear view of the Batmobile, the drawing of the Batboat, and the models shown on the table on the cover also conform to the designs used during the period when Novick and Giella were working on the magazine.) In contrast, the Batmobile from "Secrets of the Batcave—1968" is clearly dissimilar to the way the vehicle was shown in the immediately preceding "Bob Kane" issues. The placement of the mask symbol at the front of the vehicle is particularly distinctive of the change in artistic styles. Based on these facts (and some other artistic similarities), I think it is reasonable to conclude that the original artwork for the Batcave cutaway was produced by by Irv Novick, probably with Joe Giella inking.

There is an signature below the Batmobile, which I think is too messy to be legible (and may not even be complete).

[Jim Kelly]

I always believed it to be Frank Springer's work because his signature appears on the art, below the back wheel of the Batmobile. But it could be from a design by Irv Novick. While Irv didn't start doing interiors until issue 204, he had already been doing some covers. The Batmobile on the Novick cover for DETECTIVE COMICS 375 (May 1968) looks pretty much the same as the Batmobile in BATMAN 203.

When Bob Kane signed the new deal with Carmine Infantino--which meant he still got paid but he didn't have to do any art--his main ghost artist walked out on him. That was Sheldon Moldoff, who was left flat by this deal. And Bob still owed some stories to the publisher, so other ghost artists filled in for Kane before the changeover. Frank Springer was one of those ghost artists. You can see his Bob Kane ghost work in BATMAN 197 (December 1967), which is just a parade of swipes--not just swipes from other Bob Kane ghosts, but also swipes from Carmine Infantino. So it wouldn't be beyond Springer to use a sketch by Novick--but it looks like Frank inked the whole "Secrets of the Batcave" page.

By the way, this same image actually appears in SUPERMAN'S GIRL FRIEND, LOIS LANE 89 (January 1969)--"The Bride of Batman" by Leo Dorfman, Curt Swan and Mike Esposito (an imaginary story). But minus the Batmobile. It looks like Swan and Esposito used the Springer page as reference and made their own changes for the Lois Lane story.

[MajorHoy]

And here's the Batcave illustration they included in Who's Who: The Definitive Directory of the DC Universe Vol. II (April 1985).

The page is credited to Howard Bender & Gary Martin, but the layout is quite similar.

[Jim Kelly]

Thinking about it some more, the redesign for the Batmobile and the layout for the Batcave probably didn't originate with either Frank Springer or Irv Novick. Both were relatively new to the Batman franchise--even though Novick had been a comic book artist since the late 1930s and Springer a comic strip artist since the late 1950s. It seems unlikely they would have been able to unilaterally decide on these important changes.

I would guess that Carmine Infantino--now the editorial director at National Periodical Publications--may have initiated the third "New Look" Batmobile (of those in the comics, not counting the T.V. version). Infantino was involved with the promotional art for Batman and he was designing every cover for National (other artists would execute these designs, besides Carmine himself, but he was the one who came up with the cover concepts). In addition to Infantino, probably Julius Schwartz as Batman editor had some input and also Sol Harrison, head of production. Neal Adams and E. Nelson Bridwell might have been consulted. But I could see the final version being executed by Novick, since it has a Novick look to it, and then Springer copying that version for BATMAN 203 [G-49] (July-August 1968).

For the Batcave, Infantino, Schwartz and Harrison might have made some executive decisions, but I'd guess a lot of the schematics were Bridwell's idea. He was the walking encyclopedia at National, who knew everything there was to know about comics, plus so much else--which was why he was handling most of the Giant reprint issues. He would have known all the Batman stories to feature the Batcave up to that point and it looks like this version of the Batcave was put together by consulting all those versions. But Frank Springer was the actual artist who drew it for BATMAN 203--the "Springer" signature is quite clear in some reproductions I've seen.

On the matter of ghosts, I should point out that by this time there were no ghost writers for Bob Kane. The writers were identified in the letter columns. In the past, yes, it was assumed that Kane did everything (even though that was clearly not true), but the writers worked directly for National, so the editors knew who they were paying for scripts. Some pencillers worked directly for National, but other pencillers worked for Kane. Before the "New Look," on solo Batman stories, all the art got the "Bob Kane" box. Once the "New Look" began, it was just the art from the Kane studio that had the "Bob Kane" box.

Sheldon Moldoff said that as a Bob Kane ghost he got paid more than when he worked directly for National--which was why losing the ghost gig was so devastating for him. Editors claimed not to know who was actually ghosting for Bob. And Moldoff would be in the position sometimes where he would be working as an inker for National on stories he had pencilled as a ghost for Kane.

[bqvwvpd]

Other similar versions of this picture have been published over the years:

Limited Collectors' Edition #37 (1975) enter image description here
https://dc.fandom.com/wiki/Limited_C...ion_Vol_1_C-37

Encyclopedia of Comic Book Heroes, Volume 1: Batman (1976)


Tales of the Dark Knight: Batman's First Fifty Years 1939-1989 (1989)

Batman: In the Sixties (1999)
https://dc.fandom.com/wiki/Batman_in...es_(Collected)

Batman: Secrets of the Batcave (2007)
https://dc.fandom.com/wiki/Batman:_S...of_the_Batcave

[Restingvoice]

Thinking about it some more, the redesign for the Batmobile and the layout for the Batcave probably didn't originate with either Frank Springer or Irv Novick. Both were relatively new to the Batman franchise--even though Novick had been a comic book artist since the late 1930s and Springer a comic strip artist since the late 1950s. It seems unlikely they would have been able to unilaterally decide on these important changes.

I would guess that Carmine Infantino--now the editorial director at National Periodical Publications--may have initiated the third "New Look" Batmobile (of those in the comics, not counting the T.V. version).

was the first Batmobile Bruce's car and the second the bat head?

[Jim Kelly]

was the first Batmobile Bruce's car and the second the bat head?

The first Batmobiles were just roadsters, but by 1941 there's a small bat as a hood ornament and then in the same year the bat-head over the front grill and a single bat-fin at the back. Variations of that design continue through the 1940s. Then in 1950, there's the "Batmobile of 1950" which is longer with a bubble roof. That continues to be the Batmobile through to 1963 (again with slight variations). For the "New Look" in 1964, Bruce trades in the 1950 model for a sleek sports car--bat-head on the hood, no roof and two fins at the back. Around 1967, there's a second "New Look" Batmobile which has a boxy shape and might be intended to look more like the T.V. Batmobile, but it looks kind of clunky. So the 1968 model is the third "New Look" Batmobile--not counting the one from the T.V. show. After 1968, the next models are rather dull and we have to wait some years before they get back into Batmobiles with character.

[bqvwvpd]

And here's the Batcave illustration they included in Who's Who: The Definitive Directory of the DC Universe Vol. II (April 1985).
The page is credited to Howard Bender & Gary Martin, but the layout is quite similar.

And This also
fom
batman black and white #3
but the layout is quite similar.

https://www.thinglink.com/scene/772150855443939330

[phonogram12]

Other similar versions of this picture have been published over the years:

Limited Collectors' Edition #37 (1975) enter image description here
https://dc.fandom.com/wiki/Limited_C...ion_Vol_1_C-37

Encyclopedia of Comic Book Heroes, Volume 1: Batman (1976)


Tales of the Dark Knight: Batman's First Fifty Years 1939-1989 (1989)

Batman: In the Sixties (1999)
https://dc.fandom.com/wiki/Batman_in...es_(Collected)

Batman: Secrets of the Batcave (2007)
https://dc.fandom.com/wiki/Batman:_S...of_the_Batcave

It's crazy to me that that Wane Manor practically looks humble compared to the various Wayne Manor's that are presented today.

[bqvwvpd]

It's crazy to me that that Wane Manor practically looks humble compared to the various Wayne Manor's that are presented today.

Maybe only the cross section