Batman
The Sport of Penguins (1)
TV Flash files “The Sport of Penguins (1)” as hour 98 of 120 in the TV Flash guide — Batman (1966–1968) on ABC, season 3, episode 4, aired 1967-10-05, 30 min.
From the desk
How this hour is filed
This leaf is S03E04: listed hour 98 of 120 in the Batman guide, hour 4 of 26 in season 3. It aired 1967-10-05 (30 min). The listed hour before it is “The Wail of the Siren” (S03E03). Next is “A Horse of Another Color (2)” (S03E05).
Catalog log
Broadcast listing — not a TV Flash recap.
The Penguin teams up with newly-broke racehorse owner Lola Lasagne to rig the outcome of the Wayne Handicap race. They try to close a deal with a glue-factory owner to swap one of his broken-down nags for Lola's magnificent horse Parasol.
Viewer FAQ
Where does The Sport of Penguins (1) sit in the Batman guide?
S03E04 is listed hour 98 of 120 — hour 4 of 26 in season 3, season 3 episode 4.
When did Batman S03E04 air?
The Sport of Penguins (1) aired 1967-10-05 and is listed at 30 minutes.
Where should I start?
Season 1's twice-weekly cliffhangers are the full candy-colored contract: West, Ward, onomatopoeic graphics, and a guest villain. The 1966 feature film sits between seasons as a longer dose of the same style.
In the series
Why this series still plays
ABC's Batman is camp as a national style guide: Adam West's deadpan virtue, Burt Ward's earnest Robin, and celebrity villains between freeze-frame fight bubbles. Twice-weekly cliffhangers and Pow! graphics locked comic-book TV into prime time. Required viewing before you pick a side in every later dark-versus-fun Batman war.
The freeze-frame is the argument. ABC's *Batman* (January 12, 1966–March 14, 1968) does not wink after the fight; it prints the onomatopoeia on the air itself — Pow, Zap, the candy-colored grammar of a color-TV generation. Adam West plays Bruce Wayne / Batman as deadpan virtue. Burt Ward plays Dick Grayson / Robin as earnestness without an exit. Sincerity is the gag; the gag is the point. William Dozier leaned into camp until camp became a national style guide.
Filed against
- Adam West as Bruce Wayne / Batman
Adam West’s Bruce Wayne / Batman made ABC’s twice-weekly camp a national style guide — deadpan virtue, Burt Ward’s earnest Robin, celebrity villains between freeze-frame Pow! bubbles. Cliffhangers locked comic-book TV into prime time. TV…
- Burt Ward as Dick Grayson / Robin
Burt Ward's earnest Robin made ABC's Batman a national camp style guide — Adam West's deadpan virtue, celebrity villains, freeze-frame fight bubbles, twice-weekly cliffhangers. Pow! graphics locked comic-book TV into prime time. TV Flash…
- Alan Napier as Alfred Pennyworth
Alan Napier’s Alfred Pennyworth kept Wayne Manor mannered while ABC’s Batman went twice-weekly Pow! — Adam West’s deadpan virtue, Burt Ward’s earnest Robin, celebrity villains, freeze-frame fight bubbles. Camp as a national style guide.…
- Neil Hamilton as Commissioner Gordon
Neil Hamilton’s Commissioner Gordon kept ABC’s Batman from becoming only freeze-frame fight bubbles — 1960s camp as a national style guide, Adam West’s deadpan virtue, Burt Ward’s earnest Robin, celebrity villains, twice-weekly…