Batman '66 at 50!

Today marks the 50th anniversary of the first broadcast of the "Batman" TV series starring Adam West and Burt Ward.

We'll have a spotlight post on our Pop '66 blog tonight (at 7:30 p.m., the exact time the first episode, "Hi Diddle Riddle," first aired).

In the meantime, here's a batch of Bat pics that have accumulated in our endless collection, most of them not published here before.

Nobody told ME it was Batman Day!

Apparently it is, and I didn't plan a thing. But I do have a mess of Batman TV show pics - many rarely seen - in the files. So here you go!

Vintage pic: Adam West

So long, Yvonne Craig

Yvonne Craig, who played Batgirl in the 1960s "Batman" TV series, and who also appeared on other cult TV shows such as "Star Trek" and "Man from U.N.C.L.E." has passed away at age 78, the Guardian reports.

Trained as a dancer, the Illinois-born Craig joined the Ballet Russe of Monte Carlo when she was 17, making her the youngest member of the troupe. She was said to have been discovered by actor John Ford’s son Patrick and she made her movie debut with the film The Young Land. She appeared opposite Elvis Presley in Kissin’ Cousins and It Happened at the World’s Fair, describing him as “a southern gentleman."

UPDATE: Be sure to read comics historian Mark Evanier's touching, and hilarious, post about meeting Yvonne.

Vintage pics: Batman TV show