The 1960s Batman series came to be thanks to Hugh Hefner

Hugh Hefner is passionate about comic books. One of his early projects was cartooning. In 1965, at the Chicago Playboy club, Hef held a Batman themed party to celebrate the campy-ness of the comic. He had actors attend the party dressed as Batman and Robin, using the goofy “Golly gee whiz” lines from the comic. Old Batman movie serials were screened as well.

An ABC executive was attending and when he saw the crowd’s positive reaction to the goofy Batman and Robin, he called ABC with an idea for a new Batman TV show. So was born the lovable 1960′s Batman series.