online community focused on sharing and reminiscing about video, audio, and images that stir our memories of the past – old television, theme songs, commercials, print advertisements, the sights and sounds you remember
I remember seeing this commercial as a kid and wondering what Lava Soap even was. I don’t remember if my mom ever actually bought it for us, but if Batman was selling it, I wanted it!
That was the power of 1960s Batmania. Adam West’s Batman was everywhere, including commercials for Lava Soap, the gritty hand soap meant for grease, grime, and dirty hands. It was the kind of soap dads kept near the garage sink, but to a kid watching Batman and Robin pitch it, it suddenly looked like something every crimefighter needed.
Did your family ever have Lava Soap in the house, or were you like me, just wanting it because Batman said so?
Super Friends was one of those Saturday morning cartoons that made DC superheroes feel like they all lived in the same neighborhood. It first aired on ABC in 1973 and was produced by Hanna-Barbera, bringing together Superman, Batman and Robin, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and later other heroes from the Justice League world.
The show was definitely made for kids, so the action was toned way down compared to the comic books. Instead of darker superhero stories, you got teamwork, moral lessons, danger, science-fiction plots, and everybody meeting at the famous Hall of Justice. Early on, the show even had kid sidekicks Wendy, Marvin, and Wonder Dog, before later seasons brought in the much better-remembered Wonder Twins, Zan and Jayna, with their monkey Gleek.
For a lot of us, the best-remembered version is probably Challenge of the Superfriends from 1978. That’s the one that gave us the Legion of Doom, led by Lex Luthor, with villains like Cheetah, Riddler, Bizarro, Scarecrow, Captain Cold, Black Manta, and Solomon Grundy. Their creepy swamp headquarters, the Hall of Doom, was almost as memorable as the heroes themselves.
Looking back, Super Friends could be corny, stiff, and sometimes unintentionally funny, but that was also part of its charm. For a whole generation, this was the first time we saw Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and the rest of the gang teaming up every Saturday morning. Before the big movies, before the modern animated Justice League shows, this was our superhero universe.
The Musters was a series that ran from Fall of 1964 to the Spring of 1966 and aired on CBS at 7:30 on Thursday nights. It was written by the same writers from Leave It To Beaver.
Here is the 1964 pilot that was recorded in color. It was recorded for 15 minutes but edited to 13 minutes. Many say the network didn’t want to spend the extra money to produce it in color while others say it was to copy Universal’s vintage monster film’s appearance from the 1930’s and 40’s.
There were a total of 70 episodes recorded. The show ran for two years until it received stiff competition from ABC’s Batman that aired opposite of the Munster’s. The show continues to run in syndication. At the time of this writing it has been picked up by Cozi-TV
As you can see, the characters weren’t finalized. What did you like or dislike about the original cast? Do you wish it was recorded in color?
This is a fun what if scenario. A drag race between the 1989 Batmobile or the original 1966 version? It’s as classic as Ford versus Chevy since the 1966 was built on a 1955 Lincoln Futura chassis and the 80’s built on a Chevrolet Impala. Keep in mind these are replicas and neither had jet engines as depicted on TV or the big screen. Fun to watch regardless!
