#168 “Dick Tracy” and “Wonder Woman”: The Dozierverse Stumbles
09/16/21 • 112 min
In 1966, William Dozier’s Greenway Productions was riding high, seemingly on the verge of building a TV empire built on superheroes: first Batman, then the Green Hornet. Why not keep going in that direction? An entire pilot episode of Dick Tracy was made, starring Ray MacDonnell, and all signs point to Dozier having confidence that the show would be bought by NBC - but it wasn’t. Meanwhile, Greenway also made a test film for Wonder Woman, starring Ellie Wood Walker, with a script that would have been more more appropriate for a MAD parody.
While Dozier’s Wonder Woman experiment was NOT a success, the question lingers: Why wasn’t Dick Tracy picked up? We suggest some answers as we discuss both films in this episode.
Also, we head down to the Bat Research Lab to try to figure out what Lorenzo Semple Jr.’s Mr. Zero idea was all about; Burt Ward talks about “holys” and ad libs, a dog sings the Batman theme, and we read your mail about our “Mr. Freeze(s)” episode.
Jaime Weinman discuss the pilot in Maclean's
TV Obscurities on the Tracy pilot
Lon Chaney Jr. made up as Pruneface by makeup legend John Chambers (scroll down a bit)
The Dick Tracy TV-tie-in pinball machine
Wonder Woman test scene script
Hollywood Reporter on the WW pilot
TV Obscurities on the WW pilot
Rebeat magazine on the Dozierverse
Thanks to Mr. Glee for the following articles (click to enlarge):
July 17, 1966: Signs of a budding Dozierverse, by Dean Gysel
June 9, 1965: NBC already looking into Dick Tracy (Variety)
November 17, 1965: NBC ready with Dick Tracy, whether Batman succeeds or not (Variety)
In 1966, William Dozier’s Greenway Productions was riding high, seemingly on the verge of building a TV empire built on superheroes: first Batman, then the Green Hornet. Why not keep going in that direction? An entire pilot episode of Dick Tracy was made, starring Ray MacDonnell, and all signs point to Dozier having confidence that the show would be bought by NBC - but it wasn’t. Meanwhile, Greenway also made a test film for Wonder Woman, starring Ellie Wood Walker, with a script that would have been more more appropriate for a MAD parody.
While Dozier’s Wonder Woman experiment was NOT a success, the question lingers: Why wasn’t Dick Tracy picked up? We suggest some answers as we discuss both films in this episode.
Also, we head down to the Bat Research Lab to try to figure out what Lorenzo Semple Jr.’s Mr. Zero idea was all about; Burt Ward talks about “holys” and ad libs, a dog sings the Batman theme, and we read your mail about our “Mr. Freeze(s)” episode.
Jaime Weinman discuss the pilot in Maclean's
TV Obscurities on the Tracy pilot
Lon Chaney Jr. made up as Pruneface by makeup legend John Chambers (scroll down a bit)
The Dick Tracy TV-tie-in pinball machine
Wonder Woman test scene script
Hollywood Reporter on the WW pilot
TV Obscurities on the WW pilot
Rebeat magazine on the Dozierverse
Thanks to Mr. Glee for the following articles (click to enlarge):
July 17, 1966: Signs of a budding Dozierverse, by Dean Gysel
June 9, 1965: NBC already looking into Dick Tracy (Variety)
November 17, 1965: NBC ready with Dick Tracy, whether Batman succeeds or not (Variety)
Previous Episode
#167 Tom Peyer talks “Batman 66” and “The Wrong Earth”
The Wrong Earth, written by Tom Peyer, is a comics series in which the super-square Dragonflyman and grim & gritty Dragonfly find themselves on each other’s versions of earth. In the second volume, recently concluded, the two meet each other on yet another earth.
Peyer, editor-in-chief at Ahoy Comics, is an industry veteran with many writing credits under his belt, including for the Batman ’66 comics series. This time, Tom joins us to discuss our favorite show and what The Wrong Earth might tell us about it.
PLUS: The Bobby Valentin version of the theme (another bugaloo!), Burt Ward on Batman shooting locations, and your mail about our Curse of Tut script discussion!
Next Episode
#169 “Instant Freeze” script: We don’t love a parade
Mr. Zero? Dr. Schimmel? No, Mr. Freeze! In Max Hodge’s first draft of Instant Freeze, the comics villain Mr. Zero, for reasons we discussed last episode, became Mr. Freeze. But the script contains many more references to his “real” name, Dr. Schimmel, than made it to what was broadcast. Why? Where’d this script's unexplained parade come from? What would the Batman series have been like with more animation effects on the screen, outside of the Batfights? All this and more as we dig into a preliminary plot summary and the full first draft of Mr. Freeze’s first TV appearance.
PLUS: The Derek Paravicini jazz piano version of the Batman theme, Adam West on Victor Buono’s comedy album and on Batman bubble gum cards, and your mail about our discussion of 1997’s Batman and Robin!
Hodge's preliminary plot summary of the arc
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