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Batman The Entrancing Dr. Cassandra (1966–1968) Online

Batman The Entrancing Dr. Cassandra (1966–1968) Online
Original Title :
The Entrancing Dr. Cassandra
Genre :
TV Episode / Action / Adventure / Comedy / Crime / Family / Fantasy / Mystery / Sci-Fi
Year :
1966–1968
Directror :
Sam Strangis
Cast :
Adam West,Burt Ward,Yvonne Craig
Writer :
Stanley Ralph Ross,Bob Kane
Type :
TV Episode
Time :
24min
Rating :
7.7/10
Batman The Entrancing Dr. Cassandra (1966–1968) Online

Dr. Cassandra and her husband Cabala are behind a string of invisible robberies, thanks to their camouflage pills. When Batman, Robin, and Batgirl attempt to stop their next theft, the crooks turn them into 2-dimensional figures with their ray gun. Dr. Cassandra then begins work on her final plan - releasing all the super criminals from prison to join her invisible force.
Episode complete credited cast:
Adam West Adam West - Batman
Burt Ward Burt Ward - Robin
Yvonne Craig Yvonne Craig - Batgirl
Alan Napier Alan Napier - Alfred
Neil Hamilton Neil Hamilton - Commissioner Gordon
Stafford Repp Stafford Repp - Chief O'Hara
Ida Lupino Ida Lupino - Dr. Cassandra
Howard Duff Howard Duff - Cabala
David Lewis David Lewis - Warden Crichton
Bill Zuckert Bill Zuckert - Prison Captain

In this penultimate Bat-adventure, Dr. Cassandra releases six Arch-Criminals from Gotham State prison: The Riddler, The Penguin, The Joker, Catwoman, King Tut and Egghead. However none of them are played by the usual guest actors. For one thing it would be too expensive to feature them all at the same time. Note that their faces are never clearly seen, they have no lines (other than the Riddler's giggle and Penguin's squawk reused from earlier appearances) and Catwoman resembles the Julie Newmar version instead of season three's Eartha Kitt.

After the production ran over budget and could not afford to take two days to block and shoot the final fight scene, writer Stanley Ralph Ross rewrote it so that it all happened in the dark.

Howard Duff and Ida Lupino, who played husband and wife on this episode, were married off-screen, at the time, as well. The, by most accounts, loving but tempestuous marriage ended in 1984 after 33 years.

Originally the Alvino Ray Gun was to be named the Ronald Ray Gun, spoofing the name Ronald Reagan, at the time the Govornor of California. However, network censors objected to the naming, which was subsequently changed.

Writer Stanley Ralph Ross took the name Cassandra from a little girl by that name. She and her family lived next door to Ross, and she always wanted to be in a "Batman" episode, so he made her given name that of the character, Dr. Cassandra.

The "Alvino Ray-Gun" is a pun on the name of guitarist-bandleader Alvino Rey.

The Mope Diamond is a pun on the famous Hope Diamond, the largest known deep-blue diamond in the world. As of 2016, it was housed in the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C.

Ida Lupino's full character name is revealed to be 'Dr. Cassandra Spellcraft.'

Final appearance of Warden Crichton.


User reviews

Nicearad

Nicearad

This episode has some very memorable scenes, mainly the footage of all the super-criminals being released from prison: The Riddler, King Tut, The Joker, etc. With the exception of the 1966 Batman motion picture, we never see the gang all bunched together like this and we can only wonder what kind of small talk they all made in prison together.

Elements of the fantastic are also present with vanishing criminals (note the Lost In Space vanishing sound effect), then turning invisible and marching into Gordon's office.

However, this is the 2nd last Batman episode EVER and the direction was far from the quality seen in season one's episodes directed by Robert Butler. All in all, this episode is good.
Stonewing

Stonewing

Fans of 'Batman' in his most recent guise as 'The Dark Knight' must regard the 1960's incarnation with bewilderment. How did a series mocking Bob Kane and Bill Finger's caped crusader get to be one of television's greatest ever successes? Fox had sat on the rights for a long time before producer William Dozier hit on the idea of making it so over-the-top it became funny. It also helped that this was also the era of 'The Monkees' and 'The Man From U.N.C.L.E.'. I doubt whether a straight approach to 'Batman' would have worked at that time. Then there was the miracle ingredient - colour! 'Batman' was tailor-made for the medium.

'The Entrancing Dr.Cassandra' was the penultimate episode of Season 3, by which time the show's popularity had waned and not even the lovely Yvonne Craig as 'Batgirl' ( how I used to cringe at that awful song played whenever she rode her motorbike! ) could save it. Stanley Ralph Ross, author of the 'Catwoman' episodes, created 'Dr.Cassandra' ( Ida Lupino ), alchemist, occult scientist and swinger. She has invented 'camouflage pills' that, when taken by her and her husband ''Cabala' ( Lupino's real-life husband Howard Duff ) make them invisible, enabling them to rob banks with ease. She has other gimmicks too, such as a ray gun that turns Batman, Robin and Batgirl into two-dimensional cut-outs ( how did anyone notice the difference? ). Cassandra, clad in an orange bowler hat, looks like one of those eccentric women you see each year at Ascot. As 'Batman' villains go, she ranks alongside 'Clock King' and 'The Archer' as one of the least interesting. Cabala, on the other hand, wears a blazer covered in astrological symbols and behaves like one of those middle-aged movie stars ( like Peter Lawford ) who tried to get 'with it' by fooling about with mind-blowing substances. He calls his wife 'Docky baby' an awful lot.

Cassandra's grand plan is to release Gotham City Penitentiary's top criminals, including The Joker, The Penguin, The Riddler, Catwoman, King Tut and Egghead. None of whom are played by the original performers ( 'Catwoman' seems to have reverted to her Julie Newmar persona. She'd been Eartha Kitt for most of Season 3 ). The climactic fight between our heroes and their invisible opponents is as ingenious as it probably was cheap to make.

One bad note of continuity - 'I'll Be A Mummy's Uncle' ended with King Tut ( Victor Buono ) about to reveal Batman and Robin's secret identities, but regaining his memory before he could so so. Here he has reverted to Tut, but seems to have forgotten his previous adventure with the Dynamic Duo.
Goldenfang

Goldenfang

"The Entrancing Dr. Cassandra" introduces the enchanting actress-turned-TV director Ida Lupino as the title character, a frustrated alchemist carrying on the cursed family business with the help of husband Cabala, played by Ida's real life spouse Howard Duff (apparently Liz and Dick were out of William Dozier's price range!). Not only do they commit a series of robberies while invisible, they also use an unpatented Alvino Ray gun to make two dimensional cardboard cutouts of Batman, Robin, and Batgirl. Watching Batgirl shimmy and shake while exclaiming, "I feel like I'm getting flat" is alone worth the price of admission, followed as it is by Cabala's deadpan quip: "what a pity!" For an ultra low budget capper, the restored Caped Crusaders battle a room full of invisible arch criminals set loose at Warden Crichton's prison (David Lewis in the last of his eight appearances). Although none of the original actors were cast, Joker, Penguin, Riddler, King Tut, Egghead, and the Julie Newmar Catwoman gather together one last time, under the auspices of Dr. Cassandra Spellcraft. An intriguing sidenote has Batgirl finally getting to see what the Batcave looks like, before the final showdown. With little money to go all out, the third season will end with a decided whimper rather than a bang.