The Bat's Meow

Accompanying the Batmobile will be two performers indelibly connected to the Batman
phenomenon. Adam West, the handsome thespian who could manage to keep a
straight face even while his Batman uttered the campiest of dialogue,
will be on hand, accompanied by his purr-fect foil Julie Newmar, who
played the femme fatale Catwoman in several episodes. Making a return
visit to the Nationals will be Candy Clark from American Graffiti.
All three celebs will sign autographs, pose for snapshots and wax
nostalgic about their careers at the Verizon Center of Progress on
Friday, July 17, and Saturday, July 18, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday,
July 19, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

The 5-foot-11 Newmar, 75, brought a
sensual sizzle to her Catwoman that excited fanboys of all ages during
the 1960s. Yet the leggy star grabbed earlier acclaim in 1950s-era
movie musicals such as Seven Brides for Seven Brothers and Li’l Abner, as well as her own camp appeal as a sexy android in the 1964 sitcom My Living Doll.
Clark, 62, scored an Academy Award nomination for best supporting
actress as been-around Debbie Dunham in director George Lucas’ American Graffiti (1973). She’s still a presence in major fare like David Fincher’s grim 2007 procedural Zodiac.

West, 80, still has plenty on his plate,
too. Aside from his occasional appearances at car shows like the
Nationals and comic-book conventions, as well as gigs as a motivational
speaker, he does lots of cartoon voice work including his long-running
role on the Fox-TV raunch fest Family Guy. And because rights issues have allegedly plagued hopes for DVD box sets of the Batman TV series (although 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment issued a Blu-ray DVD of the 1966 Batman movie last year), the actor has attempted to fill the breach with his new DVD Adam West Naked,
which features anecdotes (some racy) on the show’s 120-episode run.
West also pops up in a video goof on the site www.funnyordie.com, as an
out-of-work actor (with an Arby’s jones and a grudge against Bernie
Madoff) who holds a garage sale in front of the Batcave. Holy Beef and
Cheddar Sandwich!

—Bill DeLapp