Batgirl flies into Knoxville

Holy Batcave Batman, here comes Batgirl! Yes, Robin, I see her now! You too can catch a glimpse of Batgirl Yvonne Craig by stopping by the Adventure Con Toy Show held June 1st and 2nd at Knoxville I-75 Expo Center. Along with 400 tables of merchandise to catch your fancy will be several celebrity guests including Richard Keil, (Jaws from the James Bond Films) Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca from Star Wars), Julie Newmar (Catwoman), Steve Stanley (Artist) Dick Warlock (Michael Myers), Dick Durock (Swamp Thing) & Al Bigley (comic artist) and I will be there autographing my newest release, “Celebrity Dolls” along with my other books on collectibles. This past week, I had a chance to chat with Yvonne Craig about her trip to Knoxville. Craig played the role of Barbara Gordon/Batgirl from the 1960s Batman TV series, as well as in numerous films and productions. Craig worked with Bing Crosby in “High Time” “He was charming and very bright. He had my attention right off. He was terrific and very professional, an all around nice guy,” stated Craig. Though Batman only ran for three years, “It was a middle season replacement and the hottest show around, the first of its kind comic book coming to life. It was innovative and a big hit,” stated Craig, it is etched into the American psyche as if it was one of the longest running series on television. According to Craig, the rating started to slip when the show was split to two days a week. “It took away from the main show, because people could turn in later in the week and get catch up on what happened the episode before. They added my character in the third season to try to appeal to the show. They tried to market my character to over 40 males and pre-teen girls.” Produced from 1964 to 1966, Batman was an expensive show to produce. Craig tells me, “Mr. Bill Dozier, the Executive Producer was written letters asking him to do the show cheaper, less expensive, and he couldn’t or wouldn’t do it, so we were cancelled.” Some of Craig’s memories of the show include working with Adam West and Burt Ward. “They were great to work with. It was a fun show to produce. I knew it was fun when I was doing it. Frank Gorshin who played the Riddler was very sweet and I really enjoyed working with Cesar Romero as well. It was just a fun cast.” When asked about riding in the Batmobile Craig said she didn’t recall riding in it but that many of her fans told her she did, “I must have in one scene it’s been so long I was told that I given Bat Sleep so that I wouldn’t know where the bat cave was.” Craig wrote a book to tell about her experiences entitled, From Ballet to Batcave and Beyond. “It tells about my show business career, it’s tells about my life so it’s not boring. I was “discovered” in LA while working at a restaurant by Patrick Ford, Director John Ford’s son. It tells about my life in ballet, acting and my life now.” One line of questions that tends to come up frequently in interviews is about her relationship with Elvis Presley who she dated for a short time. “We never went out anywhere because people always came to him at home. He was a lovely southern gentleman. I gave him a lot of unsolicited advice. He’d call me Ma’am. ‘Yes, Ma’am’. When you looked at that face it was not gorgeous, he didn’t have good bones, but when you saw him on stage or in a scene you couldn’t take your eyes off of him. He had that certain something. He didn’t write his own songs, and I’m amazed at the wonderful choices he made, he actively participated in choosing his songs.” Craig says she still gets recognized but usually when she’s wearing jeans and nothing but lipstick. “When I’m all dressed up no one knows who I am”. Craig left acting for a time and returned in 1990 with the movie Diggin’ Up Business. With so many people collecting Batman memorabilia I asked Craig if she was a collector. She stated that she collects masks. “I have taken a lot of trips to Africa so many of my masks are from there. Some are from Mexico and the South American equator. I also have some from Venice, Italy. I also collect frogs, but not all frogs were created equal, so I’m picky about which ones I buy.” She has no particular favorites, “They are all so different. But I do have a fang mask that has been used in a ceremony where it had been ‘danced’ (danced meaning used in the ceremony). They are the hardest to fine.” So what about the original Batgirl outfit or other memorabilia from the show? “I didn’t save any of it,” Stated Craig, “I did my own stunts so I had less costumes, one was worn out and there were a couple others, one got stolen and was auctioned off for around $35,000. Debbie Reynolds bought one for her museum that was not competed. It had the front panel missing. I wasn’t a keeper of stuff and it was to my detriment. I didn’t even have many pictures from the set which was hard when I was putting my book together.” This is Craig’s first trip to Knoxville and she is looking forward to it. “It’s going to be fun, I travel with my sister and it gives us some time together. I will do about three shows a year and a portion of the money I collect goes toward breast cancer research.” The show runs Sat: 9AM-5:30PM Sun: 9AM-4PM admission price is $5. You can visit Yvonne’s website by going to: http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Hills/5733/craigpics00.html