Gotham: The City of Simple-Minded Fools

When hearing NY described as Gotham City, Batman of course comes to mind.  Commissioner Gordon was in charge of fighting crime in Gotham City, a vague rendition of New York City.  Turns out the nickname was given to New York by writer Washington Irving over 200 years ago.  The word Gotham dates to 1600's England. 

According to Carmen Nigro's blog post at the NY Public Library,  "English proverbs tell of a village called Gotham or Gottam, meaning “Goat’s Town” in old Anglo-Saxon.  Folk tales of the Middle Ages make Gotham out to be the village of simple-minded fools, perhaps because the goat was considered a foolish animal."  I guess if the shoe fits.

Gotham City sure had it's cast of characters: The Penguin, Catwoman, Mr Freeze and The Riddler to name a few.  None were able to take down the Cape Crusaders or destroy Gotham City.   I guess that still holds true, whether you call it Gotham, New York or The Big Apple, it's not going anywhere (despite the NY Daily News Headline from 1977:  Ford To New York:  Drop Dead). 

Gordon of Peter and Gordon Dies



Last week, Gordon Waller, half of the sixties singing duo, Peter and Gordon died in CT from cardiac arrest. Best known for the Paul McCartney penned hit, "World Without Love", the duo had reunited for a few days last year including a free show at the Santa Monica Pier. I remember seeing them on every TV show in the mid-60's. Music on TV was a lot more prevalent then. Between variety shows, music-centric shows like Where The Action Is and even half our serials like Batman, (they had an appearance from the other British duo Chad & Jeremy), there was always music to be seen and heard. Peter Asher continued his successful career as a record producer and manager. RIP.

Neal Hefti - Composer of Batman Theme Dies

Composer, arranger, big band trumpeter Neil Heft has died at 85. Two of the most memorable theme songs: The Odd Couple and Batman were written by him. Everyone can sing both of them. Hefti said the Batman theme was the hardest music he ever wrote. From the LA Times:

"I tore up a lot of paper," he told Jon Burlingame, author of "TV's Biggest Hits," a 1996 book on television themes. "It did not come easy to me. . . . I just sweated over that thing, more so than any other single piece of music I ever wrote. I was never satisfied with it."

"Batman," he said, "was not a comedy. This was about unreal people. Batman and Robin were both very, very serious. The bad guys would be chasing them, and they would come to a stop at a red light, you know. They wouldn't break the law even to save their own lives. So there was a grimness and a self-righteousness about all this."

Hefti said it took him "the better part of a month" to come up with the theme.

"I was almost going to call them and say, I can't do it," he said. "But I never walk out on projects, so I sort of forced myself to finish."


Hefti's "musical solution to a combined dramatic and comedic problem," Burlingame wrote in his book, "was perfect: bass guitar, low brass and percussion to create a driving rhythm, while an eight-voice chorus sings 'Batman!' in harmony with the trumpets. It was part serious, part silly: just like the series."

Hefti's "Batman" tune became a Top 40 hit -- for both the Hefti and the Marketts' versions -- and won a 1966 Grammy Award for best instrumental theme.

Miles Davis credited him with making the Count Basie Band sound as good as it did. Hefti produced, composed and arranged for Count Basie. He also served as head of A&R for Reprise Records in the early 60's. He also composed music for films including Sex and The Single Girl, Barefoot in the Park and How to Murder Your Wife.