DARK KNIGHT RISES TOYS!!!

Need I say more?

HOLY RAINSTORMS!

I wonder where I can pick up one of these fine items...

Collected: 1974 Batman Electric Toothbrush

Wow. My co-worker and friend, Cameron, has gifted me with this vintage electric toothbrush, including the dilapidated (falling apart) box! I took one look and told him I'd have to add it to the blog tonight, so here we are!

I would have been only four years old when this thing was available on store shelves, and I'm fairly certain that lifting the dual c-cell powered device would have built up at least one of my biceps, but alas, I was not fortunate enough to own one - until now! Here are a couple more shots:



Going forward, I'm only going to post a photo and vitals on each item, unless there's a great story attached to it, so look forward to that (I can be pretty wordy).

Collected: The Batman Vault

Christmas is always a great time for my collection to expand, and this year was no exception. Case in point: The Batman Vault, given to me by my awesome wife.

I have several 'coffee table' books about Batman, including Chip Kidd's excellent 'Batman Collected', but the Vault is a little different from those books. It's more like an already-made scrapbook/library of Batman history and memorabilia. There's plenty to read, make no mistake, from the beginnings of the character and his creator's inspirations, to documentary-style narrative about the comic book's different ages and development.

Plenty of beautiful photos are included as well, but what sets this book apart in my opinion, are the various re-creations of actual Batman nostalgia scattered throughout the pages. Every so often, you'll find the regular stuff interrupted by a clear plastic sleeve, and inside it there are replicas of some truly rare printed items, such as color-by-number activity pages from a 1966 kids' book, a 'How To Draw Batman' booklet from 1978 and a 'Batplane' paper cutout model from 1943.

Needless to say, this is a phenomenal addition to my little museum, and any avid fan owes it to themselves to pick it up!

Collected: 2009 Batman Hallmark Ornament

I figured it would be appropriate to begin the 'Collected' series of posts I mentioned earlier today with my most recent acquisition; the 2009 Batman Hallmark Ornament.

My wife began gifting me with these each year a while back, and I will include the whole series eventually, but for now I'll just go with the newest one.


This year's addition is not based on any movie title, but just some good ol' comic book inspiration, and I LOVE IT! Bats is wearing his more traditional (and friendly) blue and grey, and his pose, grasping the cape to glide down (freaking some ne'er-do-wells out, no doubt) to a landing is absolutely classic.


This ornament is larger than most of the previous entries, and is designed purely for hanging, which just makes it that much more fun!

My apologies for the low-quality iPhone photos - I really need to get a better camera!

A New Idea!

Yeah, I watched 'Julie & Julia' with my wife last week -- AND I LIKED IT, OKAY?! It's not so much a 'chick flick' as an underdog story in my book (yes, I'm rationalizing).

But it got me thinking, 'How can I make my blog more unique and interesting?' And I had a brainstorm...

Starting today, I will begin chronicling my ENTIRE collection of Batman stuff, with photos, descriptions, and, where appropriate, stories. I've no idea how long it will take me, because I've never actually done a complete inventory of my collection, but it stands to reason that it could easily be more than a year, even if I posted once a day!

I'll continue adding in those little points of interest that I find along the way, like videos, images and other stories, but the majority of the posts going forward will be about my collection.

So it begins... I hope you'll enjoy taking this journey with me, and feel free to weigh in by commenting on any of the entries!

Sweet Video

Having a sense of humor about my favorite non-super hero on earth, I was thoroughly amused by this great video from keyofawesome.com:

Elementary... or Perhaps Not

As a consummate fan of The Dark Knight Detective, I am also a fan (even going back to childhood) of his inspirations. One such inspiration is a figure whom many deem the original detective, and a master of deductive reasoning, the fictitious Sherlock Holmes.

Recently I've been enjoying the excellent BBC television series, 'The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes' on Netflix, starring Jeremy Brett. I was first introduced to this remarkable program back in late Jr. High/early High School when my parents would watch 'Mystery' on PBS every Thursday night. Quite a few of the shows on 'Mystery' were of British origin, and none of them impressed me so much as Sherlock Holmes.

I've also read several of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's original stories published in British newspapers, and my respect for Jeremy Brett's portrayal of Holmes, along with this series' recounting of the stories has only been reinforced by this. They are highly accurate and fascinating to watch or read, in my humble opinion.

Which brings me to the trailers and commercials I've seen lately for the new Sherlock Holmes film starring Robert Downey Jr. While I have no doubt this movie will be fun, action-packed, witty and highly enjoyable overall, I am certain of this; it will be no Sherlock Holmes story.

The Holmes depicted in these ads is definitely brilliant, intelligent and clever. He is quick-witted and I'm sure he is also an amazing detective. He is also a womanizer, slob, vagabond and rogue - all qualities that Holmes would never have.

If the writers, director and producers of this film believe that 'artistic license' is a sufficient reason for these alterations to Holmes' character, they are sadly mistaken. Holmes' gentlemanly nature, his nearly OCD level of hygiene and his use of violence only as a last resort are all just as much a part of him as Batman's cape is to The Dark Knight.

In short, I may go and see Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law in this 19th Century action film, but to call it 'Sherlock Holmes' would be an insult.