Batman: The Animated Interviews
Presenting: A multi-volume history of the cast, crew, and executives involved in the making of Batman: The Animated Series and the spinoffs that became the DC Animated Universe, or DCAU.
Why, and how, was such a groundbreaking series made? Who made it? What did it take to bring Batman to animated life? Not as sanitized kiddie fodder for Saturday morning, but as a heavy-hitting action drama, with high stakes and suspense, and stories aimed at a mature audience. How did it happen, and why does Batman: The Animated Series resonate after 30 years? The answers can be found in this seminal series of books.
Featured are interviews with the executives, producers, directors, writers, character designers, background designers, painters, prop designers, voice actors, and composers responsible for the show. The list includes:
Michael Uslan, originator and Executive Producer of the Batman movie franchise, brought Batman back to his roots as a dark and sinister vigilante for justice with the 1989 Tim Burton film, Batman.
Margaret Loesch, Fox Kids Network President & CEO/Vice-Chairman, 1990-1998, responsible for bringing Batman: The Animated Series to Fox Kids.
Sidney Iwanter, Fox Kids Network Vice President of Programming, Strategic Development and Acquisitions, 1989-1998.
Jean MacCurdy, Vice-President and General Manager of Warner Bros. Animation, 1998-1991, then President, 1991-2001.
Tom Ruegger, Chief Creative Officer, Warner Bros. Animation, 1989-2001.
Bruce Timm, producer, character designer, director, writer
Eric Radomski, producer, background designer, director
Paul Levitz, editor and publisher, DC Comics
Alan Burnett, producer, story editor, writer
Paul Dini, producer, story editor, writer
Ted Blackman, background supervisor
Gary Montalbano, background stylist
Michael Reaves, story editor, writer
Mitch Brian, writer of the pivotal episodes, “On Leather Wings” and “Bane”
Kevin Altieri, director, storyboard artist
Dan Riba, director, storyboard artist, character designer
John Calmette, background painter
Randy Rogel, writer, producer
Boyd Kirkland, director
Brad Rader, storyboard artist
Shayne Poindexter, vehicle specialist, prop designer
Jon Fisher, vehicle specialist, prop designer
Steven E. Gordon, character designer, storyboard artist
Andrea Romano, voice and casting director
Michael McCuistion, composer
Lolita Ritmanis, composer
Kristopher Carter, composer
And these are in just the first two volumes! More details will be forthcoming as the books near publication.
Here are the contents of each volume:
Batman: The Animated Series, Season One
Dedication
Robert Greenberger – Foreword
Contents
Introduction
Dawn of the Dark Knight
Michael Uslan – The Man Who Saved Batman
Margaret Loesch and Jean MacCurdy – Batman’s Gatekeepers
Margaret Loesch – The Superheroes’ Hero
Sidney Iwanter – Previously, Before Batman
Jean MacCurdy – Opening the Batcave
Tom Ruegger – Turning on the Bat-Signal
Bruce Timm – Drawn to Batman, by Brian Saner Lamken
Eric Radomski – Knight Vision
Ted Blackman – The Architect of Gotham City
Greg Duffell – The Dark Knight’s First Night
Eric Radomski – Flying the Animated Pilot
Mitch Brian – Launching with Leather Wings
Gary Montalbano – From the Windy City to Gotham
Paul Levitz – The DC Connection
Alan Burnett – Before the Dark Knight
Paul Dini – The Write Way to Batman
Kevin Altieri – Receiving the Bat-Signal
Dan Riba – Answering the Batphone
John Calmette – Painting Gotham City
Randy Rogel – From West Point to Gotham City
Boyd Kirkland – Charging up the Batmobile
Brad Rader – Gearing Up for Gotham Action
Eric Radomski – The Tim Burton Factor
Shayne Poindexter – Designing the Batmobile
Jon Fisher – The ArtCenter Connections
Andrea Romano – Animated Acting
Shirley Walker – Woman of Action, Part One, by Helen San
Michael McCuistion – Inspired by Superman, Scoring Batman
Lolita Ritmanis – Tuning Up for Gotham City
Kevin Altieri, Dan Riba, Mike Goguen – Part One: Beginnings, by Londyn Victoria Jackson
Animating the Dark Knight
Jean MacCurdy – Encouraging the Creatives
Tom Ruegger – A Guiding Light for the Dark Knight
Bruce Timm – Cartoon Noir
Eric Radomski – The Master of Dark Deco
Bruce Timm – Inspired by Alex Toth, by Bruce Timm
Alan Burnett – Batman: The Animated Writing Team
Randy Rogel – Diabolical Plots for the Dark Knight
Margaret Loesch – Making Gotham City Great Again
Sidney Iwanter – Networking the Bat
Alan Burnett – Scarring Two-Face, Reforming the Riddler, Reckoning Robin, by Stu Hamilton
Alan Burnett – The Relevance of Robin
Paul Levitz – DC’ing the Animated Bat
Alan Burnett – No Ghosts, No Aliens, No Humanitas Award
Paul Dini – Batman vs. the Censors, Part One
Alan Burnett – Batman vs. the Censors, Part Two
Tom Ruegger – Batman vs. the Censors, Part Three
INTEROFFICE MEMO
Sidney Iwanter – Defending Wolverine and the X-Men, by Sidney Iwanter
Eric Radomski – Batman: Pro-Social Engineer or Ruthless Vigilante?
Paul Dini – The Joker’s Keeper
Paul Dini – Revving Up the Harley
Dick Sebast – Conjuring Gotham’s Nightmares, by Stu Hamilton
Kevin Altieri – Directing the Batman and the Man-Bat
Brad Rader – The Story Visualizer
Dan Riba – Directing the Dark Knight
Shayne Poindexter – Propping Dark Deco
Shayne Poindexter – The Wall of Shayne
Ted Blackman – Building a Better Gotham
Gary Montalbano – Bigger Than Expected
John Calmette – Shedding Light on Dark Deco
Eric Radomski – Overseas Animating for the Bat
Shirley Walker – Music for the Dark Knight, by Bob Garcia
Michael McCuistion – Dynamic Music for the Dynamic Duo
Lolita Ritmanis – Crimefighting Composing
Eric Radomski – The Sounds of Gotham City
Eric Radomski – Eye-catching the Audience
Margaret Loesch and Jean MacCurdy – Vindication of the Bat
That’s Not All, Folks! – A preview of upcoming volumes
Acknowledgements
About the Author
Index
Batman: The Animated Series, Season Two
Batman: Mask of the Phantasm
Batman & Mr. Freeze: SubZero
Contents
Dedication
Robert Greenberger – Foreword
Contents
Introduction
The Coming of Phantasm
Jean MacCurdy – Batman on the Big Screen, Home Video and Stage
Paul Dini – The Phantasm and Beyond
Eric Radomski – Unmasking the Phantasm
Kevin Altieri – The Audience for Batman
Kevin Altieri – Directing the Phantasm, Part One
Dan Riba – Directing the Phantasm, Part Two
Brad Rader – Staging the Mechanic, the Samurai, the Demon and Phantasm
Jon Fisher – Propping Up Gotham City
Michael Reaves – Word-Processing the Dark Knight, by James Harvey
Mitch Brian – Batman’s Bible and the Art of Being Subversive
Joe R. Lansdale – The Champion Mojo Storyteller
Kristopher Carter – First Gig in Gotham
Lolita Ritmanis – Mask of the Opening Credits
Shirley Walker – The Hidden Homages, Revealed, by Shirley Walker
Shirley Walker – Woman of Action, Part Two, by Helen San
The Chill of Mr. Freeze
Randy Rogel – Thawing Mr. Freeze
Boyd Kirkland – Fun with Machine Guns, by “Spider-Friends,” Stu Hamilton
Steven E. Gordon – Expressions for the Gotham Knights
Bruce Timm, Boyd Kirkland, Randy Rogel, Alan Burnett, Eric Radomski, Shaun McLaughlin – The Fate of Mr. Freeze
Michael McCuistion – The Flair of a Full Orchestra
Retrospectives
Kevin Altieri, Dan Riba, Mike Goguen – Part Two: Making a Classic, by Londyn Jackson
Paul Dini, Bruce Timm, Eric Radomski, Alan Burnett, and Loren Lester – Batman: The Animated Series Turns 21, by Gary Miereanu
Matthew Patterson, Dan W. Ferranti, Alan Burnett, Bruce Timm and Kevin Conroy – Batman: Mask of the Phantasm, Remastered and Ready for Blu-ray, by Gary Miereanu
Episode Guides
Batman: The Animated Series
Batman: Mask of the Phantasm
Batman & Mr. Freeze: SubZero
Musicians of the DCAU, Part One
Batman: The Complete Animated Series on Blu-ray, 2018
Review Samplers
Batman: The Animated Series
Batman: Mask of the Phantasm
Batman & Mr. Freeze: SubZero
Leaving the Batcave
Eric Radomski – From Dark Knight to Demon-Spawn
Boyd Kirkland – Life After Batman: The Animated Series
Ted Blackman – Into the Gilded Age
Mitch Brian – Being a Part of Something Amazing
Margaret Loesch – Life After Fox, Launching New Networks
Sidney Iwanter – Avoiding the Tonnage
Steven E. Gordon – The Longevity of Quality
Kevin Altieri – Bruce Wayne Wouldn’t Do It, by Andrew Pollard
Tom Ruegger – The Legacy of Batman: The Animated Series
That’s Not All, Folks – A preview of Volume Three
Acknowledgements
About the Author
Index
Superman: The Animated Series (Batman appearances only)
The New Batman Adventures
Gotham Girls
Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman and “Chase Me”
Batman and Harley Quinn
Contents
Linda Simensky – Dedication
Andrea Romano – Foreword
Contents
Introduction
Gotham Knights: Batman Revised
Jean MacCurdy – Youth-inizing the Bat
Bruce Timm – The Franchise, by Brian Saner Lamken
Paul Dini – The Future of Dark Knights
Shaun McLaughlin – Bridging the Creatives and the Executives
Rich Fogel – Visualizing Capers for Caped Crusaders
Alan Burnett – A Good Time in Gotham, by Stu Hamilton
Stan Berkowitz – Renovating Gotham City, by Stu Hamilton
Bob Goodman – From New York to Gotham by Way of Los Angeles
Paul Dini – Changing Batman, Challenging Superman
Alan Burnett – The New Writers for the DCAU
Stan Berkowitz – Batman’s Animated Live-Action Scribe
Rich Fogel – Writing for the World’s Finest, by James Strecker, Ted Kendrick and Mattie Washburn
Paul Levitz – Trusting Warner Bros. Animation
Mike Carlin – The Man Who Killed Superman
Kevin Altieri, Dan Riba, Mike Goguen – Part Three: Revising the Bat, by Londyn Victoria Jackson
Dan Riba – Revamping the Batman Universe
Joe R. Lansdale – Raising Those Crazy Critters
Michael Reaves – Bringing in the Batwoman, by James Harvey
Michael McCuistion – Scoring Superman, the Flash, and Green Lantern
Kristopher Carter – Dark and Brooding vs. Bright and Optimistic
Lolita Ritmanis – Music for Metropolis and Gotham City
Randy Rogel – Batman on Stage, Live!
Alan Burnett – Curtains for the Caped Crusader
Casting Gotham City
Andrea Romano – The Master Voice Director
Kevin Conroy – The Noble Voice
Loren Lester – Animated Sidekick, by Kim Howard Johnson
Diane Pershing – When Serendipity Strikes
Richard Moll – Serious Heavy, by Kyle Counts
Mark Hamill – The Man Who Laughs, by Kim Johnson and Elizabeth Gunderson
Adrienne Barbeau – Purr-fectly Cast, by Andrew Pollard
Tara Strong – Call Her Batgirl—and Harley Quinn, by Andrew Pollard
Arleen Sorkin, Michael Ansara, Roddy McDowall, John Glover, David Warner, Marc Singer, Bill Mumy, Helen Slater, William Sanderson, Joseph Campanella, Clancy Brown, Paul Williams – They Speak for the Rogues!
Arleen Sorkin – The Perfect Cheesy Blonde
Will Friedle – Spilling the Schway Secrets!, by James Strecker and Ted Kendrick
In Memorium: Kevin Conroy
Gary Miereanu – Kevin Conroy, Preeminent Voice of Batman, Passes Away at Age . With comments from Andrea Romano, Mark Hamill and Paul Dini
Alan Burnett, Paul Dini – Kevin Conroy, 1955-2022
Kristopher Carter, Lolita Ritmanis, Michael McCuistion – Kevin Conroy: His Legacy Will Live On
Michael Uslan – One of the Finest Role Models Imaginable
Dan Riba – A Kevin Conroy Tribute
Kevin Altieri – For Kevin Conroy … There Will Be No Other
Gonzalo Guastavino – Batman’s Voice
Episode Guides
Superman: The Animated Series
The New Batman Adventures
Gotham Girls
Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman and “Chase Me”
Batman and Harley Quinn
Batman: The Adventures Continue
Musicians of the DCAU, Part Two
Review Samplers
Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman
Batman and Harley Quinn
That’s Not All, Folks!
Acknowledgements
About the Author
Index
Batman Beyond
The Zeta Project (Future Batman appearances only)
Static Shock (Future Batman appearances only)
Contents
Dedication
Joe R. Lansdale – Foreword
Contents
Introduction
Future Noir
The Dark Knight Done Right—Even Reinvented, by Emru Townsend
Eternal Knight: The Future Turns Dark, by Dennis Fischer
Bruce Timm, Paul Dini, and Glen Murakami – Designing Batman Beyond,
by Dennis Fischer
Batman Beyond: Influences & Evil, by Dennis Fischer
Bruce Timm and Glen Murakami – On Drawing the Dark Knight, by Emru Townsend
Paul Dini – From Babs and Buster Bunny to Batman, by Emru Townsend
Darwyn Cooke – The Creator of Batman Beyond’s Dynamic
Title Sequence, by Emru Townsend
Darwyn Cooke – The Bat and the Boy Scout, by Markisan Naso
Kristopher Carter – The Future Begins with Creamed Spinach
Batman vs. Age Discrimination
Alan Burnett – Older or Younger: Which Has Greater Appeal?
Bruce Timm – The Future On-Screen, by Brian Saner Lamken
Dave Chlystek – The Batman Beyond Connections
Paul Dini – Bat to the Future
Alan Burnett – Superman, Zeta, and Batman Beyond
Alan Burnett – Superman, Batman, and Batman Beyond
Jean MacCurdy – Meanwhile, at Warner Bros.
Dan Riba – Directing the Future
Stan Berkowitz – Batman’s Future Challenges, by Stu Hamilton
Bob Goodman – Future Batman, Future Man-Machine
Shaun McLaughlin – In Charge of Batman’s Allowance
Dave Chlystek – Storyboarding the Future
Bob Goodman – Batman Goes to High School
Stan Berkowitz – Creating Problems for the Future Batman
Rich Fogel – Making the Future Schway
Rich Fogel – Inspirations for the Tomorrow Knight, by James Strecker, Ted Kendrick and Mattie Washburn
Bruce Timm – Justice for All, by Brian Saner Lamken
Shayne Poindexter – So Many Props, So Little Time
Lolita Ritmanis – Composing the Future
Bruce Timm – Canned Laughter, by Brian Saner Lamken
Bruce Timm, Glen Murakami, Andrea Romano, James Tucker, Bob Goodman, Stan Berkowitz, Kevin Conroy, Will Friedle – Batman Beyond th Anniversary panel, , by Gary Miereanu
Dan Riba – Continuity in the Batman Universe
Paul Levitz – DC Goes Beyond, by Jeffrey Renaud
Mike Carlin – Keeping Batman in the Public Eye
The Zeta Project
Static Shock (Batman appearances only)
Justice League (Batman appearances only)
Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths
Justice League Unlimited (Batman appearances only)
Batman: Gotham Knight
Justice League vs. The Fatal Five
Contents
Dedication
Jerry Beck – Foreword
Contents
Introduction
Beyond Batman Beyond
Jean MacCurdy – Sunset on Gotham City and Burbank
Paul Dini – Batman and the Write Stuff
Bob Goodman – Creating The Zeta Project
Stan Berkowitz – Batman, Static and Zeta vs. the Focus Groups
Dave Chlystek – Batman’s Static Cling
Rich Fogel – Superman and Batman: Saved by the Cartoon Network!
Linda Simensky – Promoting the Creative Vision
Paul Dini – Reflections, by Archie the WBArchivist
Rich Fogel – Loading the Canon
Shaun McLaughlin – Managing the Watchtower
Dan Riba – Justice League and Beyond
Bruce Timm – Producer’s Choice: Superman or Batman?
Shaun McLaughlin – The Coolest Superhero
Bruce Timm – Writing for Justice League Unlimited, by Bruce Timm
Paul Levitz, Robert Greenberger, Shaun McLaughlin, Dan Riba, Alan Burnett, Bruce Timm, Mike Carlin – Forbidden Heroes
Kevin Altieri, Dan Riba, Mike Goguen – Part Four: Justice League, by Londyn Victoria Jackson
Michael McCuistion – Adapting to a Changing World
Kristopher Carter – Composing for the Dramatic and the Comedic
Lolita Ritmanis – Scores for the New Millennium
Bruce Timm – Gotham Anime
Mike Carlin – Justice League and the DC Direct-to-Videos
Eric Radomski – Low Budgets, High Tech
Kevin Altieri, Dan Riba, Mike Goguen – Part Five: Leaving the DCAU, by Londyn Victoria Jackson
Alan Burnett – From Super Friends to Justice League Action, by James Strecker and Ted Kendrick
Alan Burnett – Batman Enters the New Millennium
Bruce Timm – Closure for the DCAU and the Fate of Two-Face
Episode Guides
Caped Crusader Crossovers
Justice League
Static Shock
Justice League Unlimited
Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths
Justice League vs. The Fatal Five
Musicians of the DCAU, Part Four: Justice League
Review Samplers
Batman: Gotham Knight
Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths
Justice League vs. The Fatal Five
Batman: The Animated Legacy
J.J. Sedelmaier – How Batman: The Animated Series Changed Cartoons
Ron Marz, Mark Waid, Jeffrey Veregge, Paul Levitz, Mick Gray, Franco Aureliani, Fred Van Leute, Jim Zub, Brent Schoonover, Art Baltazar, Steve Orlando – Comics Creators Pick Favorite Batman: The Animated Series Episodes, by Dan Greenfield
Robert N. Skir – Being in the Right Place at the Right Time and Saying “Yes” at the Right Opportunities
Kevin Altieri, Dan Riba, Mike Goguen – Part Six: Legacy, by Londyn Victoria Jackson
Loren Lester, Kevin Conroy, Andrea Romano, Diane Pershing – What Made Batman: The Animated Series Iconic? Panel, 2018, by Byron Burton
Will Friedle, Kevin Conroy, Andrea Romano – Batman Beyond Cast Interview, by Gary Miereanu
Andrea Romano – Something Special Forever, by Andrew Pollard
Kevin Conroy, Will Friedle, John Glover – Why Batman Resonates 30 Years Later, by Londyn Victoria Jackson
Stan Berkowitz – Classic Dark Deco, Fresh New Takes
Paul Levitz – Luck of the Bat
Lolita Ritmanis – Batman: Animated Music for the Ages
Michael McCuistion – Scoring a Legend
Kristopher Carter – Ending on the Right Note
Shayne Poindexter – End of a Golden Era
John Calmette – Sony, Marvel, and the Batman Legacy
Jon Fisher – A Dream Job
Joe R. Lansdale – An Echo Through the Generations
Paul Dini – Batman’s Lasting Edge, by Andrew Pollard
Alan Burnett – The Best of All Worlds
Eric Radomski – Batman: The Animated Success
Bruce Timm – The Coolest Costume, by Joseph McCabe
Mike Carlin – Double Legacy
Shaun McLaughlin – Let Batman Be Batman
Michael Uslan – Achieving a Dream
The Bat-Signal Shines On
Batman: Caped Crusader press release
Parting Shots
Recommended Media
A Note About Names
Acknowledgements
That’s All, Folks!
About the Author
Index
