The one-two punch of James Bond’s Aston Martin DB-5 (with modifications) on the big screen and Batman’s Batmobile on TV heralded a wave of supercars in American popular culture.
Any superhero worth his salt requires some fleet and flashy form of transportation. And for those who — regrettably — cannot fly, wonderful wheels will make an effective substitute.
Of course, the long-popular concept predated both Batman and Bond. The Green Hornet had thrilled radio listeners with his super-powered Black Beauty beginning in 1936 (the vehicle was meant to parallel his great-uncle’s wonder horse, Silver).
The Spirit started with a flying car in the 1940s’ Sunday newspapers, but discarded it fairly quickly. Green Arrow — who resembled Batman in so many ways — kept his “Arrow-Plane,” though he later gave it the more accurate name “Arrow-Car.” And in 1962, British puppeteer Gerry Anderson gave us the land/sea/air vehicle called Supercar.
Audiences first saw 007’s Aston Martin, with its lethal array of “defense mechanism controls,” on Dec. 22, 1964, when Goldfinger was released. And they got their first look at a real Batmobile — designed and constructed by George Barris from a $250,000 1955 Ford Lincoln Futura concept car — when the Caped Crusader’s hit TV show premiered on Jan. 12, 1966.
You know how it is. Then everybody had to have one.
Archie Comics’ revived Golden Age crimefighter, the Fox, tooled around in the Fox Car, beginning in Mighty Crusaders 4 (April 1966) and continuing in Mighty Comics 49 (Aug. 1967).
The Sandman, reintroduced in his original 1930s’ costume complete with gasmask, showed up in a cherry-red convertible Sand-Car in Justice League of America 46 (Aug. 1966).
And the original Atom acquired a real convertible — an ordinary car that instantly converted into an Atomobile — for The Atom 29 (Feb.-March 1967).
Cars became so super, in fact, that it seemed likely that they’d eventually start talking and take over the action from the hero. And that’s exactly what happened in Knight Rider (NBC, 1982-86).
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