Hey, bat-fan, if you thought those “Batman” TV show DVDs were the coolest cape crusader-themed gift you could buy this holiday season, the joke’s on you.
What’s billed as the oldest-known “Batmobile” is being offered by Heritage Auctions.
The custom car was designed in the early 1960s, years before George Barris got to work on the iconic car that would carry Adam West and Burt Ward into the camp hall of fame.
Built for fun by New Hampshire teenager Forrest Robinson, the curvaceous Oldsmobile-based coupe caught the eye of a representative for All Star Dairy, which was selling a line of Batman ice cream and drink products at the time.
The company leased the car for Robinson for a few years to use at promotional events under its official Batman license, but the design wasn't adopted by DC Comics in print or on film. It was then sold a few times and neglected, its deteriorated hulk finally ending up on eBay last year.
Sid Belzberg, owner of ToyCarExchange.com, bought it and shipped it to Borbon Fabrications in Sacramento for a full, 1,700 man-hour restoration, which was completed this past winter. It won the first car show it was entered in.
Absentee bidding opens on November 17th and the hammer comes down on December 6th. The opening bid is $90,000, a bargain compared to the $4.2 million that one of the TV show cars sold for in January.