1963 Batmobile fetches US$137,000 at auction

Holy bargain, Batman! The original Batmobile fetched US$137,000 at auction, a small fraction of the US$4.2 million that a buyer paid last year for another version built for the television show that aired during the 1960s.

It was the first time the 1963 Batmobile, a replica of the car used by the DC Comics superhero, was up for auction since it was cast off and forgotten decades ago, according to Dallas-based Heritage Auctions, which handled the sale. Information about the buyer was not given. "This is a great piece of lost pop culture and Americana," said Margaret Barrett, a Heritage Auctions spokeswoman.

The car was put up for auction by Toy Car Exchange LLC, an online marketplace for collectible cars, which bought it and had it restored to pristine condition.

It was the creation of Forrest Robinson, a Batman fan who spent three years customising a 1956 Oldsmobile 88 with a 324 Rocket engine to resemble the vehicle depicted in DC's Batman Comics from the 1940s and 1950s. He finished in 1963.

Robinson's Batmobile was completed before George Barris began building a Batmobile for the ABC TV series Batman, which aired for three seasons until 1968. The Barris Batmobile sold at auction in January last year for US$4.2 million.

The show's popularity made Robinson's Batmobile such a sensation that a DC Comics licensee leased the car and rebranded it Batman's Batmobile for touring.

Eventually, replicas were made of the TV Batmobile, and Robinson's car was returned. He sold it a few years later. It did not resurface until 2008 when it was found rusting in a field.