Warner Bros today "leaked out" some official photos of Anne Hathaway as Selina Kyle ( Catwoman ) from THE DARK KNIGHT RISES Batman Movie. She's wearing a sleek black "Super Spy" High-Tech Outfit & I think it has more to do with her in her "Selina Kyle" Persona than as Catwoman, the Villain. It looks like she is stealing the BAT-POD Motorcycle Prototype from Gotham University! But anyway, to celebrate we have taken the best high-resolution photo we could find & made these two ANNE HATHAWAY DESKTOP WALLPAPERS, enjoy!
One of the coolest things about the last Batman film, The Dark Knight, was the amazing BAT-POD Motorcycle. This thing was totally custom & very well designed. I mean, it was CRAZY! Shown here are 2 Videos that are sort of like mini-documentaries. They both cover information about the vehicle movie prop in high detail & are also very entertaining to watch, enjoy.
OK, Everybody has seen the Famous Custom Bat-Pod that was recently on eBay & here it is! Here are some amazing photos, sent in by a Bat-Blog Fan named Marc, of an extremely cool BAT-POD Motorcycle from THE DARK KNIGHT Batman Movie that he recently made. Yes, he really made this thing & it works! It was built / fabricated by Marc and his brother Shanon at their shop in Melbourne, Florida. Ironically they took over the building that was previously occupied by Billy Lane of Choppers Inc. ( the Discovery Channel "Biker Build -Off" Winner ). They thought it would be a great location to build bikes. Marc & his brother have been extreme comic book fans since they were very young and they love a challenge whenever possible. His Brother asked him if he could build the Batpod and after looking at the bike online a few times they agreed to build it, mostly because of the challenge involved. Most everyone who has seen the bike said it was un-buildable. That's all the motivation they needed, ha!
They started by scaling the dimensions from pictures they acquired online of the original bike. After much measuring and calculations to achieve the necessary balance and weight distribution, they began to build it. The bike is constructed from 1/4 inch solid steel plate and 1/4 wall thickness steel tubing. Unfortunately there are no kits or parts available for this bike so every piece had to be made from scratch. This proved to be much more of a task than they had imagined in the beginning. It's amazing how many tiny little brackets and parts are on that bike. But the goal from the beginning was to achieve absolute authenticity. So they continued welding and cutting and grinding until the finished product was what they wanted. The motor covers, gun mounts and arm guards are made from hand laid fiberglass. The finish is a mat nickel and a mat black. Also, to remain true to the original, the bike is powered by a 650cc Honda XR motor. All of the chains and drive lines are hidden internally inside the frame. The rims had to be specially made to achieve the necessary off-set for balance and handling. Marc said that he has been the only person willing ( or stupid enough, ha ha ) to ride it yet. And it is far from a comfortable ride. But it is by far the most unique and attention grabbing thing he has ever built or ridden. To say that it gets attention is like saying the Atlantic ocean is a puddle. Everywhere they take the Batpod they get mobbed by people with a million questions and requests to take pictures with the bike. It's really great to see how many super comic fans are out there. Many of them are hardcore bikers that you would never think were comic fans. But they all love it! That kind of response has made the 1500+ hours of building and the numerous cuts and burns worthwhile.
And for all the Sci-Fi Fans out there, the next project they're working on is an exact working street legal replica of the Light Cycle from the new TRON LEGACY movie! It will be an all electric bike.
As an extra bonus, here is a Wallpaper Desktop Background of their Custom Bat-Pod!
OK, If you're planning to go to the 2009 San Diego Comic Con be sure to hit the Mattel Booth for an EXCLUSIVE Hot Wheels THE DARK KNIGHT Batman Movie Tumbler Batmobile and Bat-Pod Motorcycle Set! They have been keeping it pretty top secret but a reader named Tony sent us this amazing photo. Basically it's a Window-Boxed Set of 2 vehicles from the Dark Knight film. The way the vehicles are displayed inside the dox it looks like the Bat-Cycle is bursting out of the Tumbler batmobile Car...SWEET! I have also heard they will be the 1:50 Scale size...AWESOME! As we get more SDCC '09 information we'll have better pics later, so stay tuned to the Bat-Blog for more info!( Thank You Tony, You ROCK, Sir! )
I was pleasantly surprised the other night to receive an e-mail from a Bat-Blog Reader named Lee who lives in the UK. He had some really wonderful photos of the original BAT-POD Motorcycle & a few Prop Costumes from THE DARK KNIGHT Batman movie. He explained in his letter, "Hi Tom, my name is Lee, I'm from Manchester, England and I am a huge BATMAN fan. Last year I was lucky enough to get a glimpse (and a cheeky feel) of the Bat-Pod and I was also lucky to see all the costumes in glass display units. I have been looking at your website for about 2 years now and find it really interesting, especially being a collector myself. Also once I get all my collection together I will send you some pics. I have some really wicked stuff like Hot Toys, Model Kits, Action Figures, and a few really rare items. Anyway, keep up the brilliant website! I have attached some pictures of that day I went to see the costumes and Bat-Pod. The picture with the guy in a white t-shirt & brown hat is me!" Cool, very cool! Thank you for sending these great pics Lee & also for the kind words about this blog! Getting to meet Bat-Fans from all over the world is really exciting for me. On a side note I am totally jealous you got to see the real Bat-Pod & these cool costumes, that's a Super-RARE opportunity! It's really neat that Warner Bros displayed this stuff so far away, in the UK. So tell me honestly, did you totally want to steal the Bat-Pod? I know I would have, Ha Ha!
This video was shot last September at a Movie Park in Germany. It's a very well detailed view of the original BAT-POD Motorcycle used in the Dark Knight Batman movie.
OK, a Bat-Blog Reader sent me this photo the other day & it totally cracks me up! This is a "Homemade Bat-Pod" Motorcycle. It's just like the one used by Batman in The Dark Knight movie! Well, not exactly "just like it", because this one is made out of cardboard, bubble wrap ( tire tread ), black duct tape & LOVE, ha ha! The cool thing is that the Bat-Signal Headlight actually works. Come on, ya gotta love this thing, it's great ART!!
Every Wednesday we post some free Batman desktop wallpapers...it's called "Wacky Wallpaper Wednesday "! Well, I was gonna post some this afternoon but got busy with some personal problems, sorry. So, here they are now & just before midnight, ha ha! The 1st one is an image from the current BATMAN R.I.P. storyline & it was found at the official DC Comics website. The other graphic is the "Blueprints" of the Bat-Pod Motorcycle from The Dark Knight movie...enjoy!
For "Wacky Wallpaper Wednesday" I thought I would post these 3 promotional Batman Desktop Wallpapers that were created by the Danix Company to hype The Dark Knight movie! Danix make cookies in Brazil & they recently did a promo with Warner Bros. The artwork is pretty awesome, so enjoy!
Target Stores have an "Exclusive" Movie Master Batman Action Figure Vehicle! It's the BAT-POD Motorcycle from THE DARK KNIGHT movie. The detailing looks pretty sharp & at only $19.99 they are going quick so hurry!
Every Wednesday is "Wacky Wallpaper Wednesday" at the Bat-Blog so I thought I would post these 2 Batman Desktop Backgrounds that are scans from a Japanese Magazine Advertisement for the new Bandai "The Dark Knight" Batman Figure & Bat-Pod Vehicle. Later this year Bandai will be releasing a special Batman Figure & Bat-Pod that a lot of collectors are really excited about. I'll be doing a post about it later but for now just drool over these pics, enjoy!
A good friend to the Bat-Blog, named Matt, sent us these extremely cool photos showing the original Tumbler Batmobile & Bat-Pod. These were actually used in THE DARK KNIGHT Batman movie! They were on display at the Six Flags Theme Park in St. Louis, MO. Matt works for a newspaper & they sent him there for a story ( how lucky is that ). The pics show the vehicles from a few angles & are pretty nice. It must have been awesome seeing these in real-life. Thanks Matt for sharing these ( I'm jealous, ha ha ).
A new trading card company called PLAYGROUND MANIACS has come out with a really neat concept. They sell these packs of THE DARK KNIGHT Collectible Stickers & you get a free Mini-Figure in each pack! Each package contains 8 stickers & 1 figure. There are 180 stickers total to collect & 6 mini-figures. They also make a "Collectible Sticker Album" for you to put the stickers in. The figures include: 1 Joker, 1 Tumbler Batmobile, 1 Bat-Pod Motorcycle, & 3 Different Variations of Batman. The only place I have seen these so far are Target Stores. I bought one pack & got a "Batman Standing" figure...pretty neat! I plan on getting all 6 figures. The Batman I got is almost 3" tall.Be sure to click on the above image for a larger photo, the figures are kinda neat!
A friend to the Bat-Blog, named Andrew, wrote that he was excited to know that The Dark Knight had finally hit France ( he lives near there ) because he saw this ad in a French Newspaper! It shows some of the Batman Action Figures & the Tumbler Batmobile with Bat-Pod...very cool! The next picture is a TDK item from the Philippines that was sent to me by Billy, a friend who lives in my hometown. He won this item on eBay. It's a really neat "Tumbler Batmobile Cereal Bowl with Batman-Shaped Spoon" you can get as a give-away premium in a Nestle KOKO KRUNCH Cereal Box. I'm gonna have to get one of those...the box design is really cool. Thanks guys for sending these wonderful photos, I appreciate that! I want to invite ALL Bat-Blog Readers to do the same, no matter where you live!
Over at the Popular Mechanics Magazine website a reporter, named Erin Scottberg, interviews Nathan Crowley, the production designer for The Dark Knight Batman movie. The main focus was the creation of the Bat-Pod motorcycle & the problems they had maneuvering a bike with such HUGE tires! Pretty interesting.
Ever since I saw that scene, at the end of BATMAN BEGINS, where Jim Gordon hands a Joker Playing Card ( in a police evidence bag ) over to Batman & Batman replies, "I'll check into it" we have known that the next movie was gonna have The Joker! For awhile there was wild speculation as to which actor would be this character. Then we all heard the name "Heath Ledger". To be honest, at first, I thought it was a weird choice. But, I put my trust in Christopher Nolan's decision & look what has happened. All the news reports & reviews are saying that Ledger's performance is easily Oscar worthy. That he plays the Joker with incredible skill. Well, I'm really excited about that & tonight, after waiting almost 2 years, some friends & I are gonna go to a special midnight showing! I'm totally excited & really looking forward to this film. OK, sorry to go on & on. Let's get to the reason of this post. I thought, to celebrate the movie, I would post 2 DARK KNIGHT Desktop Background Wallpapers! The 1st one is a montage of a few different Batman TDK Movie Posters. This one was created & sent in by a Bat-Blog Reader named Levi. I think it looks really cool, thanks Levi & GOOD JOB! I made the 2nd one & it's the classic scene with the Bat-Pod motorcycle crashing though the window of a Gotham City building. I hope you enjoy both of these!
While trying to decide what images to use this week for "Wacky Wallpaper Wednesday" I came up with these two choices. The 1st one is the awesome new toy vehicle by HOT TOYS, The Dark Knight Bat-Pod & 12" Batman Figure!! I love this photo because it's such an interesting action shot. Plus, these toys are very cool! The 2nd desktop background is a new image from the production art of the new animated series coming from The Cartoon Network, Batman: The Brave and The Bold! I hope you enjoy both of these & if you have any suggestions of any Batman Wallpaper you might want then just simply shoot us an e-mail & let us know...we aim to please!
As reported here at the Bat-Blog earlier this week it seems the Toyota Racing Team has joined forces with Warner Bros to promote the new DARK KNIGHT Batman Movie. Well, here's a video! ( Thanks Guenter for sending this in ).
Well, it looks like TOYOTA RACING has teamed up with Warner Bros to promote the new Batman movie THE DARK KNIGHT. Yeah, like they need MORE help hyping this movie, ha ha! But Toyota has created this special Toyota F-1 Race Car with TDK graphics & it's pretty cool! To be honest I am not that much of a racing fan but I do respect the drivers for their talents & always appreciate the beauty of the special cars they drive. The race car premiered itself the other day & both the Tumbler Batmobile & Bat-Pod Motorcycle were there. Here's some nice photos!
