Yvonne Craig passed away on Monday at her home in the Pacific Palisades at age 78. She died after a two-year battle with breast cancer.
Craig was a professionally trained ballet dancer. She was the youngest member of her ballet company. She utilized her ballet moves in her acting career. Her ballet played a huge role with her characters of Batgirl and the Orion Slave Girl.
She began her acting career by accident. A producer attempted to pull Craig into acting but she refused. Eventually she relented and started acting when Director John Ford’s son asked if she was an actress. Her first movie was The Young Land with Patrick Wayne (John Wayne’s son).
She was best known for her role as Batgirl on the 1960s live action Batman television series. The Batman television series asked DC Comics create a character that the network could use on the show. They created the character of Batgirl. Yvonne Craig became the Batgirl on the series and in our hearts. She became a hero and idol to both boys and girls for generations.
During the 60s, women were not the heroes. They were the love interests and the damsels to be rescued by the heroes. Yvonne Craig broke the mold. After Batgirl rocked television, we got other strong females like Emma Peel, Wonder Woman, and Jamie Sommers.
I remember watching the Batman television show reruns as a kid. I loved this cheesy superhero television series. The first time I saw Yvonne as Batgirl, I was mesmerized by her mere presence. Since that moment, I always hoped for a Batgirl episode when I watched Batman.
Craig had another icon role. She was Star Trek’s Marta, the Orion Slave Girl. The green-skinned beauty. Her character could control any human male with her pheromone. I saw this episode as a ten-year old boy. All I can say is “Oh Wow!”
Yvonne Craig originally was a reluctant actress. But she left a mark on our society and proved that female heroes could go toe to toe with anyone. She will always be my Batgirl.
(via CNN)
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