Not Just Batman’s Butler

In January 1966, Alan Napier became a household name on ABC’s hit series Batman (1966–1968) as Alfred Pennyworth, loyal butler to the show’s title character. This “overnight success” came after 16 years of stage work (and the occasional film) in his native England and 26 years of film and television work (and the occasional play) in the United States.
In the early 1970s, Napier wrote an autobiography, detailing his childhood as a “poor relation” of the famous Birmingham political family the Chamberlains (Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain was a cousin), and his collaborations over the years with the likes of John Gielgud, Laurence Olivier, George Bernard Shaw, Noël Coward, Fritz Lang, Otto Preminger and Alfred Hitchcock.
Almost 30 years after Napier’s death, James Bigwood, who first read the manuscript in 1975 when interviewing the actor for a Films in Review profile, has prepared it for publication.
This is Alan Napier’s story in his own words, annotated and updated, with dozens of rare photographs.

James Bigwood has written articles for American Film and American Cinematographer. He is also a television producer whose credits include Being Mary Jane, The Red Road, Mercy, Lipstick Jungle and The Black Donnellys. He lives in Atlanta, Georgia.

Alan Napier with James Bigwood
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 392
Bibliographic Info: 91 photos & illustrations, appendices, index
Copyright Date: 2015
pISBN: 978-1-4766-6287-9
eISBN: 978-1-4766-2289-7
Imprint: McFarland

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments (James Bigwood) v
Introduction (James Bigwood) 1
Part One: Birmingham
Prologue: The Reason Why 6
1. Nanny and Mother Do Their Best 7
2. The Family Click 11
3. Napierolatry 15
4. Chamberlain in Excelsis 19
5. The Grove—Cast Iron 23
6. Tennal Grange—Non-Ferrous 29
7. Heritage 42
8. Trailing Clouds of Glory 48
9. Intimations of Immorality 56
10. A Talent Is Discovered 59
11. Fish Out of Water 66
12. Into the Swim 70
Part Two: London
13. A Year of Grace 74
14. Benevolent Deity 81
15. Where Is Fancy Bred? 88
16. Breakthrough 97
17. Bitter Sweet Days 107
18. Marie Tempest and Gerald du Maurier 114
19. A Lesson in Drama 129
20. Near Misses and Sweet Aloes 132
21. On the Rocks 145
22. Ibsen, Shaw and Sayers 149
23. Tomorrow to Fresh Woods 160
24. Filling Quotas (James Bigwood) 167
25. Crossing the Pond 173
Part Three: America
26. From Sea to Shining Sea 176
27. A Toe in the Door 181
28. Old Friends and New Experiences 185
29. Broadway 192
30. Down to Earth 196
31. Meeting Gip 199
32. Take One (James Bigwood) 204
33. Marrying Gip 208
34. Take Two (James Bigwood) 217
35. Dogs 222
36. Take Three (James Bigwood) 224
37. Mountains 238
38. Take Four (James Bigwood) 241
39. Don’t Talk Politics to Adolphe Menjou 244
40. Give My Regards to Broadway 251
41. Take Five (James Bigwood) 265
42. Family Affairs 273
43. Friends 278
44. Television (James Bigwood) 286
45. Journey’s End 294
46. More Television (James Bigwood) 297
47. Patriarch 306
48. Batman 307
49. Alfred the Butler (James Bigwood) 308
50. After Batman 314
51. The Vortex (James Bigwood) 320
52. Back to Work (James Bigwood) 323
53. Hitchcock, Hubbard and Hawkins (James Bigwood) 331
54. Family and Friends (James Bigwood) 335
55. One Role Too Many (James Bigwood) 339
56. Writing (James Bigwood) 340
57. Last Hurrah (James Bigwood) 343
58. Playing Oneself (James Bigwood) 348
59. Batman Redux (James Bigwood) 353
60. The End (James Bigwood) 357
61. Memorial (James Bigwood) 359
Appendix A. Acting Credits 361
On the Stage    361
On the Big Screen (Films)    368
On the Small Screen (Television)    372
Appendix B. How to Approach a Production of Shaw’s Heartbreak House (Alan Napier) 375
Index 379

“A treasure”—Examiner; “Jim Bigwood has done us all a great favor by bringing Alan Napier’s autobiography to print”—It’s About TV!.