Zelda the Great

Zelda the Great
General Information
Real name:	Zelda (Surname unknown)
Aliases:	The Bank Bandit
Portrayed by:	Anne Baxter
Appearances:	Batman (1960s series)

Zelda the Great, also know as the "Bank Bandit", was a villainess created for the 1960s Batman television series. She was portrayed by Anne Baxter. Unlike other villains of the Batman series, she didn't commit crime for personal profit, but to pay her ally, Eivol Ekdol to make her annual escape device. Otherwise she made her living as a magician. She was known for being clever and being able to keep up with Batman during her only appearances.

History

Every year on April Fools Day, Zelda would rob a bank of exactly $100,000 to pay Eivol Ekdol of her annual big escape trap. After two years on the case, Commissioner Gordon called in Batman and Robin to solve the case. With virtually no leads, thanks to Zelda's careful planning, Batman decided to make one by planting a pair of phony stories. The first was that the money the Bank Bandit had stolen was counterfeit that was in the vault awaiting transport to be disposed. The other was that a rare emerald would be on display at Stonewall's Jewelry for one day only, it's value was $100,000. While Zelda and Eivol believed the story about the counterfeit money, Zelda saw through the other one saying it was too convenient a target. A quick scouting trip confirmed her suspicions. As a result she before stealing the emerald, just to taunt the dynamic duo, she arranges the kidnap of Aunt Harriet for the necessary money. As Aunt Harriet is lured outside to meet the special taxi, she was met with a terrycloth rag tied around her mouth by one of her kidnappers. As Aunt Harriet moaned and struggled, a sedative was sprayed in her face. She slumped into the arms of her abductors. The two men dragged her away from the door and out to the car. She is spirited away. The men encase her inside a black nylon straitjacket, and cover her face with a green silk scarf. Once there, Aunt Harriet is dragged inside. Aunt Harriet awakens and struggles inside her bonds. Zelda sprays her scarfed covered face one more time with knockout gas. They drag her to the vat. Zelda has them attach Aunt Harriet to a cable. She is hoisted in the air to dangle over a vat of boiling oil. As the heat starts to rise, it wakes Aunt Harriet. She kicked her nylon stocking feet in a frenzy from the overwhelming heat. Zelda sat in her chair knitting. Watching television. She would glance over at Aunt Harriet now and again. Smiling to the sounds of her moaning through her gag. Zelda heard a thud and watched as Aunt Harriets' repeated kicking caused her shoes to fall from her nylon covered feet. The first shoe hitting the wall. The other into the boiling oil. Aunt Harriet would bend her knees to keep her exposed sheer pantyhosed feet from the heat. If Zelda's demands are not met, she plans to release the cable and drop Aunt Harriet into the vat of boiling oil!

Known Associates

• Eivol Ekdol - A strange Albanian genius who made the various escape devices for Zelda each year for the price of $100,000. Unlike Zelda, Eivol was truly crooked and his high prices were the reason she had take up crime.

Appearances

• Season 1
  • Zelda The Great/A Death Worse Than Fate

Notes

• While Zelda never appeared again, Anne Baxter did in season 3 as Olga, Queen of Cossacks. This marked her as the only guest actor to play two different villains