The Penguin Declines The Penguin Declines "The Penguin Declines" is the 73rd episode of "Batman", the conclusion of a three-part story in its second season on ABC. Its original telecast occurred on January 18, 1967 with a rerun June 21, 1967. It guest-starred Cesar Romero as Joker and Burgess Meredith as Penguin. In the previous episode, Batman and Joker's former henchwoman Venus are chained in a water pit where a giant clam has (almost) already swallowed Robin. Using every ounce of his strength, Batman bursts free of his chains, rushes over to the clam and pries it open long enough to rescue Robin
Burgess Meredith Theater Royal in Bath, England in 1963. He played Hamlet in "avant garde" theatrical and radio productions of the play. A distinguished theatre director, he won a Tony Award nomination for his 1974 Broadway staging of "Ulysses in Nighttown", a theatrical adaptation of the "Nighttown" section of James Joyce's "Ulysses". Meredith also shared a Special Tony Award with James Thurber for their collaboration on "A Thurber Carnival" (1960). In the late seventies, he directed Fionnula Flanagan's one-woman multi-role play "James Joyce's Women," which toured for several years. Early in his career, Meredith attracted favorable attention, especially for playing George in