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The Spook



PAUL DINI'S COMMENTS ON POSSIBLE SHOW APPEARANCE: "NOPE."

My Comments: The Spook could be an interesting addition to a new Batman show. However, Gentleman Ghost seems the more likely spirit to make an appearance.

POSSIBLE VOICE ACTOR CHOICE: Christopher Walken
He'd probably never do it, but he'd rock as the spectral Spook!

THE SPOOK'S COMIC ORIGIN:
REAL NAME: Val Kaliban
FIRST APPEARANCE: Detective Comics #434
ORIGIN: Val Kaliban was an architectural draftsman for a legal engineering firm involved in city planning for Gotham City. Kaliban tampered with the plans for its maximum security prison, to permit the construction of a network of secret passages throughout the prison. After the prison was built, Kaliban intended to use the secret passages to release convicts for a high price. Kaliban murdered his superior at the engineering firm, because he had learned of Kaliban's plan. Sentenced to die in the electric chair, Kaliban found a look-alike and somehow substituted the lookalike for himself. The double was executed, while Kaliban, believed dead, remained at large. Kaliban then made certain that the Gotham maximum security prison was built the way he desired. Ten years after his supposed execution, Kaliban, in the costumed guise of The Spook, offered "escape insurance" policies to criminals for a price. The Spook guaranteed that he would free any of his policy holders who were imprisoned. After the Spook succeeded in breaking a number of criminals out of prison, Batman discovered the secret passages, and captured and unmasked the Spook. However, no prison has yet been able to hold the Spook for long, as he is apparently a master escape artist. ((from 'Who's Who in the DC Universe'))

In later stories, it became unclear whether or not the Spook was, in actuality, a ghost. Recently, the Spook was re-invented in the 'Legends of the Dark Knight' comic book, making his status as a living person very unclear.

SPECIAL COMMENTS: Prior to leaving the 'Gotham Adventures' comic, Ty Templeton mentioned that he wanted to use the Spook in the animated comic. Now that Ty's back on the animated Batman title, perhaps we will see this villain in an animated style tale! 

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