To be a fan of Superman or Batman or most of the "major" comic book heroes is to endure long stretches of their comic books where you think the stories suck and you wonder if the folks in charge know anything about the character they're despoiling. You also have to ignore (or if you're smart, avoid) some of the adaptations of the character into other media.
In 1943, Columbia Pictures produced a 15-episode serial called Batman, featuring the then-new star of DC Comics. Lewis Wilson and Douglas Croft starred as Batman and Robin. If you love those characters, it's a good adaptation to avoid…or maybe not. It was, after all, the first screen depiction of the Caped Crusader and the Boy Wonder. It's also not a bad serial for its era and not a bad example of "high camp" for the sixties, when this thing was exhibited in movie theaters and inspired the Adam West series, which to some extent was a parody of this. Also, a few elements of it — like Batman having his Bat Cave — soon made it into the comics.
Beginning this Saturday morning, Turner Classic Movies is running one chapter a week — consult your schedule for the precise time. I doubt anyone will watch all fifteen chapters but you might want to check out the first one. It doesn't get any better than that (or any more racially-sensitive) but it probably doesn't get any worse.