Updated June 11, 2017 14:13:10

Photo: Adam West as Batman and Burt Ward as Robin in the classic 1960s TV series Batman. (Supplied: Adam West)

Before Michael Keaton, Val Kilmer, George Clooney, Christian Bale and Ben Affleck donned Batman's cape in a stream of Hollywood blockbusters, there was Adam West.

When he put on the tights, he stoked the stoicism for laughs: a superhero letting everyone know he was in on the joke.

West has died after "a short but brave battle with leukemia", his family said. He was 88.

There are many to choose from, but here are some of West's most iconic scenes as Batman:

Batman v shark

"Hand me down the shark repellent bat spray!"

One of the most memorable moments comes not from the TV series but from the Batman 66 movie, where West takes on a shark while dangling from the Batcopter on a ladder.

As the shark munches on Batman's leg, he calls up to Robin in the cockpit to fetch shark repellent — the ever-prepared crime fighter also had baracuda, whale and manta ray sprays on hand.

Robin, played by Burt Ward, gets the oceanic spray to Batman by performing a back bend manoeuvre, and before too long, the shark is dropping back into the ocean like a bomb.

Batman v bomb

"Some days you just can't get rid of a bomb."

Batman frantically runs around with a giant bomb that is threatening to explode, attempting to get rid of it in yet another display of heroism.

But every time he goes to throw it, there are innocent civilians and animals in the firing line.

The batusi

'I'll just stand at the bar. I shouldn't wish to attract attention."

The premiere episode of the Batman TV show debuted a superhero with a flare for dancing and an weakness for attractive women.

All eyes are on Batman as he enters a bar and tells a waiter he will stand at the bar to avoid attention — but in moments he is on the dance floor performing the batusi — a parody of the 1960s dance craze, the "watusi".

The second part of the above clip shows Batman in a later episode taking the batusi to another level when he dances for King Tut's amusement.

Batman v tiger

"TTFN: Tata for now."

Like in the case of the shark, Batman was never going to take down a deadly feline with his bare hands, so he employed one of his outrageous and ingenious gadgets to do the job.

Scaling up the wall of the enclosure, Batman puts on a pair of Bat ear-plugs, and reverses the frequency on his Bat communicator to create a pitch that subdues the tiger, allowing him to escape.

Batman v Catwoman

"I can't kill the only man that I've..."

There are endless scenes of Batman and Catwoman, played by Julie Newmar, grappling with being foes in love.

Catwoman normally harnessed her sexual prowess to disarm Batman, but in this scene from The Bat's Kow Tow in season two, she confesses her feelings for Batman.

Newmar paid tribute to West following his death.

"Stellar, exemplar, a king to the end," she said.

"He was bright, witty and fun to work with. I will miss him in the physical world and savour him always in the world of imagination and creativity. He meant so much to people."

Topics: film-movies, television, actor, united-states

First posted June 11, 2017 11:51:29