From Ballet to the Batcave & Beyond

by Yvonne Craig

A humorous but extremely candid autobiography encompassing Ms. Craig's show business career. Starting as the youngest member of the famed Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo and segueing to a Hollywood movie and TV career, she shares her experiences both on and offscreen with Elvis, Bill Bixby, Howard Hughes, Mort Sahl, James Coburn and numerous others. Ms. Craig appeared as the green Orion slave girl in Star Trek as well as playing "Batgirl" in the Batman TV series.

Genres: Biography, Autobiography, Batman

205 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2000

About the author

Yvonne Joyce Craig was an American ballet dancer and actress best known for her role as Batgirl from the 1960s television series Batman, and as the Orion slave girl Marta in the Star Trek episode “Whom Gods Destroy”.

Reviews

[Barry Midgorden · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was tempted to rate this five stars based solely on the fact I feel a personal connection with the author through my mother, who was childhood best friends with “Bobbie,” as my Mom knew Yvonne. I was also a big fan of the Batman TV series of the mid-1960s when I was in early grade school. My brother and I would dress up in our Batman and Robin costumes my mother made for us and act out the characters' shenanigans as we watched on a black-and-white television set.

I enjoyed the book very much, learning about my Mom's childhood friend and an actress who I mostly only knew as Batgirl and Marta the Orion slave girl from the Star Trek episode, “Whom Gods Destroy.” The book does live up to its title, chronicling Ms. Craig’s professional career. It’s not a full autobiography of her life, however. That’s not a fault but a choice the author made.

The tone of Ms. Craig’s writing is very conversational as if she were in the room telling these stories to you personally, which I really liked. Overall, she is generous and complimentary when relating her adventures and experiences with the numerous actors, directors, and other film and television professionals with which she worked. She doesn’t pull any punches, however, when sharing her less-than-complimentary opinions of certain coworkers, situations, and Hollywood culture.

It is a dense narrative but I thought at times sparse in details and somewhat disjointed. The chapters are relatively short, which makes it a pretty easy read. Although I didn’t read all the details, she includes her entire filmography — 30 pages worth — for both film and television from 1957 to 1990, including a detailed episode-by-episode list of the third and final season of Batman when she played Barbara Gordon, aka Batgirl. There are a number of films I now want to find and watch.

[Aundrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was special.
I do wish she had been able recount either the years, or her age at the time for most of the stories to give a good frame of reference for some of the events.

[Tom Schulte · Rating 3 out of 5]

this is a fun memoir from a plucky actress that can recall working with Elvis, Shatner, Mort Sahl, and more. From her ballet career she stumbled into acting in movies with notable TV appearances as Batgirl, green-skinned Marta on Star Trek and more. Her brief orbit in the creepy and controlling world of Howard Hughes was among the most interesting chapters.

[Cary O'Dell · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book filled with lively stories and wit and warmth and heart.

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve been slowly making my way through this dense-packed book. It’s only 166 pages (not counting the detailed Filmography) but not a quick read as it is full of incidents between Yvonne Craig and popular screen stars of the sixties and seventies. My copy of the book is inscribed to me and was a gift from the author. Yvonne and I were best friends in grade school and then again in high school for a short time. During the years Yvonne was with the Ballet Russe, I lost track of her, but then started seeing her in movie and TV roles. An interesting coincidence was that my oldest son was a Batman fan (as millions of others); so when Yvonne appeared as Batgirl in the series, he thought it was neat that I had known her. Fast forward to the early 2000’s when I wrote Yvonne. She responded with this book and pictures of her as Batgirl for my two sons. Reading this book has been poignant for me as she died in 2015. Bobbie, as she was known to me, was not only a beautiful woman, she was brilliant, and could have done anything she set her mind to.

[Dave Dellecese · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yvonne Craig’s book was fantastic. Like all good memoirs, the voice shines through and makes you feel like she’s right there telling you stories. And can she dish! Loved it. If you ever come across a used copy at a decent price, use your Bat-Rope and snag one.

[Debbie is on Storygraph · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I found out that Yvonne Craig (of Batgirl fame) had written an autobiography, I searched high and low for a copy and discovered with some disappointment that it was out of print. I then found out that Ms. Craig was selling autographed copies on her website for $25 and snatched one up. Before going into the actual contents of the book, I would have to say that the book had the absolute worst cover I had ever seen--it looked like something slapped together in Photoshop without any thought of color scheme or just common sense. That said, I thoroughly enjoyed the book despite my being a generation too young to have seen much of her work. I grew up with the old campy Batman TV shows in reruns as a child and that was how I best knew Yvonne Craig; she was one of my heroes growing up. Her book was nice and chatty without getting too gossipy and despite having heard of very little of the actors she was talking and seen almost nothing of the movies/shows she related her experiences in, I enjoyed her stories and found her 'voice' to be very likable and honest. Plus, some very nice pictures towards the middle.

[Ward G · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is light reading.
YET it is also very interesting.

It is amazing, the amount of well known, and amazing names.
That Yvonne had interaction with, during her career.

I love hearing her snarky side as well.
Playfully catching Adam West off guard.
Not to mention her take on Captain Kirk.

It is made up of several short chapters. Various points in her life.
I may have given it 5 stars. If some of the main areas. Had been given more space.
I am sure, she had much more to tell.

I simply love her spirit, and her input sense of fun.
Added with some heart.

Plus she is open, and honest. Not just about her co stars. Her own failings and short comings as well.

You like real tales, hollywood and acting.
Give her book a read.

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as trashy as Adam West's or Burt Ward's books about the bat years.