Continuity mistake: The Joker sends a doll crashing through the window of Commissioner Gordon's office. O'Hara is holding in close-up the doll in a different way from the wider shots, and the jester cap of the figurine is also blatantly folded in a different fashion. (00:18:30)
Smack in the Middle (2) - S1-E2
Continuity mistake: After the Garbo joke, the various extras begin to pass out from the gas with multiple inconsistencies between shots. In the shot that follows the joke, the woman with the red and black dress is fainting, but she's back up in the next, in which the policeman goes down, only to be up in the one later, etc. (00:19:35)
Smack in the Middle (2) - S1-E2
Continuity mistake: Riddler wakes Robin up, and the Boy Wonder does not waste time in his tongue lashing. During the scene, the lighting on set is very noticeably different; with the camera positioned between the two, Frank Gorshin's jaw casts a shadow; with the camera behind Burt Ward, it's him casting a big shadow on the green unitard. (00:03:40)
The Penguin's a Jinx (2) - S1-E4
Continuity mistake: At the beginning of the big fight with Penguin, everyone is doing some fencing with the umbrellas. The guy with the caveman face on the left switches stance depending on the camera angle; he's lunging forward waving his umbrella with one arm in the frontal views, and he's in a guarded position in the overhead shots. (00:21:20)
Continuity mistake: Arriving at the museum, the dynamic duo is greeted by some rabid Robin fans; when they start screaming and cheering for him in a close-up, there are men passing by behind them that were not there in the wider shot with the Batmobile approaching. (00:09:40)
The Penguin's a Jinx (2) - S1-E4
Continuity mistake: Robin jumps on a table, dodges a swing and gives a (really weak) kick to his adversary. Cut, and he is nearly tripping over two umbrellas on the table he is standing on, suddenly appeared out of nowhere. (00:21:40)
Fine Feathered Finks (1) - S1-E3
Continuity mistake: The bat-phone rang, and Dick is practicing his French. Bruce in the wide shot has taken his pen off the sheet, but he is in a different position in the close-up that follows. Same when he mentions the "key to world peace"; his hand changes position. (00:03:25)
Continuity mistake: When Joker shows off for the first time his utility belt, it switches sides between shots. First each pocket has its buckle on the right, towards the blonde bimbo, then in close-up the buckles are on the left, and when it switches back to a wider angle, again they are on the right. (00:16:45)
Smack in the Middle (2) - S1-E2
Continuity mistake: Riddler sedates again Robin with the "B" spray. He puts his own mask back on, and on the table the spray can is turned with the letter facing away from the camera. Riddler takes a peek at the unconscious Robin, and in the next shot both sprays have their letters properly showing, only to be hidden again when the same camera angle as before is used again. (00:05:55)
Fine Feathered Finks (1) - S1-E3
Continuity mistake: The dynamic duo enters the umbrella factory and begins talking with the Penguin. Right away you can see the cigarette in the holder has its tip turned into ash, but in the close-up on Burgess Meredith's grin a greater part of the cigarette is consumed. (00:16:40)
The Penguin's a Jinx (2) - S1-E4
Continuity mistake: Batman punches Hawkeye with a BAM; in the closer view Robin is not where he is supposed to be (next to the elevator, where he was sent reeling by the punch and where the action takes place in the following shot). (00:21:45)
Continuity mistake: The first fight, in the museum, besides the obvious dose of wild haymakers has a rather messy phase when the "THWAPP!"; appears; Robin is facing two enemies, but the one with the red shirt lost his hat, which is back on in the next shot (and was on in the previous). (00:14:10)
The Penguin's a Jinx (2) - S1-E4
Continuity mistake: Batman sends Swoop into the wall with an "OOOOFF!" onomatopoeia. The impact knocks down from the shelf a bunch of umbrellas that fall on the poor guy, but as the scene goes on, the floor is clean and the umbrellas are still on the wall rack. (00:21:30)
Continuity mistake: During the climactic fight, Batman tosses the Joker utility belt, causing confetti and streamers to fall down all over the place in some shots, while there is no such paper rain in others. (00:21:40)
Fine Feathered Finks (1) - S1-E3
Continuity mistake: When Batman opens his drawer full of electronic (not to mention, literal) bugs, the various pseudo-creatures are arranged in different ways between the wider angles and the close-up. (00:20:50)
The Penguin's a Jinx (2) - S1-E4
Continuity mistake: When the umbrella fight erupts, the red suitcase with the money changes position on the corner of the counter (basically rotating of 90°). (00:21:20)
Fine Feathered Finks (1) - S1-E3
Continuity mistake: The tiny spider microphone rests on the back of Robin's right hand, but the close-up shows a gloved left fist. (00:20:55)
Fine Feathered Finks (1) - S1-E3
Continuity mistake: Adam West's hands inside the net are in a different position when Penguin sprays him with the red gas. (00:22:20)
Continuity mistake: In the cliffhanger, Riddler is putting a vice around Robin's head and cranks it; in the close-ups he turns the mechanism between his fingers, while in the shot from behind Robin's head he is turning a little handle. The height the vice is placed at is also different. (00:24:20)
Smack in the Middle (2) - S1-E2
Continuity mistake: Batman, after losing his breather between an "Urkkk!" and a "Zok!" chases down a goon that is making a run for it going for the window. Two other minions are following Batman, but their motion repeats in the next shot, when it's "Zzzzzwap!" time. (00:22:00)
Answer: It's wasn't unusual for multiple actors to play one character on this show. The villains on the TV Batman were played by guest stars, not regular cast members. George Sanders, Otto Preminger, and Eli Wallach played the part at various times. They may simply have only wanted to play the part once or twice, or they were later tied up with other projects, making it necessary to cast someone else. Other characters, like Catwoman, were also played by more than one actress.
raywest ★