When ABC had a surprise hit with the campy series version of Batman in early 1966, it caught its two larger rivals by surprise. As is typical of American television, both CBS and NBC developed their own answers to the Caped Crusader–and since irony was in, both shows were parodies of the superhero genre.

By a chance of fate–or bad karma--both Captain Nice (NBC) and Mr. Terrific (CBS) premiered on the same night (January 9th, 1967), one right after the other. And in another twist of fate, both shows aired their final episodes on the same night–August 28th, 1967.

Of the two, NBC’s Captain Nice had the strongest pedigree. It was created by comic Buck Henry (who gave the network the now-classic spy spoof Get Smart) and was produced by the same company that did “Smart”.

“Nice” was actually police scientist Carter Nash, who developed a serum that gave him superhero powers–including the ability to fly. Nash was played by actor William Daniels, who would later go on to greater fame in such series as St. Elsewhere and Boy Meets Boy, as well as the voice of the talking car KITT on Knight Rider. His mother was played by veteran comedienne Alice Ghostley; she made Nash’s red, white and blue leotard costume, which didn’t exactly fit the superhero image–but then, this was parody.

With or without the costume, Nash/Nice was the same mild-mannered guy. Ann Prentiss played policewoman and love interest Candy Cane; Liam Dunn was the mayor of fictional Bigtown and Police Chief Segal was portrayed by William Zuckert.

Unlike “Get Smart”, the theme song for “Captain Nice” featured lyrics:
(Chorus) Look, it’s the man who flies around like an eagle
Look, it’s the enemy of all that’s illegal
Look at the muscles on his arms, they’re like hammers
(Boy’s Voice) Look, it’s some nut who walks around in pyjamas
(Man’s Voice) That’s no nut boy, that’s Captain Nice
(Boy) Nice?
(Man) Nice, nice, nice, NICE!

CBS’ Mr. Terrific was somewhat more complicated. Stephen Strimpell played mild-mannered gas station attendant Stanley Beamish. But unknown to all, Beemish was able to become superhero Mr. Terrific with the help of secret power pills developed by the fictional government agency, the Bureau of Secret Projects. (He could also fly, but had to flap his arms to get airborne.) Problem was, the pill’s effects lasted for only an hour, a disadvantage in case of a complicated crime. As a result, Beemish/Terrific would lose his strength at the worst possible times. Dick Gautier played Stanley’s best friend Hal Walters; in another ironic twist, he was seen occasionally as Hymie the Robot on Get Smart. Mr. Terrific had a theme song, but it was more of narration set to background music, thanks to veteran cartoon voice over artist Paul Fress:
A scientist both wise and bold/Set out to cure the common cold
Instead he found a power pill/Which he said most certainly will
Change a lamb into a lion/Like an eagle he’ll be flyin’
Solid steel will be like putty/It’ll work on anybody
Then it was found this power pill/Made the strongest man quite ill
So the secret search began/To find the one and only man
Who can take this power pill specific/And turn into the most prolific,
terrific, Mr. Terrific!
What they found made them squeamish/For only Stanley Beemish A weak and droopy daffodil/Can take this potent power pill That sent him soaring through the skies/Fighting foes and fighting spies When he took the pill specific/He became the most prolific, Hydrolific, MR. TERRIFIC!

Unfortunately for both Captain Nice and Mr. Terrific, the viewing public was getting tired of campy superheroes. Even as both shows made their debuts, ABC’s Batman was quickly losing adult viewers tired of the format, leaving young children as the core audience. The Caped Crusader and the Boy Wonder (along with Batgirl) would last just one more season, reduced to one episode a week. By contrast, neither “Nice” nor “Terrific” would see a second year. Both discovered something far more powerful than serums or power pills–the Nielsen ratings and television network executives.