West died in Los Angeles after a short battle with leukemia. He was 88 and lived a good long life.
He is survived by his wife Marcelle, six children, five grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.
Adam West Dead: TV?s ?Batman? Was 88 | Variety
Adam West ? an actor defined and also constrained by his role in the 1960s series ?Batman? ? died Friday night in Los Angeles. He was 88. A rep said that he died after a short battle with leukemia.
?Our dad always saw himself as The Bright Knight, and aspired to make a positive impact on his fans? lives. He was and always will be our hero,? his family said in a statement.
West became known to a new generation of TV fans through his recurring voice role as Mayor Adam West, the horribly corrupt, inept and vain leader of Quahog, Rhode Island, on Fox?s ?Family Guy.? West was a regular on the show from 2000 through its most recent season. West in recent years did a range of voice-over work, on such shows as Adult Swim?s ?Robot Chicken? and Disney Channel?s ?Jake and the Neverland Pirates.?
Asked by Variety what the character of Batman has come to mean to him over five decades, West said: ?Money. Some years ago I made an agreement with Batman. There was a time when Batman really kept me from getting some pretty good roles, and I was asked to do what I figured were important features. However, Batman was there, and very few people would take a chance on me walking on to the screen. And they?d be taking people away from the story. So I decided that since so many people love Batman, I might as well love it too. Why not? So I began to reengage myself with Batman. And I saw the comedy. I saw the love people had for it, and I just embraced it.?
West made his feature debut in 1959?s ?The Young Philadelphians,? starring Paul Newman.