Yesterday, June 23, 2022, was a sad day, and yet a happy day, as we said “Farewell!” to my friend ... everyone’s friend ... Michael Kent Beatty, aka Batman.  The memorial service was held in the beautiful St. Luke’s Catholic Church in Ocean City and was attended by a huge gathering of friends from near and far as well as his family, including his wife of 44 years, Cindy Beatty, his sister Bobbie Corbett and her children, DJ, Steve & Nancy and their families.  The outpouring of love and memories posted on facebook after his death on the morning of Sunday, June 12, continues still and probably will forever.  Every person he met became his friend and he had so many stories to tell about all his encounters and adventures over the years.  I asked him on numerous occasions to sit down with me and record those stories for all of us to enjoy forever; but sadly that was not to be.  I think he would rather depend on all of us to keep those stories alive.  And that’s pure Michael right there.  Such a humble and compassionate human being, he never wanted the story to be about him.  It was his way to always exit without any fanfare or ‘goodbye tours’ as we call it when we’re leaving a venue; and he did it again, leaving this Earth on his own terms, quietly and without fanfare.  Well, Mike, you can’t hold us back now ‘cause fanfare you’re getting, my friend.  I was struck on that Sunday morning when I called him for the last time (to be told he had passed quietly) that it was no coincidence that Paul McCartney was playing a concert in his hometown of Baltimore.  Indeed, his nephew Steve Ports was there when he got the news and told me that, “... he could feel that Uncle Mike was there with him.”  We all know, of course, that The Beatles were a favorite of Mike’s along with The Beach Boys and The Rolling Stones.  Steve gave the moving eulogy for his uncle in which he said he refused to be sad, and we all knew what he meant.  Mike would not want us to be sad.  He lived a wonderful life and touched so many of us.  In his tribute Steve touched on many aspects of Mike’s life (which you’ll read more about further on), including their ongoing humorous tease that Steve was not allowed to call him “Uncle Mike.” When grown and playing bass in the band The Klassix, Steve says the tables turned and Mike would introduce Steve as his uncle.  Mike would also fondly introduce sister Bobbie as his younger sister even though she is the oldest of the Beatty siblings (including deceased sister Harriet).  He was always so caring about the feelings of others.   Ending his tribute and with love shining from his face, Steve so beautifully sang the words from a Beatles song, “And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make.”  We know he took a lot of love with him.  I’m going to re-run a column that I wrote in the October 22, 2021 Coco Nights (you can find it in the archives) because it was maybe the biggest highlight of his career and I think it bears repeating.

I was thrilled to be on hand when Mike Beatty, aka Batman, received the honor of a lifetime for his incredible 40 years of service to the Town of Ocean City as our “Nighttime Mayor”. He was given that moniker many years ago, and was again afforded that respect from current Mayor Rick Meehan who referred to him as such before reading an official Proclamation from the Town of Ocean City and presenting him with the Key to the City.  Over the years, many of you have been to a Batman party where we have danced to all our favorite music as played by this intuitive DJ who has always seemed to have his finger on the pulse of what we want to hear. It all started at Bayside Pub, now Buxy’s Salty Dog Saloon, where the 40th Anniversary Celebration was held. Young Mike Beatty was allowed to set up in a corner and spin records for the crowd. It might have been his first DJ job, but  being behind the microphone came as second nature to him as he had been on Armed Services Radio while in the Air Force in the city of Taichung in Taiwan. (Reminds me of Robin Williams in “Good Morning Viet Nam!”) He put that experience to good use with his easy-going jovial nature, connecting with partiers who were looking to have a good time - after all, music is the great common denominator. Mike has been the common denominator for so many good times over the years, for me and so many more, with regular gigs in such places as Hammerjacks (where he was the first DJ to play there), The Big Kahuna (Party Block), Fager’s Island, M.R. Ducks, Seacrets (to name a few), and more recently, hosting the Beach Parties at Caroline Street for the Town of OC. And let’s not forget those infamous Booze Cruises out of the Baltimore Harbor, and all the crazy road trips to college towns near and far where so many fans wanted a little taste of their beach memories from summer. I know there are many other memorable nights in his career such as introducing the Beach Boys when they performed here on the beach, and DJing the after-concert party for the Rolling Stones! It will be remembered by all who were at the party Saturday night that he said, “I’ve got to say that this might top the Rolling Stones night.” In case you’re wondering why or how he came to be called Batman, I have this little tid-bit to end with, in his words: “The first few weekends when I started (at the Bayside Pub), I drank a lot of Bacardi and Coke. Every time I walked up to the bartender to order he would say, “more bat juice?” I asked him why he called it that and he showed me the bat logo on the bottle [Bacardi]. He said, “You’re the Batman!” The next weekend the marquee at the Bayside Pub, without me knowing it, had ‘Tonight DJ Batman.’ It stuck.” We’re glad it did, and we’re all so thankful that we have had the privilege of sharing our memorable fun times with a wonderful guy who shared his love of music with us. I can almost hear everyone from so many of those parties saying, “We love you, Batman!”

Thank you to Fish Tales for hosting an after-party in his memory where we enjoyed communing with one another remembering this wonderful man.  On my way home, I saw the fitting message on the sign of Buxy’s Salty Dog: “Social!”



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