What Is Burt Ward’s Net Worth, Career, Biography, Facts, Age, Life Story

Burt Ward is an American actor who has a net worth of $20 million. Ward first became famous for playing the role of Batman’s sidekick, Robin, alongside Adam West on the TV series “Batman” (1966–1968) and in the 1966 film “Batman: The Movie.” Burt has 35+ acting credits to his name, including “High School U.S.A.” (1984), “Virgin High” (1991), and “Supergirl” (2019).

He published the autobiography “Boy Wonder: My Life in Tights” in 1995, and in 1966, he recorded the songs “Boy Wonder I Love You,” “Orange Colored Sky” (a Nat King Cole cover), “Teenage Bill Of Rights,” and “Autumn Love” with help from Frank Zappa.

Ward is married to Tracy Posner, the daughter of business tycoon Victor Posner. During his life, Victor was one of the highest paid and most successful business executives and is considered the pioneer of leveraged buyouts (LBO). Victor’s LBO firm owned 100% of RC Cola and 100% of Arby’s, among many other high-profile investments. At the time of his death, Victor was estimated to be worth $600 million. Burt and Tracy have used their considerable funds to operate a dog food company and animal rescue. They have rescued tens of thousands of animals.

Early Life

Burt Ward was born Bert John Gervis Jr., on July 6, 1945, in Los Angeles, California. Burt chose the stage name “Burt Ward” because his mother’s maiden name was Ward. His father owned “Rhapsody On Ice,” a traveling ice show, and he was also a real estate broker. Ward became interested in ice skating at a very young age, and when he was just 2 years old, he was featured in “Strange as It Seems” magazine as a professional ice skater. During his youth, Burt enjoyed reading comics and watching “Adventures of Superman.” He learned how to speed read, and when he was tested by the American Medical Society, his reading speed was clocked at an astonishing 30,000 words per minute. Ward attended Beverly Hills High School and participated in martial arts, track, wrestling, tennis, golf, and chess as a teenager. After graduation, he worked for his father’s real estate business while attending college. While Ward was working as one of California’s youngest real estate agents, he met producer David Saul, who helped him get an agent. At age 19, Burt landed an interview at 20th Century Fox Studios, and he was soon asked to do a screen test with Adam West.

Career

From 1966 to 1968, Ward starred as Robin/Dick Grayson on the ABC series “Batman,” which aired 120 episodes over three seasons. He reprised his role in 1966’s “Batman: The Movie,” the 1979 special “Legends of the Superheroes,” and the 2019 “Supergirl” episode “Crisis on Infinite Earths: Part One.” Burt also voiced the character in the films “Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders” (2016) and “Batman vs. Two-Face” (2017), the TV series “The New Adventures of Batman” (1977) and “Tarzan and the Super 7” (1978), and the “Large Marge” episode of “The Simpsons” (2002). Ward and West also starred in the 2003 TV movie “Return to the Batcave: The Misadventures of Adam and Burt.” While starring on “Batman,” Ward was required to perform some of his own stunts, which landed him in the emergency room several times. In the early days of “Batman,” Burt’s salary was $350 per week. Ward’s first non-Robin role came in the 1970 horror movie “Scream, Evelyn, Scream!,” followed by the 1984 TV movie “High School U.S.A.,” which also starred Michael J. Fox, Crispin Glover, and Nancy McKeon. He appeared in the films “Fire in the Night” (1985), “The Under Achievers” (1987), and “Robot Ninja” (1989), and in 1985, he was honored by DC Comics in the publication “Fifty Who Made DC Great.”

In 1990, Burt appeared in four films, “Smoothtalker,” “Kill Crazy,” “Cyber-C.H.I.C.,” and “The Girl I Want,” and in 1991, he starred in the direct-to-video release “Virgin High.” He played The Pope in the 1992 comedy “Hot Under the Collar,” then he appeared in the films “Beach Babes from Beyond” (1993), “The Dwelling” (1993), “Assault of the Party Nerds 2: The Heavy Petting Detective” (1995), “Karate Raider” (1995), “Alien Force” (1996), and “Moving Targets” (1999) and guest-starred on “Living Single” (1995), “Homeboys in Outer Space” (1997), and “Clueless” (1999). In 2001, Ward launched Boy Wonder Visual Effects, Inc. (which has since closed), and the following year, he appeared in the films “Pacino Is Missing” and “From Heaven to Hell.” He lent his voice to “SpongeBob SquarePants” in 2010, “Futurama” in 2013, and the “Robot Chicken DC Comics Special 3: Magical Friendship” in 2015, and he appeared in the supernatural drama “Heaven & Hell” in 2018. Burt has appeared at  numerous conventions, including Dragon Con, Stan Lee’s Los Angeles Comic Con, and Wizard World, and in 2014, he reunited with Adam West at Comic-Con in San Diego to celebrate the DVD release of “Batman: The Complete Television Series.”

Personal Life

Burt has been married four times. He wed Bonney Lindsey on July 19, 1965, and they welcomed daughter Lisa on August 4, 1966. After divorcing in December 1966, Ward married actress Kathy Kersh on February 25, 1967. They divorced in 1969, and Burt married model Mariana Torchia on August 10, 1985.

Ward and Torchia divorced in 1989, and Burt wed Tracy Posner on July 15, 1990. Ward and Posner have one child, daughter Melody, who was born on February 16, 1991. In 1994, Burt and Tracy co-founded the charity Gentle Giants Rescue and Adoptions, Inc., which is described as the “largest giant breed dog rescue in the world,” and a 2017 article in “Inventors Digest” stated that the couple has saved more than 15,000 dogs. Ward also launched a pet food company called Gentle Giants, and he has said that a combination of the pet food and the Gentle Giants care and feeding program “can double the lifespan of dogs and sometimes triple the lifespan of bigger dogs,” which typically have a life expectancy of 8 to 12 years.

Awards and Honors

Ward and Adam West shared a TV Land Award for Favorite Crimestopper Duo in 2004 and Favorite Crimestopper in 2005. Burt was honored with Comic-Con International’s Inkpot Award in 2014, and he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2020.