Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in the 27th issue of the comic book Detective Comics on March 30, 1939. In the DC Universe, Batman is the alias of Bruce Wayne, a wealthy American playboy, philanthropist, and industrialist who resides in Gotham City. His origin story features him swearing vengeance against criminals after witnessing the murder of his parents, Thomas and Martha, as a child, a vendetta tempered by the ideal of justice. He trains himself physically and intellectually, crafts a bat-inspired persona, and monitors the Gotham streets at night. Kane, Finger, and other creators accompanied Batman with supporting characters, including his sidekicks Robin and Batgirl; allies Alfred Pennyworth and James Gordon; love interest Catwoman; and foes such as the Penguin, the Riddler, Two-Face, and his archenemy, the Joker.
Frank Miller is an American comic book artist, comic book writer, and screenwriter known for his comic book stories and graphic novels such as his run on Daredevil, for which he created the character Elektra, and subsequent Daredevil: Born Again, The Dark Knight Returns, Batman: Year One, Sin City, and 300.
The Question is a name used by several fictional characters appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Steve Ditko, the Question first appeared in Charlton Comics' Blue Beetle #1, and was acquired by DC Comics in the early 1980s and incorporated into the DC Universe.
Two-Face is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by Bob Kane, and first appeared in Detective Comics #66. He has become one of the superhero Batman's most enduring enemies belonging to the collective of adversaries that make up his rogues gallery.
Ra's al Ghul is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly as an adversary of the superhero Batman. Created by editor Julius Schwartz, writer Dennis O'Neil and artist Neal Adams, the character first appeared in Batman #232's "Daughter of the Demon".
Boleslav William Felix Robert Sienkiewicz is an American artist known for his work in comic books—particularly for Marvel Comics' New Mutants, Moon Knight, and Elektra: Assassin. He is the co-creator of the character David Haller / Legion, the basis for the FX television series Legion.
Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight, often simply called Legends of the Dark Knight, is the name of several DC comic books featuring Batman. The original series launched in 1989 as the third major monthly Batman title, following the popularity of Tim Burton's 1989 film Batman. Many of the stories follow the tone of Frank Miller's Batman: Year One. The series differed from other Batman titles of the time. The creative team rotated with every story arc and the stories stood alone, unlike the inter-connected nature of other Batman comics. Initially the title ran stories contained to five issues, often with more mature topics and sensibilities than the other Batman titles. After issue #20, the number of issues for each story began to vary and occasionally tied into crossover events.
Thomas Alan Wayne, M.D. is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He is the father of Bruce Wayne (Batman), and husband of Martha Wayne as well as the paternal grandfather of Damian Wayne. Wayne was introduced in Detective Comics #33, the first exposition of Batman's origin story. A gifted surgeon and philanthropist to Gotham City, Wayne inherited the Wayne family fortune after Patrick Wayne. When Wayne and his wife are murdered in a street mugging, Bruce is inspired to fight crime in Gotham as the vigilante Batman.
"Beware the Gray Ghost" is the eighteenth episode of Batman: The Animated Series. It was directed by series regular Boyd Kirkland and was first aired on November 4, 1992. The episode features guest star Adam West, best known for his portrayal of Batman in the 1960s Batman television series. West plays an actor known for his role as the Gray Ghost, a character that resembles Batman antecedent The Shadow.
Michael Carlin is an American comic book writer, editor, and executive. He has worked principally for Marvel Comics and DC Comics since the 1970s.
The Batman of Earth-Two is an alternate version of the superhero Batman, who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was introduced after DC Comics created Earth-Two, a parallel world that was retroactively established as the home of characters whose adventures had been published in the Golden Age of comic books. This provided justification within the fictional world of Batman stories for DC Comics publishing Batman comic books that disregarded the character's Golden Age stories, as Batman had been presented as a single ongoing incarnation of the character since his earliest stories were published.
Batman R.I.P. is an American comic book story arc published in Batman #676–681 by DC Comics. Written by Grant Morrison, penciled by Tony Daniel, and with covers by Alex Ross, the story pits the superhero Batman against the Black Glove organization as they attempt to destroy everything that he stands for. It has a number of tie-ins in other DC Comics titles describing events not told in the main story.
Notable events of 1987 in comics.
"Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader?" is a 2009 story featuring the DC Comics superhero Batman. The story is published in two parts in the "final" issues of the series Batman (#686) and Detective Comics (#853), released in February and April, respectively. Written by Neil Gaiman, pencilled by Andy Kubert and inked by Scott Williams, the story is purported to be the "last" Batman story in the wake of severe psychological trauma that Batman endures within the story Batman R.I.P. and his ultimate fate in Final Crisis.
Movie Masters is an action figure toyline from Mattel based on popular movie franchises, most notably DC Comics. The line has featured characters from the films Superman, Avatar, The Dark Knight trilogy, Green Lantern, and Man of Steel. Figures in the line are sculpted by Four Horsemen Studios, who also sculpted figures for Mattel's DC Superheroes and DC Universe Classics lines.
Gay interpretations have been part of the academic study of the Batman franchise at least since psychiatrist Fredric Wertham asserted in his 1954 book Seduction of the Innocent that "Batman stories are psychologically homosexual". Several characters in the Modern Age Batman comic books are expressly gay, lesbian, or bisexual.
Superman: Deadly Legacy is a special-edition "humanitarian comic book" featuring Superman that promotes "landmine awareness" among children, particularly from countries where there are active landmines after war. The Superman comic book was published by DC Comics, the United States government, and United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) in 1996. In Superman: Deadly Legacy, Superman – a well-known superhero in the United States and Europe – acts as a teacher educating children about the dangers of landmines. The target countries for disseminating copies of the comic book include Bosnia, the Former Yugoslavia, and Kosovo.
Superman and Wonder Woman – the Hidden Killer is a special-edition "humanitarian comic book" featuring Superman and Wonder Woman that promotes "landmine awareness" among children, particularly from countries where there are active landmines after war. The free comic book was published from 1993 through 1999 by DC Comics, the United States Department of Defense, the Mine Action Center (MAC), the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF), and participating non-governmental organizations (NGOs). In the comic book, Superman and Wonder Woman are featured as educators who are teaching children about the dangers of landmines.
The Batman Who Laughs is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Scott Snyder and artist Greg Capullo, he is an evil counterpart and alternate version of Batman within the Dark Multiverse.
