Batman (originally referred to as the Bat-man, and still sometimes as the Batman) is a DC Comics fictional character and superhero who first appeared in Detective Comics #27 in May 1939. He has since become, along with Superman and Spider-Man, one of the world's most well-known superheroes.[1] Batman was co-created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, although only Kane receives official credit for the character. His true identity is Bruce Wayne, billionaire industrialist, playboy, and philanthropist. Witnessing the murder of his parents as a child led him to train himself to the peak of physical and intellectual perfection, don a costume, and fight crime. Unlike many other superheroes, he does not possess superhuman powers or abilities; he makes use of intellect, detective skills, technology, and physical prowess in his war on crime. He often cited as being arguably the first modern hero and the first comic book anti-hero, though Namor the Sub-Mariner, who debuted in the same year, is also a likely candidate for the latter title.
Character Biography Over the years, Batman's origin story, history and tone have undergone various revisions, both minor and major. Some elements have changed drastically; others, like the death of his parents and his pursuit of justice, have remained constant. Consistent across all versions of the Batman mythos, Batman is the alter-ego of Bruce Wayne, a millionaire or billionaire (depending on time period) playboy, industrialist and philanthropist who was driven to fight crime in Gotham City after his parents, the physician Dr. Thomas Wayne and his wife Martha Wayne, were murdered by a mugger. Golden Age version The Golden Age Batman's origin was first presented in Detective Comics #33 in November 1939, and was later fleshed out in Batman #47, the 1985 four-issue limited series America vs. the Justice Society and 1986's Secret Origins (volume 2) #6. As these comics state, Bruce Wayne was born in the late 1910s to Dr. Thomas Wayne and his wife Martha, two wealthy Gotham City socialites. Bruce was brought up in Wayne Manor and its wealthy splendor and led a happy and privileged existence until the age of eight, when his parents were killed by a small-time criminal named Joe Chill on their way home from the movie theater. Bruce was subsequently raised at Wayne Manor by his uncle, Philip Wayne. Bruce Wayne swore an oath to rid the city of the evil that had taken his parents' lives. He engaged in intense intellectual and physical training and studied a variety of areas which would aid him in his endeavors, including chemistry, criminology, forensics, martial arts, and gymnastics, as well as theatrical skills like disguise, escapology, and ventriloquism. He realized, however, that these skills alone would not be enough.
"Criminals are a superstitious and cowardly lot", said Wayne, "so my disguise must be able to strike terror into their hearts. I must be a creature of the night, black, terrible..." As if responding to his desires, a bat suddenly flitted through the window, inspiring Bruce to assume the persona of Batman. His debut as the Caped Crusader 1939 initially earned him the ire of the police; however, his relations with the law thawed by the early 1940s. In 1940, Bruce took in the orphaned circus acrobat Dick Grayson, who became his sidekick, Robin. Also, in late 1940, Batman became a founding member of the Justice Society of America (DC Special #29). Batman continued to function in Gotham City through the 1940s and into the 1950s. After the introduction of DC Comics' multiverse in the 1960s, it was retroactively established that the Golden Age Batman lived on the parallel world of Earth-Two. It was also revealed that in the mid-1950s, Bruce Wayne had partnered with and married the reformed Catwoman, Selina Kyle (as shown in Superman Family #211); the two had their first and only child in 1957, Helena Wayne. Batman's activities soon lessened, as he went into semi-retirement, only returning to action to engage in special cases, with Robin taking over much of his functioning in Gotham City. Upon the retirement of Commissioner Gordon, Bruce Wayne took over the post of Gotham City police commissioner. In the late 1970s, Bruce Wayne's life became tumultuous, as he dealt with the death of his wife Selina, who was fatally blackmailed by criminals into going into action one more time as Catwoman (as seen in DC Super-Stars #17). After Selina's death, Bruce permanently retired as Batman, but was forced to go into action again as Batman, when a criminal named Bill Jensen had gained superpowers from a sorcerer named Frederic Vaux. Jensen and Wayne fought each other, with Jensen eventually using his powers to destroy both himself and Batman[2]. Wayne was laid to rest next to his wife Selena; after Vaux was defeated, the sorcerer Dr. Fate used his powers to erase from human memory the knowledge of Wayne's secret identity, making all think the two had perished at almost the same time. (Adventure Comics #461-463). After the 1985 12-issue limited series Crisis on Infinite Earths, this version of Batman, and all memory of his existence, was retroactively erased (along with Earth-Two's Robin and Huntress).
Silver Age version From the 1950s through the 1970s, various new elements were added to Batman's origin, background and history. The Silver Age Batman first appeared sometime in the mid-1950s, with an origin that was (as revealed in various stories in the ensuing decades) similar to that of the Golden Age version of Batman. While the Golden Age and Silver Age distinctions are useful for discussing the character's evolution over the decades, the character's evolution was gradual, and there is no specific comic issue at which the Golden Age version gave way to the Silver Age version. Likewise, the character as he appeared near the beginning of the Silver Age (in the mid-1950s) was different in many ways than he appeared near the end of the Silver Age (in the mid-1980s), due to many minor revisions and new directions in the character's publication history. As summarized in various stories, including 1980's the Untold Legend of the Batman limited series that thoroughly retold Batman's Silver Age origin and history, Bruce Wayne was raised by wealthy socialites Dr. Thomas and Martha Wayne in Wayne Manor. Eight year-old Bruce saw his parents murdered by small-time criminal Joe Chill, after which he was raised by his uncle Philip Wayne. Bruce swore to seek revenge on all criminals, and launched himself into a lifetime of dedicated training similar to the Golden Age Batman's training. At some point early in his training, Bruce wore a costume similar to that of the future Robin's, in order to anonymously receive training from Gotham City police detective Harvey Harris (Detective Comics #226). He and his guardians also visited Smallville, where he met the youthful superhero Superboy and worked with him on several cases. Bruce Wayne went on to attend college, taking various criminology and law related courses, but soon decided that being a police officer wasn't the path he should take. After graduating, Bruce, while pondering alone in his study on how to handle criminals, sees a bat fly through his study window, and decides to create a bat costume, calling himself "Batman". Sometime after the start of his crimefighting career, Bruce took in an orphan named Dick Grayson, whose parents had been killed by gangster Boss Zucco and his henchmen, and trained him as his sidekick, Robin. In Detective Comics #235 (September 1956), Batman learned that his parents' killing had not been chance, but an assassination ordered by gangster Lew Moxon. As a child, Bruce's father had worn a bat costume (similar to Batman's future costume) to a masquerade party, where he encountered and stopped the mobster. Moxon swore revenge against Dr. Wayne, and hired the criminal Joe Chill to arrange a mugging that would result in their deaths. Batman soon tracked down Moxon (while wearing his father's bat costume, his usual costume having been torn while in action), but Moxon, recognizing the costume, inadvertently fled into the middle of traffic in a state of panic, where he was struck by a truck and killed. Batman soon went on to meet and regularly work with other heroes, most notably Superman, who he began regularly working alongside in a series of teamups in World's Finest Comics, starting in 1954 and continuing through 1986. Batman and Superman were usually shown as being close friends. Batman also went on to become a founding member of the Justice League of America, appearing in their first story in 1960's Brave and the Bold #28. In the 1970s and 1980s, Brave and the Bold became a Batman title, where Batman would teamup with a different DC Universe superhero each month. The early Silver Age Batman stories of the late 1950s and early 1960s often featured heavy amounts of science-fiction elements; starting in 1964's Detective Comics #327, Batman had reverted to his detective roots, with said science-fiction elements jettisoned. It was retroactively established years later that all pre-1964 stories had happened on Earth-Two, despite the fact that 1964 was well into the Silver Age (and therefore years after the supposed retirement of the Earth-Two Batman), and that the characters and creative concepts which remained post-1964 weren't given new origin stories. The characters also seemed to recall their pre-1964 adventures, and the version of Batman which was established as living on Earth-One had been having adventures with the Justice League of America since well before 1964. In 1969, Dick Grayson was sent to college as part of a revision effort of the Batman comics; Bruce also subsequently decided to move from Wayne Manor into a penthouse apartment on top of the Wayne Foundation building in downtown Gotham City, in order to be closer to Gotham City and its crimes as Batman. Bruce spent the 1970s and early 1980s mainly working solo, with occasional teamups with Robin and/or Batgirl. Batman's adventures also became somewhat darker and grimmer during this period, with the Masked Manhunter often dealing with increasingly violent crimes, including the first appearance (since the early Golden Age) of an insane, murderous Joker. In the early 1980s, Bruce Wayne once more took on a new sidekick, upon Dick Grayson's decision to strike out on his own as his own superhero, Nightwing. Bruce took in a youth named Jason Todd, who had a background similar to Dick Grayson's (having been a circus acrobat whose family was killed by Killer Croc), and Jason eventually took on the role of Robin.