THINGS YOU MIGHT NOT KNOW ABOUT BATMAN

BATMAN WAS CREATED BY ARTIST BOB KANE

AND WRITER BILL FINGER. HE FIRST APPEARED AS

“THE BAT-MAN,” IN DETECTIVE COMICS IN MAY 1939

IRONICALLY, BILL FINGER WASN’T CREDITED FOR

ANYTHING BATMAN RELATED UNTIL RECENTLY,

YET HE’S RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ORIGINAL IDEAS OF

BATMAN’S PERSONA, COSTUME, GOTHAM AND MOST

OF THE STORY’S CHARACTERS.

ORIGINALLY BATMAN WAS BASED IN NEW YORK AND

ONLY LATER THE WRITERS DECIDED TO MOVE

HIM TO GOTHAM

GOTHAM MIGHT BE A QUIET VILLAGE IN THE RURAL

HEART OF NOTTINGHAMSHIRE, BUT IT HAS AN

INTRIGUING PAST AND A RICH HISTORICAL HERITAGE

THAT SEES IT LINKED TO THE NAME GIVEN TO THE

CITY USED IN DC COMICS

IT’S NOT JUST GOTHAM THAT EXISTS IN REAL LIFE

BATMAN DOES TOO, AS A CITY IN TURKEY. WHILE

ONE WOULD EXPECT THAT THE CITY WOULD HAPPILY

EMBRACE THE CONNECTION TO ONE OF THE

WORLD’S MOST FAMOUS SUPERHEROES, THE MAYOR

OF BATMAN, HUSEYIN KALKAN, TRIED TO SUE

WARNER BROS. AND CHRISTOPHER NOLAN FOR USING

THE NAME WITHOUT PERMISSION AFTER THE

RELEASE OF THE DARK KNIGHT, WHICH GROSSED

OVER $1 BILLION WORLDWIDE.

THE BACKGROUNDS OF BATMAN: THE ANIMATED

SERIES WERE DRAWN ON BLACK PAPER INSTEAD

OF WHITE TO SHOW A DARKER TONE

ORIGINALLY, ROBIN WAS SUPPOSED TO APPEAR IN

JUST ONE ISSUE AND THEN VANISH FOREVER. THAT

WAS BECAUSE BAT-EDITOR JACK LIEBOWITZ WAS

AGAINST THE IDEA OF HAVING A KID FIGHTING

GANGSTERS, AND BECAUSE BATMAN WAS DOING A

GOOD JOB ALREADY BY HIMSELF

WAY BEFORE IT TERRORIZED PARTS OF THE WORLD,

EBOLA WAS A PROBLEM BATMAN HAD TO DEAL WITH.

HE FOUGHT IT AND ROBIN ALMOST DIED FROM IT

HOWEVER, ROBIN WOULD DIE SHORTLY AFTER.

FOR 1988’S “BATMAN: A DEATH IN THE FAMILY”

STORY LINE, DC COMICS HELD A TELEPHONE POLL

TO DETERMINE WHETHER OR NOT JASON TODD

(THE SECOND CHARACTER TO TAKE UP THE ROBIN

IDENTITY) WOULD DIE AT THE HANDS OF THE JOKER.

HE WAS KILLED OFF BY A MARGIN OF 72 VOTES

(5,343 FOR, 5,271 AGAINST). SO YEP, IT WAS

THE FANS THAT REALLY KILLED ROBIN