Today, Saturday, September 16th, marks the 10th Batman Day around the world. It is a day that comic book fans dedicate to the famous DC Comics superhero Batman through initiatives such as special edition comics, movie marathons, T-shirts and all kinds of gadgets.
With the exception of the first issue on July 23, 2014, this day always falls on the third Saturday in September. The Batman character was created by two American cartoonists, Bob Kane and Bill Finger, and debuted on May 30, 1939, in issue 27 of DC Comics’ Detective Comics series. He hides under the mask of Batman. Bruce Wayne, a billionaire from the fictional city of Gotham City, whose parents were killed as children by thief Joe Chill. He later grieved, deciding to fight crime as an adult by disguising himself as the thing that scared him most, a bat.
Batman’s first inspiration was Zorro. There are many similarities between the Gotham crusader and the Californian swordsman: a secret hideout inside their homes, a secret identity, their belonging to wealthy families, a dark suit and their servants representing the only people who know their secret, as well as their only companions in heroic deeds. Moreover, when Bruce Wayne’s parents were killed in front of their son, the family left the cinema where they were watching the film “The Mark of Zorro”. The idea for the cape with bat wings actually came to Kane from some drawings by Leonardo da Vinci. Finally, even his civilian name “Bruce Wayne” is not accidental, but is the result of the union of two real historical figures: the Norman king of Scotland Robert the Bruce and the American general Anthony Wayne.
Batman has appeared in 17 live-action films already released in theaters, either as the title character, as part of an ensemble cast, or in bit parts. Moving on to television, we can’t forget the three seasons of the 1966 Batman TV series starring the late Adam West as the title character, and the four seasons of the 1992 American Batman Animated Series, where Batman was dubbed in the original language by the late Kevin Conroy. The latter voiced the Dark Knight in 33 other projects, including animated series, cartoons and video games. After providing the voice 34 times, Conroy himself then had the pleasure of playing Bruce Wayne in the flesh in the second of a 5-part television event, Crisis on Infinite Earths, inspired by the comic book of the same name published. DC Comics from 1985 to 1986.
17 FIELD MOVIES WHERE BATMAN APPEARS.
1. 1943. “Batman” by Lambert Hiller and with Lewis Wilson – serial film –
2. 1949. “Batman and Robin” by Spencer Gordon Bennett and with Robert Lowery – serial film –
3. 1966. “Batman” by Leslie H. Martinson and with Adam West – a film based on the series of the same name –
4. 1989. “Batman” by Tim Burton and Michael Keaton.
5. 1992. “Batman Returns” by Tim Burton and Michael Keaton.
6. 1995. “Batman Forever” by Joel Schumacher, starring Val Kilmer.
7. 1997. “Batman and Robin” by Joel Schumacher and George Clooney.
8. 2005. “Batman Begins” by Christopher Nolan and Christian Bale.
9. 2008. “The Dark Knight” by Christopher Nolan and Christian Bale.
10. 2012. “The Dark Knight Rises” by Christopher Nolan and Christian Bale
11. 2016. “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” by Zack Snyder starring Ben Affleck.
12. 2016. “Suicide Squad” by David Ayer and Ben Affleck – cameo –
13. 2017. “Justice League” by Zack Snyder starring Ben Affleck
14. 2019. “Joker” by Todd Phillips and Dante Pereira-Olson – Bruce Wayne as a child –
15. 2021: Zack Snyder’s Justice League Starring Ben Affleck – Extended Cut of Justice League for Streaming and Home Video –
16. 2022. “The Batman” by Matt Reeves starring Robert Pattinson.
17. 2023. Andy Muschietti’s The Flash with three live-action Batmans played by the trio of Ben Affleck, Michael Keaton and George Clooney, and Adam West’s Batman created using artificial intelligence and deepfake technology.