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[[Image:ARoss Batman.png|right|300px|thumb|''Batman'', by Alex Ross]]

[[File:87 4 000027.jpg|right|200px|thumb|''Detective Comics'' number 27, the first appearance of Batman]]

'''Batman''' is a fictional [[superhero]] first appearing in ''Detective Comics'' in May, 1939.  The creation of artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, Batman remains one of the most famous and recognizable of the superhero genre, resulting in the creation of several television series, motion pictures, and graphic novels.  The original comics are highly prized by collectors and routinely fetch hundreds of thousands of dollars on the auction block.

'''Batman''' is a fictional [[superhero]] who used his personal wealth as a [[capitalist]] to fight [[evil]] in a humble, high-tech way.  He first appeared in ''Detective Comics'' in May, 1939.  The creation of artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, Batman remains one of the most famous and recognizable of the superhero genre, resulting in the creation of several television series, motion pictures, and graphic novels.  The original comics are highly prized by collectors and routinely garners hundreds of thousands of dollars on the auction block.

The Batman character is sometimes portrayed as a lapsed [[Catholic]]/[[Episcopalian]].<ref>http://www.adherents.com/lit/comics/comic_book_religion.html</ref>

The Batman character is sometimes unfairly portrayed as a lapsed [[Catholic]] or [[Episcopalian]].<ref>http://www.adherents.com/lit/comics/comic_book_religion.html</ref>

==Comics lore==

==Comics lore==

The man who was to become Batman is Bruce Wayne, a Gotham City socialite who inherited his wealth from his father, a prominent doctor and philanthropist named Thomas Wayne.  A trip to the movies with the family ended in tragedy: Thomas and his wife Martha are murdered by a common thug in front of Bruce, whose childhood effectively ends at the age of eight.   

The man who was to become Batman is Bruce Wayne, a Gotham City [[capitalist]] who inherited his wealth from his father, a prominent doctor and philanthropist named Thomas Wayne.  A trip to the movies with the family ended in tragedy: Thomas and his wife Martha are murdered by a common thug in front of Bruce, whose childhood effectively ends at the age of eight.   

Wayne's anger at his parent's murder causes him to vow revenge against the criminal element in all of its forms.

Wayne's anger at his parent's murder causes him to vow revenge against the criminal element in all of its forms.

Growing up in the care of his father's butler, Alfred Pennyworth, he inherits a vast fortune, his father's business and philanthropic empire.  

Growing up in the care of his father's butler, Alfred Pennyworth, he inherits a vast fortune, his father's business and philanthropic empire. Wayne uses his wealth to travel the world during his teenage years, seeking out instruction from experts in various fields including martial arts, chemistry, psychology, forensics, meditation and engineering among other things. He returns to his home of Gotham city and is nearly killed as he attempts to stop a robbery.  

Wayne uses his wealth to travel the world during his teenage years, seeking out instruction from experts in various fields including martial arts, chemistry, psychology, forensics, meditation and engineering among other things. He returns to his home of Gotham city and is nearly killed as he attempts to stop a robbery.  

While recovering in his study at Wayne Manor, Bruce Wayne's brooding is disturbed by a bat as it crashes through the window of his room. He reflects, "Criminals are a cowardly and superstitious lot."

While recovering in his study at Wayne Manor, Bruce Wayne's brooding is disturbed by a bat as it crashes through the window of his room. He reflects, "Criminals are a cowardly and superstitious lot."