Kane created Batman (which he originally called the “Dark Knight”) over a weekend for DC Comics in 1939. Kane’s editor had asked him for a new superhero to compete with the popularity of Action Comics’ Superman, who leapt to prominence the year before.
Batman “adapts to each era,” Kane said in 1989. “He fights against all injustices in the world. He fights the battle for the little man.” During World War II, he fought ration book counterfeiters; later, narcotics, “The Joker”, and a series of other colorful villains. Always popular, Batman made a major resurgence with a new series of movies, starting in 1989, its success partly due to Kane signing on as creative consultant. Kane died in his home November 3 at age 83.