Bruce Wayne: "[Criminals are a superstitious, cowardly lot], so my disguise must be able to strike terror into their hearts. I must be a [creature of the night], black, terrible... a... a..."
Caption: "As if in answer, a huge bat flies in the open window!"
Bruce Wayne: "A bat! That's it! It's an [omen]... I shall become a [BAT]!"

Created by [Bob Kane] and [Bill Finger], Batman is one of the most [popular] [comic book] characters in the [world]. He made his [debut] in [Detective Comics #27] all the way back in May of 1939. The character is currently owned and [publish]ed by [DC Comics].

After seeing his [parents], [Thomas and Martha Wayne], gunned down by a [mugger] when he was a [child], [Bruce Wayne] dedicated his life to fighting [crime] in [Gotham City] and donned a [pointy-eared] [bat]-like disguise to strike [fear] into criminals' hearts. He's more a [detective] than a superhero, as he solves [puzzling] crimes and captures (mostly) non-superpowered [villain]s, but the [cape] and [cowl] mean he spends a lot of time hanging around the spandex-jockeys in the [Justice League of America|Justice League]. As the [Dark Knight], he fights [twisted] [criminal]s like [the Joker], the [Penguin], the [Riddler], [Catwoman], [Poison Ivy], [Two-Face], [Killer Croc], the [Mad Hatter], [Bane], [Harley Quinn], and many others.

Batman is completely [obsessed] with [crimefighting], but he has no [superpower]s at all, so it's a [good thing] that he's also [rich] enough to afford all the fancy [equipment] (including [Batarang]s, [supercomputer]s, [surveillance] equipment, disguises, a [Batmobile], and several other vehicles) and [training] that he needs. He never [kill]s people, and he never uses [gun]s, since he's [reluctant] to use the same [weapon] that killed his parents. He also attracts a number of [assistant]s who are similarly [dedicate]d to eradicating crime in Gotham, including four different [Robin]s, three [Batgirl]s, and a [butler] named [Alfred Pennyworth|Alfred].

Several [movies] (the best ones directed by [Tim Burton], the worst directed by [Joel Schumacher]), [cartoon]s, and a [campy] [1960s] [television] show, starring [Adam West] and [Burt Ward], have been made about him.

Batman (person)