The Batman comic strip first appeared in newspapers in 1943. At first titled Batman and Robin, a later incarnation was titled just Batman. It had three major runs in American newspapers and two minor runs.
Batman and Robin, 1943 - 1946
By Bob Kane (and others, see reprint books for details), daily and Sunday, reprinted by DC Comics and Kitchen Sink Press, in one Sunday and three daily volumes.
In Crisis on Infinite Earths: Absolute Edition, it was revealed that this version of the Batman comic strip took place on Earth-Forty.
Batman and Robin, 1953
By Walter Gibson, Sunday only. This short lived attempt to revive the Batman comic strip ran only in Arrow, the Family Comic Weekly, edited by Gibson. A few of these very rare strips are reprinted in the book Batman: the Sunday Classics 1943-46.
Batman and Robin, 1966 - 1974
By Bob Kane, (actually ghosted, as noted below), Sunday and daily, 1966 - 1974. At first a camp revival due to the popularity of the Batman tv show, with a guest appearance by Jack Benny, it later told more serious Batman stories, and featured guest appearances by Batgirl, Superman, and Aquaman.
- Episode Guide
- Daily only stories, written by Whitney Ellsworth:
- 1. Catwoman, drawn by Sheldon Moldoff,
- 2. Joker, drawn by Joe Giella
- 3. Jolly Roger, drawn by Giella
- Sunday only stories, written by Ellsworth
- 1. Penguin, drawn by Moldoff
- 2. Nasty Napoleon, drawn by Moldoff followed by Carmine Infantino
- 3. Batchap and Bobbin, drawn by Giella
- Sunday and daily stories, drawn by Giella, written by Ellsworth
- 4. Poison Ivy
- 5. The Collector
- 6. Batgirl
- 7. Pretty Boy Floy
- Sunday and daily stories, drawn by Al Plastino, written by Ellsworth
- 8. Superman's Missing Powers
- 9. Aqua-Batman
- 10. Plastic Surgery
- The Sunday strip ended either on July 13 or on July 20, 1968.
- daily only stories were drawn by Plastino through Jan. 1, 1972, with Nick Cardy assisting on the art toward the end. They were written by Ellsworth until July 1970, and then by E. Nelson Bridwell.
- A new artist and writer took over the strip on January 3, 1972. The art and writing were not up to professional standards, and Batman disappeared from the strip, though Bruce Wayne continued as a character. The strip featured a hero called Galexo until it ended in 1974.
Batman, 1989 - 1991
The most recent revival of the strip, titled simply "Batman", ran Sunday and daily from 6 NOV 1989 to 3 AUG 1991. The first story was written by Max Allan Collins and drawn by Marshall Rogers. All of the other stories were written by William Messner-Loebs and drawn by Carmine Infantino and John Nyberg. All of these strips were reprinted in Comics Revue.
In Crisis on Infinite Earths: Absolute Edition, it was revealed that this version of the Batman comic strip took place on Earth-1289.
- Episode Guide
- 1. Catwoman
- 2. The Penguin
- 3. The Joker
- 4. Two Face
- 5. Robin
- 6. The Riddler
- 7. The Mad Hatter
See Also
- Cover Gallery: Batman (comic strip)
- No catalogued images.