It is hard to believe that this American hero has been around for so long. But in September we celebrated 85 years of Batman, the Caped Crusader. Here are some fun facts and trivia you may or may not know.

Batman, created by Bob Kane, first appeared as a character in DC Comics  #37 in 1939. It wouldn‘t be until 1940 when Batman got his own comic book.

Bob Kane didn’t create Batman as we know him. It was collaborator Bill Finger who added numerous essential elements that made him the iconic hero we know today, including naming Gotham City, naming him Bruce Wayne, and completely overhauling the original costume (a red bodystocking with a domino mask) by giving it pointed ears, a black color scheme, and a scalloped cape.

The sidekick of Robin was originally written as a one time character. It played well with the fans and Robin became a regular sidekick of the Caped Crusader.

The first Batman movie came out in 1943. It was a 15 part serial and starred Lewis Wilson as Batman /Bruce Wayne and Douglas Croft as Robin /Dick Grayson.

In the 1995 Batman Forever blockbuster Michael Keaton was asked to do the role again but demanded too much money. So the role was given to Val Kilmer.

How did the city get named?. They were tossing around different  names when a writer went to the telephone book and saw Gotham Jewelers and everyone agreed on Gotham City.

The Batman TV Show ran from 1966-68. Along with the regulars   with Adam West as Batman, some unusual guest stars appeared as foes of Batman. There was Milton Berle as Louie the Lilac, Ethel Merman as Lola Lsagna, Tallulah Bankhead as the Black Widow and Liberace as Chandell and many more.

Who has played Batman the longest? His name is Kevin Conroy and he has played the hero in more than 30 various versions in films, animated series, video games and other productions.

He speaks seven languages fluently (Cantonese, Swahili, Japanese, Spanish, French, English, Russian, and Italian) and two passably, German and Vietnamese.

Michelle Pfeiffer got the great role of Catwoman in the Batman film by chance. Annette Benning was signed to play the character but became pregnant, so Ms. Pfeiffer took over.

Did you know that Melbourne, Australia was founded by a John Batman. Places named after him include Batman’s Hill, Batman Bridge, and Batman Park.

In the U.S. there is Batman Cave, North Carolina. Ironically, at one time a retired doctor lived there and his real name was Bruce Wayne.

Was Batman ever married? Yes, in one series of the Batman comics, they did marry and had a daughter who became known as the Huntress.

In the film Batman Returns, all of the penguins were not CGI but real. The cost to have real penguins was $1,000,000 for food, cooling, accommodations, transportation and shipping.

There is much more that you can find on several different links regarding Batman trivia. Hope you enjoyed these.