A FRANCO’S FREE-FOR-ALL FRIDAYS birthday rumination…
By FRANCO
Bob Kane’s birthday!
I’m sure you know who Bob Kane is, but just in case I’ll tell you: He’s the co-creator of Batman, with Bill Finger.
On his birthday — he was born 110 years ago, on Oct. 24, 1915 — I want to acknowledge Bob for bringing about one of the most iconic characters, not only in comics, but around the world. (Bob, the artist, did come up with the general idea. Bill, the writer, was the one who defined it, molding the Caped Crusader into the one we recognize.)
Detective Comics #30 (August 1939)
As I understand it, later in his career, Bob would turn more to the fine arts and painting. Now, whether he actually did these paintings or not is a discussion for another time. I’ve done a few Batman paintings over the years and get a real joy out of doing them. No ghost painter for me!
Batman has always been one of the GREAT superheroes. He’s easily one of the most recognizable pop-culture figures on the planet and I recently saw an interview with comics scribe Mark Waid where he said that Batman is one of the most written characters in all of human history. That makes sense and I fully believe that. There are so many stories written every year involving this one creation. I’m happy to say that in a small way I’ve contributed to that and have written Batman, and that’s a cool as all heck thing!
I love to paint. I find that I never have nearly enough time to do it but when I do, I lose myself in the process. Hours will go by as I mix and create, blending line and shape and colors to try and achieve something I don’t think I ever will be able to capture… a painting that I 100 percent like. But I try again and again and that is what makes me happy.
Happy birthday, Bob.
Happy Friday.
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Want more FRANCO’S FREE-FOR-ALL FRIDAYS? Come back next week!
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MORE
— NEW YORK COMIC CON: From an Artist’s Point of View. Click here.
— Marvel’s EQUINOX: An Obscure Villain Who Helped Me Pass Science Class. Click here.
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Franco and his forehead have traveled the world and he writes and draws stuff. Franco is the creator, artist and writer of Patrick the Wolf Boy and Aw Yeah Comics! Franco has worked on books/comics, including Tiny Titans and Superman Family Adventures. Franco was also a high-school teacher and is one of the principal owners of Aw Yeah Comics retail stores. Dan made Franco add that he has won three Eisners.
October 24, 2025
I love seeing art of Bruce from other artists.
The impact is incredible
October 24, 2025
Of the three, that last one is my favorite. Very nice.
October 24, 2025
Beautiful paintings! Nice use of warm and cool hues interacting.
As I’d heard it said in the past, it’s not the end destination, but enjoying the journey that counts.
I’ll hold my comments about Bob Kane to myself. But I will say that after all these years, it’s great that Bill Finger finally is officially recognized for his contributions to Batman.
Happy belated birthday, Bill!
October 26, 2025
Thanks for this post, Franco. For an entertaining play about Kane & Finger’s relationship with, check out the play CO-CREATOR on YouTube written by Leonard Xavier Roberts Schwartz, writer of the Academy Award nominated short film MALKA.
October 26, 2025
It’s absolutely okay to acknowledge Bob Kane’s role in the creation of Batman. But it’s most important to acknowledge his role in the fact that he was scum. He was a toxic criminal, an unoriginal coward, and a fraud, who rose to wealth and fame off the work and creative powerhouses of his peers. He was a leech, a parasite.
October 26, 2025
One does not obviate the other.
October 28, 2025
The proper credit should read. BATMAN Created by Bill Finger with art assist by Bob Kane.
October 31, 2025
I am relatively sure that Kane created those Batman paintings. Had another artist done so they would have been better paintings! Joking aside, the paintings display the same quirks of anatomy and expression that distinguish Kane’s artwork from Jerry Robinson’s or Dick Sprang’s. Anyone who has consumed the Golden Age Omnibuses should be able to tell Kane’s much stiffer, mannered art apart from those artists (things gets trickier later on, when Kane limited himself to redrawing Lew Sayre Schwartz’s Batman figures). For those who can’t afford the Omnibuses, Bob Hughes’s excellent website “Who Drew Batman?” (www.dccomicsartists.com/batman/batwho.htm) provides an excellent guide in telling the Golden Age artists apart.
As for the “who really created Batman” debate, Kane would have to get the credit in a legalistic sense, since he was the one who had the initial idea of Batman, but his creation would have gone nowhere without Finger’s input. The person who creates a character is not always the person responsible for that character’s success.