1971 BATMAN and ROBIN THE TEEN WONDER COMIC #232 "DAUGHTER OF THE DEMONS!" A TALE TO HAUNT YOU FOREVER! Batman (originally referred to as the Bat-Man and still referred to at times as the Batman ) is a fictional comic book superhero co-created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger (although only Kane receives official credit) and published by DC Comics . The character made his first appearance in Detective Comics #27 (May 1939). Batman's secret identity is Bruce Wayne , a wealthy industrialist, playboy, and philanthropist. Witnessing the murder of his parents as a child leads him to train himself to physical and intellectual perfection and don a bat-themed costume in order to fight crime. Batman operates in Gotham City , assisted by various supporting characters including his sidekick Robin and his butler Alfred Pennyworth , and fights an assortment of villains influenced by the characters' roots in film and pulp magazines .
