Batman is a fictional character created by Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. In the original version of the story and the vast majority of retellings, Batman's secret identity is Bruce Wayne, an American millionaire, playboy, industrialist, and philanthropist.
Batman became a very popular character soon after his introduction and gained his own comic book title, Batman, in 1940. A cultural icon, Batman has been licensed and adapted into a variety of media, from radio to television and film, and appears on a variety of merchandise sold all over the world such as toys and video games.
The late 1960s Batman television series used a camp aesthetic which continued to be associated with the character for years after the show ended. Various creators worked to return the character to his dark roots, culminating in the 1986 miniseries The Dark Knight Returns, by Frank Miller, while the successes of Tim Burton's 1989 film Batman and Christopher Nolan's 2005 reboot Batman Begins also helped to reignite popular interest in the character.