May 4 is now Bill Finger Day in Massachusetts

Bill Finger was born on February 8, 1914.

He died on January 18, 1974.

His first biography, Bill the Boy Wonder: The Secret Co-Creator of Batman, released on July 1, 2012.

DC Comics announced on September 18, 2015 that the company would be officially adding his name to the Batman credit line.

That credit line first appeared in print (in an ad) on October 10, 2015.

The corrected credit first appeared on TV on October 19, 2015 (Robot Chicken DC Comics Special III: Magical Friendship) and first appeared in the credits of an ongoing series (Gotham) later that same day.

Two days later, on October 21, 2015, the co-creator credit first appeared in the credits box of a comic book (three series that day).

Batman & Bill, the documentary about him, began streaming on May 6, 2017.

New York City renamed a street for him on December 8, 2017.

So many dates worth acknowledging...and now...

Massachusetts has declared May 4 "Bill Finger Day."

Bill's granddaughter Athena grew up in Massachusetts and was in the state on May 4 to attend the premiere of the second production of Co-Creator, a play about Bill, after which she was surprised with a live announcement of the proclamation.

Thank you to Dave Almeida (co-director of the play) and all others who had a role in establishing this honor. Congrats and best of luck on the play! I'm disappointed I could not make it this time.

What's next? Bill Finger leisurewear? Limited Edition Bill Finger Butterfingers? Will Bill become the mascot for a NFL team? (The Buffalo Bills would not have to change their merchandise...)

Renaming a Bronx street "Bill Finger Way"

On 6/23/17, after years and years of proposing the installation of a memorial to Bill Finger in New York, I learned that this fall, the city will be renaming 192nd Street "Bill Finger Way." 

It is the stretch along the southern end of Poe Park, in which Bill and Bob brainstormed Batman stories in the early 1940s.

Stay tuned here for details (including the date).

And for news of another memorial plan I have...

12/10/17 addendum: the street sign unveiling ceremony.

An apt week to be in Denver

On Monday 2/1/16, I flew to Denver—many hours earlier than planned. I was originally booked on a flight set to arrive at 8:30 p.m., and had my first school visit scheduled for Tuesday morning, but upon learning the Saturday before of a winter storm bearing down, I waited for the travel advisory to be issued (it was on Sunday morning) so I could change my flight for no charge. Reducing the risk of not getting there as much as possible, I opted for the flight departing at 5:40 a.m.

Good thing, too. That flight arrived before noon, no delays. And the snow arrived after noon. My original flight was indeed canceled.

But then, so was school on Tuesday. So I got to Denver in time to have a day in a hotel.

I had two hourlong presentations (at different schools) booked for Tuesday, and was able to reschedule one for later in the week. The other will get first priority on my next return.

I spoke at four other schools, all lovely. I spoke three times at CCIRA, the Colorado Council International Reading Association conference, on Thursday. And on Saturday, I ran two writing workshops for middle schoolers as part of a program related to CCIRA. 

My conference badge showed I was in for a good time. 

Thank you to Amy Nicholl, Cindi Bryant, and all others who helped me be a part of this event, my third time (after 2010 and 2013).

This was an apt time to be in Denver is because it was the buildup week to the Broncos playing in Super Bowl 50 AND the buildup to the 102nd birthday of Bill Finger—who was born in Denver. The sweatshirt of this Littleton Academy student (Brady) could not have been more appropriate. And I’m not even a football watcher.

At Littleton, a first: a student (Sam) gave me a tour of the school. I am a big fan of schools that empower students with leadership opportunities—making the morning announcements, introducing guest speakers, etc.

Also at Littleton: even before I left the building, one of the teachers showed me work her students created immediately after the assembly.

They designed memorials for Bill, their native son.

I’m told more are on the way.

And I believe that an actual Bill Finger memorial in Denver is possible…with a little help from the kids. Stay tuned…

Coverage of a Kickstarter that hasn’t kickstarted yet

It speaks so highly of Bill Finger that a post about a potential Kickstarter campaign to commemorate him in New York City attracted media attention in Florida and on Comic Book Resources.

One response on Twitter that both amused and humbled me:

Stay tuned for my next step…which may not be what you would expect.

Kickstarter to commemorate Bill Finger in New York City

The summer of 2013, I prepared a Kickstarter proposal to raise money to honor Bill Finger by installing a bench in Poe Park in the Bronx.

Because running a Kickstarter campaign seems to become a full-time job for the duration, I have not yet followed through.

But below is the (slightly modified) proposal. If it generates enough enthusiasm here, it might embolden me to launch it immediately!

A Commemorative Bench in New York City for Batman Co-Creator Bill Finger

Goal:

$6,000

Purpose:

Install a bench and plaque dedicated to Bill Finger, uncredited co-creator of Batman, in Poe Park in the Bronx, New York. This would be done through the NYC Parks Adopt-a-Bench program.

An installation about Bill would serve a triple purpose:

• help right a wrong
• contribute to Bronx/NYC tourism
• make pop culture history

It would be the first memorial honoring a superhero creator in NYC, the Superhero Capital of the World.

(Unofficial fourth purpose: provide another place to sit.)

Who I am?

I’m an author and pop culture archaeologist. I tweet at @MarcTNobleman.

I wrote Bill the Boy Wonder: The Secret Co-Creator of Batman, the first-ever book on Bill Finger. It has been covered by NPR’s All Things Considered, The Today Show/NBC News online, New York Times, Forbes, WIRED, and more. It made best-of-the-year lists at USA Today, Washington Post, MTV, and more. It has raised the public’s awareness of the tragic story behind one of the world’s most popular characters, as did my campaign to honor Bill with the Google Doodle for his 100th birthday (2014)...but I want to do more.

Backstory:

Batman’s biggest secret is not Bruce Wayne.

It’s Bill Finger.

Bill Who?

Bill who......wrote the first Batman story (1939).
...wrote many of the best Batman stories of his first 25 years, including his heartbreaking (and groundbreaking) origin.
...was the original writer of Robin, the Joker, and Catwoman.
...named Gotham City, the Batmobile, and Batman’s secret identity, Bruce Wayne.
...nicknamed Batman “the Dark Knight.”
...even designed Batman’s now-iconic costume.
 
But Bill who...

...was barely credited as a Batman writer—and never as co-creator—in his lifetime. He is not in the credits of either film (The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises) named for the nickname he coined.

Why?

Because cartoonist Bob Kane, Bill’s onetime partner, took all the credit. In a quarter century, Bob drew relatively few Batman stories and wrote none, yet his was the only name that appeared on Batman; over the same period, Bill wrote approximately 1,500 Batman stories, yet his name appeared on almost none. In 1974, Bill died alone and poor.

No obit. No funeral. No gravestone.

No kidding.

Bill was the main mind behind one of our greatest fictional champions of justice. It is time for justice—in the form of public recognition—for Bill himself.

Why Poe Park?

Bill and Bob used to brainstorm Batman stories there...sitting on a bench (ask me if you’d like documentation). In the early 1940s, Bill lived on the Grand Concourse just north of Poe Park. Also, appropriately, Poe was the father of the modern detective story and Batman is known as the World’s Greatest Detective. The Batman-Poe Park connection was covered in the New York Times (though the article mistakenly states that Batman was created in Poe Park).

from Bill the Boy Wonder

Why now?

True, this is not the best time. The best time would have been while Bill was alive. But since we can’t go back, this is the next-best time. There are untold thousands of Batman fans worldwide clamoring for DC Comics to add his name to the Batman credit line. DC may not be able to do that at this time, but we can pay tribute to Bill’s legacy in another meaningful way.

I propose the installation happen in 2014, for three reasons:

• 100th anniversary of Bill’s birth (2/8/1914)
• 75th anniversary of Batman’s debut
• 40th anniversary of Bill’s death

[Missed this, obviously.]
 
Why not something more noticeable like a statue or even a symbolic gravestone?

I tried.

What will the plaque be like?

The plaque will be 5.5” wide and 1.875” tall, stainless steel with a light border engraved ¼” from the edge. It will remain on the bench for the life of the bench, which is usually 10 years or more. If, before that time, the bench or plaque is damaged or vandalized, Parks will replace the bench and/or plaque at no cost to the donor.

How will the money be used?

The cost of the bench and plaque ($2,500). The cost of producing the pledge rewards. The cost of my time to propose/oversee the bench, which will include travel to/from New York, and my time to promote the bench to the media and to Bronx tourism outlets. And the cost of my time to simultaneously develop two more commemorations to Bill—one of a different kind for the Bronx (riddle me this: what rhymes with achoo?) and one for Denver, the city of his birth. In short, all money raised will in some way go toward boosting Bill’s legacy.

So if this Kickstarter succeeds, you may see The Dark Knight Kickstarter Returns.

What’s up with the incentives? I don’t get a mini-bench or a Bill Finger action figure?

I wish.

This project is not to fund my own creativity but rather to honor someone else’s, though the incentives do relate to my creative project about that someone else.

Your generosity will nonetheless earn you cool and exclusive incentives, all featuring the handsome cover design of my book Bill the Boy Wonder: The Secret Co-Creator of Batman, drawn by fan-favorite, Eisner-nominated illustrator Ty Templeton…but I suspect for a majority of however many donors I’m fortunate to get, the donating will be its own reward.

Why am I doing this?

Because of this:

In other words, because I grew up loving Batman (and Robin).

And because I grew up to be a writer myself.

And because creators deserve credit for their cultural contributions.

And because justice has no expiration date.

Any questions or suggestions?

At your service anytime: mtnobleman@gmail.com

PLEDGE LEVELS

Pledge $1 or more (Bill was involved with Batman from Day 1)

BOY (OR GIRL) WONDER

Your name smothered in gratitude in a heartfelt blog post announcing the bench, which I will promote to the media (particularly the pop culture and New York media)

Pledge $14 or more (Bill was born in 1914)

CAPED CONTRIBUTOR

Postcard signed by myself and Ty + previous award

Pledge $27 or more (Batman debuted in Detective Comics #27)

DYNAMIC DONOR

Postcard-sized (4.21" x 5.47") magnet + previous awards

Pledge $75 or more (Batman turned 75 in 2014)

PARK KNIGHT

Bill the Boy Wonder (hardcover) custom-signed to the person of your choice by me + previous awards

Pledge $100 or more (Bill would have turned 100 in 2014)

BATMANIAC

Car magnet (8.73" x 11.48"; also sticks to non-cars) + previous awards

Pledge $500 or more

BRUCE GAIN

iPhone case + previous awards

Pledge $1,000 or more

WORLD’S GREATEST DONATOR

Author presentation/Q&A at U.S. school of your choice about my adventure in uncovering Bill’s startling story + previous awards (delivered in person!)

$1,800 honorarium value; donor responsible for airfare from Washington DC and hotel expenses

Feedback on my presentations:

“To say that [your] presentation was outstanding is almost an understatement. I’ve been the Head of Lower School for 30 years. All of the adults agreed that [you are] the best presenter we have ever had.”
—Dana Hahn, Head of Lower School, Wheeler School, Providence, RI

“That was one of the best presentations we’ve had EVER! Not only did you inspire kids to love writing, which is great, but you promoted their development as human beings.”
—Laura McKone, 5th grade teacher, Mark Twain Elementary, Centennial, CO

“I’ve seen a lot of presentations over my 6½ years arranging book events. Marc’s ranks among the very top of the heap. His message...is delivered uniquely, with enthusiasm, humility, and rare perfect rapport with his listeners. During his talk, I witnessed my favorite thing: kids' hairs being blown back by the audacity of possibility.”
—Suzanne Perry, Events/Public Relations, Secret Garden Bookshop, Seattle, WA

“I couldn’t care less about superheroes, but this was riveting.” 
—attendee, Jewish Museum of Maryland, Baltimore

If you’re a Batman fan, you’re a Bill Finger fan. We can do this! Bill deserves it. Thank you!

A Bill Finger memorial in Poe Park in the Bronx, part 3 of 3

Part 2.

Here is my proposal for a Bill Finger memorial in the Bronx:

Goal: Install a modest memorial statue in Poe Park for Bill Finger, the uncredited co-creator, original writer, and visual architect of perhaps the world’s most popular superhero, Batman.

Background: I am the author of Bill the Boy Wonder: The Secret Co-Creator of Batman, which has generated extensive media including NPR’s All Things Considered and Forbes, and has made best-of-the-year lists at USA Today, Washington Post, and MTV. Unprecedented in both subject and format, the book is the first to reveal the full and startling true story behind the creation of Batman in 1939—which took place right there in the Bronx! Finger is like the Bronx itself—too often both are unrecognized for their cultural contributions. An installation to Finger would actually serve a triple purpose: help right a wrong, boost Bronx/NYC tourism, and make pop culture history. It would be the first memorial honoring a superhero creator in NYC, the Superhero Capital of the World.

Why Bill Finger? He’s the main mind behind one of the most influential fictional icons in world history yet his onetime partner, cartoonist Bob Kane, took full credit for Batman. Finger designed Batman’s costume; wrote the first Batman story and many of the best stories of his first 25 years (including his groundbreaking—and heartbreaking—origin); wrote the first stories of popular supporting characters including Robin and the Joker; named Bruce Wayne, Gotham City, and the Batmobile; and nicknamed Batman "the Dark Knight," which has influenced the titles of two of the highest-grossing movies of all time. Yet while Kane never wrote a Batman story, Finger never saw his name as co-creator in a Batman story.

In 1974, after a career in which most of his work was published anonymously, Finger died alone and poor. No obituary. No funeral. No gravestone.

No kidding.

Finger was largely responsible for one of our greatest fictional champions of justice. It is time for justice for Finger himself.

Why Poe Park? Finger and Kane used to brainstorm Batman stories there; see documentation below and attached. In the early 1940s, Bill lived on the Grand Concourse just north of Poe Park. Also, appropriately, Poe was the father of the modern detective story and Batman is known as the World’s Greatest Detective. The Batman-Poe Park connection was recently covered in the New York Times (though the article mistakenly states that Batman was created in Poe Park).

Why now? True, this is not the best time. The best time would have been while Finger was alive. But since we can’t go back, this is the next-best time. There are untold thousands of Batman fans worldwide clamoring for DC Comics to add his name to the Batman credit line. DC may not be able to do that at this time, but we can pay tribute to Finger’s legacy in another meaningful and bold way.

Batman’s significance (beyond the obvious):

Batman is iconic even to those not interested in comic book culture. To a relative few, Batman may seem like just another superhero; however, he is one of the most recognizable fictional characters in world history (let alone the most lucrative superhero of all time). He’s in a class by himself and therefore, so is his original writer/visual architect.

I know New York has been home to countless notable people and historic events. But not many accomplishments (certainly few cultural accomplishments) can compare to the magnitude of Batman’s influence—and it all dates back to a humble start in an unassuming apartment in the Bronx, thanks to the mind of Bill Finger. The Batman imprint at DC Comics puts out at least thirteen Batman-themed comic books every month. (The next most popular, Superman, has only four.) Batman currently appears on the list of the top 20 highest-grossing films of all time...twice (and it’s not just teenaged boys making those movies break records). Batman has starred in TV animation since 1968 and almost continuously since 1992. The examples go on and on.

Target date: 2014 (75th anniversary of Batman, 100th anniversary of Finger’s birth, 40th anniversary of Finger’s death). We would be able to piggyback on other media, though this being an unprecedented project will almost certainly generate media on its own.

Legal aspect: Though Kane’s contract with DC prevents DC from officially co-crediting Finger, DC does give him credit for every story he wrote. What’s more, I have extensive documentation from publications produced or sanctioned by DC Comics crediting Finger equally with Kane for Batman. (Also, this is almost certainly a partial list.) I have annotated my book, the result of five years of meticulous research, line by line. Some of the evidence in Finger’s favor comes from the unlikeliest source: Kane’s 1989 autobiography. Bill the Boy Wonder was published in July 2012 without incident. My previous nonfiction superhero book, Boys of Steel: The Creators of Superman, was also about a DC Comics character. My hunch is that DC Comics wants to do more for Finger but they are contractually restricted, so they are pleased when others step up to do what they can’t.

Cost: I plan to use Kickstarter and private sources.

Sources for the Batman-Poe Park connection:

Batman & Me, Bob Kane and Tom Andrae, Eclipse Books, 1989, p. 41: "We used to hang out at Poe Park." This is Bob Kane’s autobiography.

The Steranko History of Comics, Volume 1, James Steranko, Supergraphics, Reading, PA, 1970, p. 44: "He asked Bill to meet him later at Edgar Allan Poe Park to discuss a new strip." This is one of the definitive resources on comics history, and the only book to publish an interview with Finger in his lifetime.

Amazing World of DC Comics #1, uncredited article, DC Comics, July-August 1974, p. 28: "Bob asked Bill to meet him later at Edgar Allan Poe Park to discuss a new strip"

Famous 1st Edition (Batman #1) # F-5, Carmine Infantino, DC Comics, February-March 1975, inside front cover: "They agreed to meet later at Poe Park, to work out the details"

interview with Julius Schwartz (longtime DC Comics editor who grew up in the Bronx): "Edgar Allen Poe Park, and there were benches there. And Bill Finger and Bob Kane would meet and plot stories"

I will do all I can to help make this happen and hope to have your support and collaboration. People dressed as Batman will come on a regular basis and take photos with it...

9/10/25 very belated addendum: No statue (yet), but in 2017, we did get a street sign.

A Bill Finger memorial in Poe Park in the Bronx, part 2 of 3

Part 1.

The story so far: I proposed installing a memorial to Bill Finger in Poe Park.

What happened next:

Jonathan Kuhn, Director of Art & Antiquities in the NYC Parks department, strikes me as a sharp, candid guy. I’d wager he knows more than anyone else about the history of New York parks (and the history of the history commemorated within them). He has the tone of a man used to fielding the same questions again and again over years—patient with an underlying irritation. Yet he kindly devoted time to me until I better understood the nuances of the parks system policy on installing monuments.

The policy, generally speaking, is this: no.

In Kuhn’s 22 years in the monuments division, 30 sculptures have been installed. I didn’t know if that is a lot or a little; apparently, it’s a little. Kuhn said that for years, NYC Parks has been moving away from sculptures due to factors including maintenance costs. 

In other words, it’s not me, it’s them.

I inquired about the possibility of putting a small memorial to Bill inside the Poe Park Visitor Center, but that, too, is under NYC Parks jurisdiction.

I mentioned Milwaukee, where fans raised more than $85,000 for a statue of the Fonz from Happy Days. Thousands turned up for its unveiling. 

meeting the Bronze Fonz, 2011

I mentioned Detroit, where fans raised more than $56,000 for a statue of Robocop. (Robocop. He doesn’t come close to the iconic status of even Batman’s supporting characters.)

Kuhn said that the NYC Public Design Commission in NYC considers pop culture-related sculptures in other cities to be bad examples of public art. (To be clear, I am not proposing a statue of Batman or even Bill Finger but rather an artistic tribute to Bill Finger.)

More facts I was fascinated to learn about New York and monuments:

• they do monuments only for people who are already widely known (“Think Gandhi”)
• certain people who got a monument then “became a trivia question,” prompting certain other people to request that such monuments be removed
• the potential to boost tourism is not a consideration in greenlighting a monument
• all park monuments are funded privately and endowed in perpetuity
• it’s easier to install a monument on private property
• it’s prohibited for monuments to include copyrighted characters (Central Park is home to a statue of Alice in Wonderland, but those characters are public domain)

The first criterion does not resonate with me because there are people whose names are not household but whose accomplishments are known worldwide. (For example, quick—who invented the cell phone? Sneakers? Pizza delivery?) I don’t remember the exact words of Kuhn’s response, but the gist was “Even still…”

Kuhn repeatedly said that New York has been home to many notable people and moments. (I would love to see a list of people who have been proposed and rejected.) More than once he cited singer Rosemary Clooney [aunt of actor George Clooney...who played Batman]. Kuhn said Clooney gave her first concert in Poe Park...and has no monument there.

He meant this as a reason to justify not approving a monument to Bill Finger in the same park, though that also did not resonate with me, for two reasons.

First, the cultural impact of Bill’s creations clearly exceeds the impact of the contributions of some of the “many notable people.” I know Rosemary Clooney was a beloved performer in her day, but today, is her name as well known or her influence as pervasively felt as Batman’s? (I’m not saying she’s a trivia question, but Batman debuted in 1939 and grows more popular with each new generation.)

Second, that fact that many notable people have made history in New York should not factor into any individual decisions. If someone deemed more notable has not been nominated, that should have no bearing on a nomination for Bill—or anyone else. I’m not suggesting “first come, first served.” I’m simply suggesting that each person be evaluated in and of himself, not in contrast to any number of others who could sustain a monument.

This reminds me of a yearly phenomenon regarding the Best Picture Academy Award nominations; there is always an underdog and always at least one “snubbed” film—but that is not the underdog’s fault.

Also, according to the NYC Parks site itself, “Rosemary Clooney is reported [emphasis mine] to have made her public debut at the Poe Park bandstand.” I don’t know how they don’t know for sure if Clooney indeed performed there, but we have multiple published sources for Bill’s connection to the park, including Bill himself.

I feel it is short-sighted for the NYC Parks system to decline Bill Finger in large part because they did not already know who he was. I provided what I objectively feel is substantial evidence why he deserves a memorial in New York—and it should have been enough even if I had just said “He was the main mind behind Batman.” Such a memorial would have deep meaning for many.

As of now, I am pursuing four other options, three in New York, and all of which you’ll read about here before long.

Part 3 (the proposal itself).

A Bill Finger memorial in Poe Park in the Bronx, part 1 of 3

Though Bill Finger was the co-creator of one of the most recognizable fictional characters in world history, almost nobody appeared to notice when he died. Even, at first, his only known child, son Fred. (Scribbled on the medical examiner report: “No family.”)

During my research about Bill (which began in 2006), almost no one I asked knew what had happened to him after he died. The most anyone thought they knew was that Bill did not have a funeral.

That, sadly, turned out to be true—and he has no gravestone, either.

Yet Bill the Boy Wonder: The Secret Co-Creator of Batman goes beyond his death for six pages. This is noteworthy for any man—especially a man who seemingly vanished from Earth with no fanfare.

And the story of Bill’s afterlife is not done yet.

Early in the book’s development I knew that I would propose erecting a memorial in Bill’s honor in the Bronx, where he was living when he mo-created (mostly created) Batman in 1939. I envisioned this specifically in Poe Park, where Bill and Bob brainstormed early Batman stories.

from Bill the Boy Wonder; art by Ty Templeton

I suspected that navigating New York City bureaucracy would be a challenge, but for me, that’s hardly a deterrent.

(My first attempt to commemorate a key Bill locale, the privately owned Greenwich Village apartment building in which he lived for much of the 1940s, was not successful.)

In June 2011, I began chasing my Poe Park memorial dream, aiming for an unveiling in 2014—the 75th anniversary of Batman and what would have been Bill’s 100th birthday, not to mention the 40th anniversary of his death.

I started the conversation with the director of the Bronx Tourism Council, then heard nothing for months. In early 2012, a different contact at the BTC reached out. In July 2012, I heard from a third, the new director of the BTC, and began again, getting the green light to resubmit a tweaked version of the proposal I’d sent a year before. We exchanged a few emails after that.

(At some point I also checked back with the Bronx Historical Society, whom I’d contacted during my book research; I learned—as I supposed—that they have no governance with respect to memorials.)

It wasn’t until early November 2012 that the director told me she was not in a position to approve this. She suggested I contact Bronx elected officials. This included a senator, an assemblyman, and a councilman. I emailed them, asking for their support. I heard back from none of them.

In February 2013, I was rerouted again, this time to the Poe Park Visitor Center Coordinator. She also fielded my proposal, and she also reported back that she’s not the one with decision-making authority.

She directed me to Jonathan Kuhn, Director of Art & Antiquities in the NYC Parks department. He was the person I should have been in touch with all along.

His response: let’s talk.

It’s my nature to read positively into such short, cryptic suggestions. My nature, however, is flawed.

Part 2.