Who are the individuals who have made great contributions to the comic book arts? Who are the writers, artists, editors, publishers and others who have plied their craft in insightful ways? The Overstreet Hall of Fame, which spotlights many such creators and leading figures, is featured in The Overstreet Guide To Collecting Comics.

Known near and far as the creator of DC Comics’ Batman, Bob Kane joined the Max Fleischer Studio as a trainee animator in 1934, then subsequently worked for Jerry Iger and then the Eisner & Iger Studio. Following the surprising success of Superman in 1938, he and writer Bill Finger developed Batman in 1939. The character first appeared in Detective Comics #27. Although still credited in each issue as the creator of Batman, Kane’s comic book career wound down in the 1960s, though he parlayed his Batman status into a bit of celebrity. Before that, among the Dark Knight’s Rogues Gallery, Kane created Two-Face, Catwoman (first seen as “the Cat”), and the Scarecrow, among others. In his post-comics career, he painted and showed his works in galleries, created Courageous Cat and Cool McCool, and served as a consultant to the movies Batman (1989), Batman Returns (1992) and Batman Forever (1995). His familiar signature was even seen on a piece of art in the 1980 film.

–Scott Braden

The most recent inductees into The Overstreet Hall of Fame are featured in The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide #43, which is now on sale. Those inducted up to that point are featured in The Overstreet Guide To Collecting Comics.