As best I can find, Mrs. Wayne, is first identified as “Martha” in Batman #47, 1948. In what was probably the first re-visitation of his origin, by the great Bill Finger. Here’s a bonus for ya, her unmarried name of “Kane” was first provided by writer Scott Beatty, in Batman Secret Files & Origins #1, 1997. “Marthe” Kent was first so called, in Superboy #12, 1951. This is open to challenges of course. Otherwise, I stand by my sources.
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Let me “tug on Batman’s cape” (to paraphrase departed singer/song writer Jim Croce) for a moment here. In 1966, the ABC network hit America with something that would add another capital “B” to the entertainment world. First Bond, then the Beatles, and finally Batman! Of course the 60s were about a helluva’ lot more than that. And not a lot of it good. But stayin’ with Batman, in addition to seeing the Bat-cave and Batmobile (which to a kid, were just awesome), we were also introduced to Dick’s aunt Harriet. She quickly migrated to the comics and mainstream continuity. Where am I going with all this? I’m glad you asked.
When Batman first guest starred in Superman #76 (during a lull in Gotham’s crime activity), Robin, as Dick Grayson took some personal time to "visit relatives, upstate" while Bruce took an ocean cruise. Why this multi-millionaire would have to “share quarters” with a lowly reporter, is a different question, for another time. I’m far more concerned about this unseen, extended family, of young “Master” Grayson.
Now, clearly this was meant as a throwaway piece of dialogue. Ah, ah, ah, not so fast. We’re never told (I don’t think), exactly where Harriet Cooper lives (prior to her extended stay at Wayne Manor). Only that, after Alfred’s recovery from his injuries suffered as the Outsider, does she relinquish her “responsibilities” there, and return home.
Now, is it possible, that the relatives which Dick went to visit, were the Coopers? That the passing of Harriet’s invalid husband, had now allowed her the freedom to visit and stay with her nephew, in the suburbs of Gotham? Seems to me, this would wrap up a minor loose end from the Silver Age, rather nicely. What do you think Q?
Well, 'til Batman meets Dick Tracy …
Stay safe, be well.
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Hello @HubCityQuestion,
It’s your friendly neighborhood @Spider-Man78, I just wanted to say that I really enjoy reading your article of how long it took when Heroes meet their arch nemesis. That was really interesting. 
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Not sure if this exactly fits the column, so feel free to pass on this if you need to.
I have a question about creator credits. Are there certain standards a character has to meet to have its creator(s) acknowledged in a comic or an adaptation in another medium? For example, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster are rightly and prominently credited as the creators of Superman, but I’ve never seen them credited in a similar way for creating Lois Lane or Lex Luthor, both extremely influential characters who have been known to appear without Superman from time to time.
Thanks!
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he posted yesterday
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It’s certainly possible! Harriet was the sister of John Grayson, Dick’s father, and the only extended relative to Dick canonically established during the Silver Age. Granted, she didn’t appear by name until Detective Comics #328, 12 years after Superman #76, but it could well be that the '60s just gave us a name and face to that previously unseen character.
There is another set of aunt and uncle established earlier in the Golden Age, in Batman #20, George and Clara Grayson. But it’s unlikely that Dick would have been staying with them, because in their single appearance, they only feigned concern for Dick’s well-being as part of a scheme to bilk Bruce out of his millions. So I say that while it almost definitely wasn’t Superman #76 writer Edmond Hamilton’s intention, retroactively, Harriet Cooper it is.
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Welcome Back Q!!!
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Thanks! I’ve been quite busy lately, but I’m going to try and make time to answer at least one question a day, here or in my other thread.
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With everyone clamoring for your attention now, I won’t mind being bumped to the end of the line. Good to have you back, in any case. Your voice and sage commentary was sorely missed.
Two demons not related to Lilith, the reputed “mother of all Earth-born fiends”, are Satanus and Lady Blaze. They, being sired by the wizard Shazam. In reference to an earlier (Feb. 9th) inquiry of mine, I have another involving them. Have those offspring of Jebediah of Canaan Mamaragan ever crossed paths with young Billy Batson, in his Captain Marvel days? Or any members of the Marvel family for that matter? I assume so, but having lost track of those demonic siblings over the years (until my recent discovery of the Reign in Hell mini-series), I don’t remember where or when.
Hell, as a physical manifestation in the DCU, has been portrayed quite differently over the years, by different writers. For some, it’s merely a background “character” waiting to be fleshed out. While others, prefer to actually put “meat on the bones” as it were. We’ve seen this in Lucifer, Hellblazer, the Demon and the latest version being Reign in Hell. This usually depends on whether the story is coming from a super-hero standpoint, or a supernatural one.
Toward that end, I’ve never really understood exactly how or where the Seven Deadly Enemies (Sins) of Man fall on the “demonic table” if you will. Shazam (sorry, the Wizard) and 6 fellow heroes defeated them, way back when. Yet, those mortal failings remain a part of all humanity’s make-up, continuing to this day. So what did Shazam (sorry, the Wizard) actually accomplish, with their imprisonment? Can you please dispel the Shadow-like fog that "clouds my mind’ on this matter good sir?
Stay safe, be well.
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Okay, so, I’ve read Watchmen and Doomsday Clock multiple times, and there’s one thing I don’t get. Marionette and Mime’s son was kidnapped by a future version of Doctor Manhattan seconds after birth. Years later, Rorschach and Ozymandias bribed them with their son’s location. However, not until after the whole ordeal was over did Jon go back in time and kidnap the infant. So my question is, did Reggie and Veidt really know where the baby was? If so, how? If not, where did they get the picture! Thanks!
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It’s happened a few times over the years! For instance, in the Elseworlds story Detective No. 27, Bruce Wayne and Alfred attend a Yankees game featuring Babe Ruth, only for the game to be interrupted by Catwoman.
In 1949’s Hit Comics #59, the young superhero Kid Eternity, who had the power to channel the spirits of the dead, summoned the ghost of Lou Gehrig to his side.
In Superman’s Girl Friend, Lois Lane #114, Lois covers a museum exhibit educating Metropolis on some of the most important African American historical figures, including Jackie Robinson.
Most recently, in Sandman Mystery Theatre #1, Golden Age Sandman Wesley Dodds attends a fundraising gala for New York libraries, where Joe DiMaggio appears as the guest of honor.
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I just got my hands on a copy of Teen Titans Go! #36, the introduction of Wonder Girl to the world of the animated Teen Titans series, and was reminded of her exclusion from the show due to “legal reasons”. A friend of mine pointed out that she was cut from Young Justice early on in development for the same reason. What exactly makes Donna such a litigious minefield?
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One that comes to mind is “Kryptonite,” which is used in common parlance to describe someone’s greatest weakness – a sort of 20th century update of “Achilles’ heel.”
Sometimes, Doctor Sivana is credited with coining the phrase “Curses, foiled again!” While this isn’t strictly true, the Captain Marvel comics of the 1940s can be considered responsible for revitalizing the phrase after falling out of use for 20 years. For that matter, the exclamation “Shazam!” can also be credited to early Captain Marvel comics.
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The legal history of Wonder Woman has always been complicated. For instance, according to writer Kurt Busiek, there was a rule in place for a long time that Wonder Woman had to remain in continuous publication, or the rights would revert back to the Marston family. According to accounts by Paul Dini in an interview with ToonZone, another arrangement regarding extended media demanded that DC only had the rights to programs in which Wonder Woman or related characters, such as Donna Troy, was a star character. (This is why Wonder Woman was unable to appear in shows like Batman Beyond, where she was replaced with Big Barda in the Justice League Unlimited episodes, and why she couldn’t appear in the Static Shock crossover episodes.)
To their own admissions, neither Dini nor Busiek know the full story. But they do know that at some point, Wonder Woman in all of its forms was bought outright by DC, and Diana, Donna, and the rest now have the legal freedom to appear wherever necessary.
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You know Q, I have to admit, I like little or underused supporting characters. As do many writers. Finding fertile and unexplored ground there, to be applied as “new” background territory for their main cast, whoever they may be. So, it is in that vein that I once again look back on Mrs. Harriet Cooper.
What (if any) roll, has she played in the Batman universe since Rebirth? Has Dick ever visited her once, since she left Wayne Manor? Or at all, in any of his various Nightwing titles over the years? Is she still firm and able bodied? Or has she moved from her personal abode, into a Nursing Home? Since I’m unaware of any notification of her passing (unlike a certain butler), one must assume that she is “still with us.”
I’m thinking it would be nice for some writer to “update” us on her present status in the DCU. Or, am I behind the 8-ball once again on this one, and overly concerned about the welfare of Mrs. Cooper?
Stay safe, be well.
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Dick’s beloved Aunt Harriet remained a consistent presence through the 2010s in the Batman '66 comics and its various spinoffs, but has made scant appearances within continuity since 1969. However, like many forgotten Gothamites, the question of whatever happened to Aunt Harriet was answered in the Gotham Academy series.
As it turns out, Aunt Harriet seems to have gotten a job on the staff of Gotham’s most prestigious prep school, her duties including the enforcement of student policy, and supervision of detention hall. A fitting position, I’d say, for one who was always a hair’s width away from learning the secrets of Bruce Wayne and her nephew Dick.
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Alright! Way to go, Aunt Harriet!
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OK, gonna knock a few Wrightline questions out so I can take a few days off here…
Kane was known for employing ghost artists to do the bulk of his work, but maintained a working relationship with DC from 1938 to 1950. Kane had two more Batman stories in him in 1953, Detective Comics #192’s “The Phantom Eye of Gotham City” and Detective Comics #194’s “The Stolen Bank,” and that was it for Bob. As of this writing, the latest Bob Kane story you can find on DC Universe Infinite is 1949’s World’s Finest Comics #32, “The Man Who Could Not Die.”
Doctor Double X was a recurring presence in Tom King’s Batman run, where Superman and Batman teamed up to take him down in 2017’s Batman #36. Dr. Ecks briefly returns in King’s climactic “City of Bane” storyline, as two corpses, murdered by Two-Face, with the help of Amygdala and Solomon Grundy.
The Mystery Analysts of Gotham haven’t made an in-continuity appearance since 1975, but like many long retired concepts have cropped up again in Scooby-Doo crossover material. Their first meeting is in Scooby-Doo Team-Up #3-4, but they appear once more in the animated film Scooby-Doo! & Batman: The Brave and the Bold, featuring an all-new lineup: Martian Manhunter, Detective Chimp, Plastic Man, Black Canary, The Question, Batman himself, Mystery Inc., and as of the film’s finale, Aquaman. The concept is survived by the “Guild of Detection,” introduced in Detective Comics #1000, composed of Slam Bradley, Martian Manhunter, Detective Chimp, The Question, Hawkman and Hawkwoman, Elongated Man and Sue Dibny, and Batman. Nothing’s really been done with them since their brief introduction, but I can hold out hope.
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