Amazing Batman Facts
Amazing Batman Facts:
Batman Popularity Supports The Demand For T Shirts
Of all the super heroes, Batman is the most like us. He is considered a super hero, but has no magical superpower. His only advantage stems from innate intelligence combined with a weaponized body, sculpted by many years of intense training. He's super rich, but he's using his money to further his crime fighting. So it's no wonder that his t shirts are so popular.
The Money Behind The T Shirts
There's no direct data covering revenue from Batman t shirts (check out our selection), but it's clear from some related data that the market is huge. Batman shirts are a tiny fraction of the total revenue for t shirts where the global demand is impressive. Revenue in the T-Shirts & Singlets segment amounts to US$154,144m in 2019. The market is expected to grow annually by 5.4% (CAGR 2019-2023). In global comparison, most revenue is generated in the United States (US$22,129m in 2019). In relation to total population figures, per person revenues of US$20.92 are generated in 2019.
This next stat may be closer to the mark, since good quality Batman t shirts are the result of a custom print job most of the time. According to globenewswire.com the global market for custom t-shirt printing industry is expected to cross US$ 10 Bn by 2025 at a CAGR of 6.3% through the forecast period 2017 – 2025.
Although the data so far doesn't give you the sales or revenue generated by Batman t shirt sales alone, here's a Batman Fact that says a lot: Slice Intelligence used super data to see which comic book characters are most popular with online shoppers. The Dark Knight rises to the top in terms of online toys, games, and apparel sales; 28 percent of superhero merchandise purchased since January 2015 was Batman branded. And you can bet Batman t shirts are major contributor to these numbers.
Batman History
Bruce Wayne's life changing experience was witnessing the murder of his parents on the city streets, motivating him to dedicate his life to cleansing Gotham City of the filth and evil that were festering there. This one fact is the key to Batman's purpose, the reason he is who he is. The murder of his mother and father was the first domino in a chain of events that formed the man. He became super motivated and focused all his power on bringing criminals to justice. Obsessed, he single mindedly committed to an extreme and stringent training effort toward preparing his body and mind for his life's battle: declaring and fighting a war against crime. All of the Batman stories originate from the painful scars of his youth and fuel his passion for protecting the citizens of Gotham.
Batman's first public appearance is noted on superherodb.com - "...character first appeared in Detective Comics #27, published in 1939." They also have this list of Power Stats - we suspect intelligence is IQ, but wonder about that Combat stat of 100. This might mean he always wins.
By analyzing a comic frame where Bruce Wayne is bench pressing, the author at quora.com concludes, "The first image we see Bruce benching four plates. The second largest plate states that it is 500 lbs. That means the largest plate is heavier. Lets say it is 550. The smaller plate, lets say 50 lbs. And the smallest, lets say 25. So that is 2250 lbs in total for the whole bar." In another frame Batman is supporting the ceiling as it was collapsing - author estimates 1000 lbs. In the DC rebirth issue below, "he lifted Grundy with one hand that too with ease who weighs close to 1000 lbs which means he could lift upto 2000 lbs pretty easily which equals 1 US Ton." As with a lot of the Batman facts, so much has been written that there are bound to be conflicts in the data, not to mention the interpretations. But we can leave it at Batman is a very strong human being, and worthy of a t shirt!
Batman Has Achieved Wide Mainstream Respect
In the past, interest in Batman and opinions about him have ebbed and flowed, and at the low points the character was often ridiculed, labelled a fad, or derided as joke. But you can't keep a good super hero down, especially when he's riding a wave powered by nostalgia - always a driving forces behind Batman t shirt sales. Those old days and the disbelievers are gone - these days Batman can no longer be easily written off. It's safe to say he's here to stay.
If you need proof that Batman is mainstream, note that way back in 2008 JR Minkel posted an article in Scientific American entitled "Dark Knight Shift: Why Batman Could Exist - But Not for Long" that asks and answers many technical questions about the Dark Knight. Like how long Bruce Wayne would have to train to become Batman.The author claims 8 to 10 years, or 15 to 18 years if the skill set perfects non-lethal tactics.The article is filled with logical, scientific approaches to answering some pretty tricky questions. Like how long until he'd have to retire? Author suggests he'd max out around 50 - 55 years old. Read the post. But just remember that long after he supposedly retires, we'll still be wearing his t shirts, and more films will get released.
Want more proof of mainstream respectability? The Economist just published a piece noting his 50 years on film, and revealing some Batman facts from the historic record. For example, the Gotham crusader as specified in the comic books is 6'2" (1.88m) tall, and weighs 210 pounds (95kg). Michael Keaton was the most diminutive of the actors to play Batman, weighing just 159 lbs and reaching only 5”10. His Batman was made bigger through the use smaller sets & props, like doorways. Lots more celebrity Batman facts are published here involving Adam West (the original Batman), Val Kilmer, George Clooney, Christian Bale, and Ben Afleck. All these guys are helping drive sales of Batman t shirts just by playing Batman.
Then there's the fact that the University of Victoria in British Columbia had a college level course entitled "The Science of Batman." The course description from the university states, "The extreme range of adaptability of the human body explored through the life of the Caped Crusader; examines human potential using Batman as a metaphor for the ultimate in human conditioning; evaluates the concepts of adaptation to exercise and injury from the perspective of science and exercise training; examines the multiple sciences behind exercise adaptation, musculoskeletal injury and concussion, and limitations of the human body and mind."
There are many Batman cartoons in mainstream publications - this one is from the December 2019 New Yorker:
Probably the most powerful evidence of Batman's mainstream status is the existence of the musical "Holy Musical B@man!" Wikipedia says, "The musical was performed March 22–25, 2012, at the Hoover-Leppen Theatre in Chicago, Illinois. It was produced by StarKid Productions and directed by Matt Lang. The musical stars an ensemble cast featuring Joe Walker as the Batman, and Nick Lang as his sidekick Robin. The group put the entire musical up on YouTube on April 13, 2012." You don't get a musical written about you unless you're already a mainstream household name. The Youtube excerpt got some pretty impressive reviews - view the excerpt:
Holy_Musical B@man!
In The News Batman Stands With The Oppressed
It doesn't seem to matter that Bruce Wayne is a powerful oligarch, not an everyman. Batman is always viewed as an honorable warrior fighting for justice for the common man while taking on overwhelming evil forces. This makes him the perfect hero for the rebellion. Protestors around the world are inspired by his values so Batman often shows up on the front lines - on a t shirt or hoodie.
2011 was the start of many protests including Arab Spring and Occupy Wall Street. We've seen Batman t shirts in the footage of demonstrators in Tahrir Square during the 2011 Egyptian revolution, and other Muslim countries where citizens rose up, including Tunisia, Morocco, Syria, Libya and Bahrain. And Batman was definitely present at Occupy Wall Street.
"Batman is one of the most politically complex fictional characters there has ever been. By his very nature and ideals, he is not only more relevant to the Occupy Wall Street protests than its current anarchist veneer of V for Vendetta, but also holds up a mirror to its uneasy reality." Stephen Kelly in the Guardian 2011.
In 2019 Batman was observed on shirts in Red Square in Moscow in protests against Putin inspired election fraud. And the Dark Knight has been spotted on the streets of Hong Kong, on the side of the protestors, in an historically significant confrontation.
A Headline from The Business Insider Nov 29, 2019: "DC Comics yanked an ad campaign for an upcoming Batman comic book after Chinese fans claimed it supported the ongoing Hong Kong protests." In 2019 protests broke out in Hong Kong over the oppressive policies of the Chinese government as it acted against the will of the people and used the local police force to brutalize protestors, a policy that backfired and provoked more sypathy for the protests. But as DC Comics discovered, it's Batman against China, and Batman might be losing this time... so far. Either way, he's still the hero, possibly even a bigger hero for losing.
Favorite Batman Villain | Batman vs Robin
There is actually a set of metrics for the favorite Batman villain. According to a poll taken by statista.com, around 36 percent of respondents stated that the Joker was their favorite Batman villain as of March 2019, followed by The Cat Woman (13%) and The Penguin (12%). This is not to belittle the other bad dudes, but probably more a function of name recognition rather than absolute bad-ass-ness. There is even a stat on the preference between Batman at 70% and Robin at 14%, so a five fold preference toward Batman. Again perhaps more familiarity or name recognition. T shirt sales statistics support these preferences.
Longest Running Batman Never Wore A Mask
According to screenrant.com the longest running Batman never wore a mask. While there have been a huge number of actors who portrayed him, no other actor has owned the character like Kevin Conroy. In animated efforts, Kevin has portrayed the Dark Knight over 20 times throughout his career and no other actor has come close to portraying and embodying the character of Batman like him.
Batman Comics
It all started with Batman Comics, and they're still going strong. According to BleedingCool, the recent Batman facts are in and there was a little down bleep recently noted. The latest release seems to have dropped below the previous edition - Batman #75 was only the 13th most-ordered comic book by the direct market in North America in July 2010. And the 11th highest revenue raiser. So comic sales are not really hurting. Remember that comics drove the initial interest in Batman, so there's an historical interest in this stuff in addition to the art and comic collectors. And for you culture fiends, there are several vintage comic inspired Batman t shirts available.
More Batman Facts
In case you want even more Batman facts, these links provide a good start:
Batman Facts
25 Insane Batman Facts About Batman
17 Batman Facts (You Probably Didn't Know)
42 Shadowy Facts About Batman
24 Batman Facts Every Dark Knight Nerd Should Know
Batman Movies
We found 12 Batman movies - probably the biggest reason Batman T Shirts exist. Some of the shirts, especially the sublimated prints are gorgeous fashion pieces that accurately reflect the art from the posters, trailers and other movie memorabilia.
The Batman (2021)
Robert Pattinson is Batman
When a sadistic killer leaves behind a trail of cryptic clues, Batman ventures into Gotham City's underworld. As the evidence begins to lead closer to home and the scale of the perpetrator's plans become clear, Batman must forge new relationships, unmask the culprit and bring justice to the abuse of power and corruption that has long plagued Gotham City.
Justice League (2017)
Ben Affleck is Batman
Superman, Batman, Steppenwolf and the Parademons hunting 3 Mother Boxes on Earth.
Suicide Squad (2016)
Ben Affleck is Batman
Meet the Suicide Squad - high-risk black ops missions for commuted prison sentences.
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)
Ben Affleck is Batman
Batman and Superman at war with one another.
The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
Christian Bale is Batman
Once hunted by the Gotham Police but eight years later, the Dark Knight resurfaces.
The Dark Knight (2008)
Christian Bale is Batman
Batman meets the rising criminal mastermind the Joker.
Batman Begins (2005)
Christian Bale is Batman
Driven by tragedy, billionaire Bruce Wayne dedicates his life to fighting crime as Batman.
Batman & Robin (1997)
George Clooney is Batman
With Robin and new recruit Batgirl, Batman battles Mr. Freeze and Poison Ivy.
Batman Forever (1995)
Val Kilmer is Batman
The Dark Knight of Gotham City meets Two-Face and the Riddler. New partner Robin appears.
Batman Returns (1992)
Michael Keaton is Batman
Having defeated the Joker, Batman now faces the Penguin and the Catwoman.
Batman (1989)
Michael Keaton is Batman
The Dark Knight of Gotham City begins his war on crime with the Joker
Batman (1966)
Adam West is Batman
The Dynamic Duo faces four super-villains who plan to hold the world for ransom with the help of a secret invention that instantly dehydrates people.
