The Dark Knight perched at Fire Station 4 in Belmont Heights. Photo by Brian Addison.
75 years ago Bob Kane (with the assistance of Bill Finger) created a superhero to compete with the success of Superman. Some call him the World’s Greatest Detective, the Caped Crusader, or the Dark Knight, but to those who love him, he will always be just Batman.
Batman (né Bruce Wayne) has gone on to become one of the most iconic and ubiquitious comic book characters to have ever existed, from the hokey 1960s television series starring Adam West to the now-legendary film trilogy from director Christopher Nolan.
To honor the Bat’s indelible mark on American culture, DC Comics has created Batman Day, celebrated July 23 this year. Here are a few ways you can get down on all things batty in Long Beach.
Visit Long Beach’s Very Own Batman
Perched atop Long Beach Fire Station 4 at 4th and Loma is a Batman figurine, silently watching over the neighborhood of Belmont Heights. He’s not alone: at Station 10 in Cambodia Town sits a fire-breathing dragon; Station 16 in the airport has a voluptuous woman as caretaker; Station 18 off Wardlow on the Eastside has a giant, angry bee protecting the nest; North Long Beach’s Station 12 has a white phantom; the Gayborhood’s Station 2 has a wolf in sheep’s clothing holding a pink-tipped (hai, gurl!) ax… But ultimately, today belongs to Station 4.
Grab Your Free Batman Schwag
DC Comics is offering a free copy of the re-printed Detective Comics #27, which featured Batman’s first-ever appearance when it was published in May of 1939. The original print copy is the second-most expensive comic ever purchased; an 8.0 graded copy was sold for $1.07M in February of 2010 (the number one most expensive comic purchased is none other than the first appearance of Superman in Action Comics #1, where a 9.0 graded copy sold for $2.16M in 2011). You can visit either Pulp Fiction Comics at 1742 Clark Avenue or Amazing Comics & Cards at 5555 E Stearns Street to grab your free copy. Also: Amazing Comics & Cards has free Batman masks of four varieties to get your cosplay on.
Hassle Our New Mayor: Batman vs. Superman
Unquestionably, Mayor Robert Garcia’s personal superhero fave is Superman—the exact same superhero Batman was created to compete with during the heyday of the comic book. And it is also without question (at least today) that Garcia has chosen the wrong superhero to side with. Tweet the mayor and tell him why you think Bruce Wayne trumps Clark Kent @RobertGarciaLB.
Celebrate at the Long Beach Public Library
Local comic book stores aren’t the only literary places celebrating the Dark Knight’s birth. Public libraries across the nation—including our Main Branch in Downtown Long Beach—will be offering up a ton of Batman-related goodies and activities this Saturday.
Watch the Two Worst Batman Films Because…
…they were filmed in Long Beach. Joel Schumacher’s spectacularly horrible Batman films, Batman Forever and Batman & Robin, were Warner Brothers’ misguided follow-up to Tim Burton’s classic Batman and Batman Returns. Schumacher, however, went from Burton’s typical grey-and-more-grey Gotham to neon, saturated camp—much to the chagrin of both critics and fans. Both of Schumacher’s takes on the Dark (Now He’s Bright!) Knight had multiple scenes filmed right here in Long Beach. Batman Forever, in fact, used the Queen Mary’s Dome because Warner Bros.’s Burbank lot ran out of room for Production Designer Barbara Ling’s massive sets.
Have other suggestions to celebrate Batman Day? Feel free to leave your idea of crime-fighting fun in the comments section below.