27 Jul 2008
When Batman Was Gay
Batman fever has officially reached the shores of Ireland, every show was sold out last night on our weekly visit to the multiplex. This latest carnation of the Batman is inspired by the early 1940's version of the character. This was a batman who shot people, threw them from rooftops and had no reservations about violence and murder. Then the 60's happened, with a change in morals and a social landscape Batman became tamer and dare we say it camp!
To address the general concern that Batman comics were too violent and encouraged socially reckless behaviour, writers for Batman increasingly penned stories with surreal, fantastical, or absurd story lines. Plots portrayed Batman travelling through time to ancient Babylon, venturing to alien planets, and being the victim of magic spells. Rather than depicting Gotham as a den of vice and crime, the writers portrayed the city as relatively safe and prosperous. Batman's foes became less violent, plotting capers that often centered exclusively on symbolic crimes or "unmasking" Batman. Batman himself became less anti-social - frequently cooperating with Gotham police and public safety committees
This softening of The Dark Knight was not appreciated by everyone and led to accusations that Batman might be a homosexual. The accusation, similar to today's accusations against Spongebob Squarepants or The Tellytubbies was taken quite seriously by government and public alike. It wasn't levelled by a marginal nut or crank, but by a world-renowned psychiatrist, Dr. Frederic Wertham.
Wertham was the Chief Psychiatrist for the New York Department of Hospitals and an important figure among the New York City liberal intelligentsia.
Wertham accused Batman and Robin as "a dream of two homosexuals living together." They lived in "sumptuous quarters," unencumbered by wives and girlfriends, with only an aged butler for company. They cared for each other's injuries, frequently shared quarters, and lounged together in dressing gowns. Worse still, both exhibited damning psychological characteristics: proclivities for costumes, dressing up, and fantasy play; secretive behaviour and double-lives; little interest in women; and, most damning of all, neurotic compulsions resulting in their violent vigilantism. Indeed, Wertham argued, depictions of Batman and Robin were frequently homoerotic, visually emphasizing Batman's rippling physique and Robins splayed, bare thighs.
"Only someone ignorant of the fundamentals of psychiatry and psychopathology of sex can fail to realize the subtle atmosphere of homoeroticism which pervades the adventures," wrote Wertham. "The Batman type of story may stimulate children to homosexual fantasies."
Batman's creators and writers were horrified by this. Batman, they noted, "had a series of dalliances with several Gothamite ladies, even if he'd never settled down". Nor, they argued, had there ever been any explicit homosexual affection between Batman and Robin, much less a portrayal of anything beneath their tights. And, in any case, what sense did it make to interrogate the sexual practices of a character who lived only in the frames of a comic book? Any "sex life" Batman might possess was purely the imagination of his critics and had nothing to do with Batman himself.
In fear of falling sales, DC Comics designed changes to specifically undercut the accusation that Batman and Robin were gay. Alfred's role in the comic was diminished (Alfred was even killed off for a while in the early 1960s, only to be, literally, resurrected for a while as a villain). To supplement Alfred, Aunts Agatha and Harriet were introduced to provide care, nurturing and a woman's touch in Wayne manor. At the same time, DC began to introduce a series of other female characters to provide romances for Batman and Robin - Bat-girl in 1956 and Batwoman in 1961.
So many changes were made to Batman that comic sales began to fall, the also camp TV show also began to drop viewers. As the trend continued, attention moved away from Batman's supposed sexuality and the comics continued uninterrupted, always keeping a slightly darker tone. Today Bruce Wayne still lives with Robin and his butler Alfred, and Bat-girl is nowhere to be seen. Thankfully the Tellytubbies are keeping the heat off the dynamic duo for now.
