Contributed by collector and Overstreet Advisor Art Cloos
Photos by Alice Cloos

Bill Finger is a beloved comic book and comic strip writer who co-created Batman and contributed to many of DC’s popular titles. For most of Batman’s history, Bob Kane was singularly given credit for his creation, though many fans acknowledged Finger’s contributions.

Finger wrote the first Batman story in Detective Comics #27 in 1939 and followed that by writing many more Batman stories over the years. His story was shared with the wider world of comic fandom in 1966 when Dr. Jerry Bails, considered the founding father of comic fandom wrote a piece called, “If the Truth Be Known, or, A Finger in Every Plot!” In it Bails credited Finger with being the most important Batman writer, and in fact a co-creator of the Dark Knight.

Finger’s family spent years seeking acknowledgement of his key contribution to the Batman story. Author Marc Tyler Nobleman spent over a decade researching the story of Bill Finger, writing the book Bill the Boy Wonder: The Secret Co-Creator of Batman. In 2015, DC Comics issued a statement announcing that Finger would be credited as a co-creator on Batman comics and related TV and film projects, plus royalties were paid to the family.

On December 8, 2017, New York City renamed a street for Bill Finger, believed to be the first time this has happened for a superhero creator in the Big Apple’s history. On that day, East 192 Street in the Bronx was renamed Bill Finger Way. Why you might ask was this in the Bronx? Well, Bill Finger not only lived in the Bronx, but with Bob Kane who also lived there, created Batman while he was in Poe Park.

The unveiling ceremony began at 10 AM on the northeast corner of the Grand Concourse adjacent to the famous Poe Park. Fans came from as far away as Utah to attend this event. Speeches were made by New York Council member Ritchie Torres, Athena Finger (Bill’s granddaughter), Steve Simmons (Bill’s stepson, whose mother was Bill’s second wife Lyn), Kevin Conroy (voice of Batman in Batman: The Animated Series), and Angel Hernandez (Director of Programs and External Relations for the Bronx Historical Society). Benjamin Zaido Cruz (Athena’s son and Bill’s great grandson) and Athena’s sister Alethia Mariotta were also there.

Comic fandom has long recognized Finger’s contributions as he has been inducted into the Jack Kirby Hall of Fame in 1994 and the Will Eisner Comic Book Hall of Fame in 1999. Comic-Con International established the Bill Finger Award for Excellence in Comic Book Writing in 2005, which is given annually to two recipients one living and one deceased who have produced a significant body of work in the comics field. In 2014, he was posthumously given an Inkpot award.

I spoke to Nobleman about his thoughts on the day of the street naming and he said, “I first visited Poe Park a decade ago when I was researching a book on Bill Finger that was not even under contract. If you told me then that I would one day be back to celebrate the unveiling of a street named in Bill’s honor, I would have vehemently disbelieved and passionately believed it at the same time. Before the book, before the credit change, before the film, it would have seemed so unlikely, yet imperative. This tribute means so much to Bill’s legacy and family, Batman fans, and the Bronx, and I was tremendously honored to bear witness.”

I asked Athena Finger what she thought about her grandfather’s day and she said, “I would like to thank Councilman Richie Torres, the city of New York, and Marc Nobleman for recognizing the historical value of Bill Finger’s contributions to the culture of New York and to the world. It’s a real honor for him to be recognized with a street named after Bill along Poe Park in the Bronx where he and Bob Kane would collaborate on Batman stories.”

When the cover was pulled off the sign on the street pole there was a great roar of approval and Steve Simmons clenched his hands in triumph. A few attendees might have choked up a bit seeing this. In honor of the occasion Athena was given a street sign to take home and one will also be given to Bill’s stepson. The outpouring of emotion by the attendees shows how passionately his fans feel about his contributions to the history of the Batman.