CATWOMAN 91
as a formidable fi ghter with expertise in various martial arts. Unlike many of the more
psychotic criminals of Gotham City, Catwoman is opposed to killing and at times has
appeared ambivalent about her illegal behavior.
Batman and Catwoman have had an intensely complicated relationship dating back
to their initial encounter in 1940. Th e two appeared immediately smitten despite their
standing on opposite sides of the law. In that fi rst story from Batman #1 Catwoman
seductively propositions the hero to join her so that they might become the “king
and queen of crime.” While Batman rejects her overture, he deliberately allows her to
escape from his custody. Th at story ends with Batman commenting on his new adver-
sary when he says, “Lovely girl! What eyes! Say—mustn’t forget I’ve got a girl named
Julie [Madison]—Oh well, she still had lovely eyes! Maybe I’ll bump into her again
sometime.. .” Subsequent adventures would routinely showcase the pair’s undeniable
attraction for each other.
It was not until 1950 that the villainess’s origin was revealed in “Th e Secret Life
of Catwoman” in Batman #62. While attempting to save Batman’s life, Catwoman is
knocked unconscious. She soon awakens but has no memory of her criminal career.
Th e Dynamic Duo learns that their longtime nemesis is actually Selina Kyle, a former
stewardess who suff ered a head injury in an airplane crash and subsequently became a
thief. She joins the heroes in apprehending a former criminal associate and is later par-
doned for her earlier misdeeds. Later stories showed her as the proprietor of a pet shop
specializing in cats. However, she returned to her life of crime in Detective Comics #203
and #211. Catwoman then disappeared from comics for more than a decade. She was
fi nally revived in Superman’s Girl Friend, Lois Lane #70 (1966). She made infrequent
comic book appearances during the 1970s and fi nally reemerged to greater prominence
in the 1980s. Her origin story was revised several times during this period, most sig-
nifi cantly in Batman: Year One (1987) by Frank Miller, who depicts Selina Kyle as
a cat-loving prostitute and dominatrix caring for a young teen runaway. In 1993, her
continued popularity led DC Comics to publish Catwoman, an ongoing series depicting
Selina Kyle as an international thief with an ambiguous moral code. In 2001, a new Cat-
woman series was launched that showcased Kyle as both a cat burglar and the protector
of Gotham’s East End. In 2006, Kyle gave birth to a daughter named Helena. Th is was
a nod to a series of 1970s and 1980s stories that took place on a parallel earth where
Selina reformed from crime and went on to marry Bruce Wayne. Th e couple eventu-
ally had a daughter named Helena, who grew up to become a crimefi ghter known as
the Huntress. Th e character was also used to great eff ect in recent years by Darwyn
Cooke in the 2002 graphic novel Catwoman: Selina’s Big Score and by Jeph Loeb and
Tim Sale in the miniseries Catwoman: When in Rome (2004).
Catwoman has been featured in most media adaptations relating to Batman. Julie
Newmar captivated audiences of the 1960s Batman television series as she stealthily
enticed Adam West’s Caped Crusader while wearing a skintight black cat-suit. Later
episodes featured African American singer and actress Eartha Kitt as a more menac-
ing version of the criminal. Her casting was considered daring during the racially
