The (Bat) Man Who Started It All

As my first post, it is only fitting that I focus on the man who started me down the path that led me to create Pop Culture A.D.D.

This man has been a big part of so many of the memorable moments of my life.

As a child, he inspired my imagination and even my wardrobe. As an adolescent, he inspired me to go to my very first movie without my parents. As an adult, he has helped me embrace the importance of maintaining a sense of childlike wonder.

While Pop Culture A.D.D. will eventually focus on the staggering array of things that draw my attention and distract me from my work, for today, I will focus on the man who made it all possible:

That's right. Batman. The crime-fightingest, ass-kickingest, batmobile-drivingest, Gotham-livingest hero to ever don a pair of tights. Batman effectively introduced me to the power of pop culture and the mind-melting awesomeness of comics.

With that in mind, I'd like to thank:

• Bob Kane for creating a character that will outlive us all.
• My Mom for making my first cape and baking my first Batman birthday cake.
• My Dad for letting me go see Batman: The Movie while he was shopping.
• Christopher Nolan for making Batman Begins so good I cried tears of geek joy.
• Bruce Timm and Paul Dini for their amazing work on Batman: The Animated Series and Dini for the current run of Detective Comics. (Thanks for the assist, Stephen.)
• Chris Sims and his Incredible Super-Blog for proving that the internet could be used to extol the virtues of kicks to the face and car batteries as weapons.
• Rachelle Goguen and Living Between Wednesdays for showing the world that life is just better with a "Cuddle Pillow Batman".
• J. Caleb Mozzocco and Every Day Is Like Wednesday for sharing the utter joy of pirate Batman throwing down on a shark. While taking off a woman's dress. With a knife.
• Batman himself for always being there for me like a mix of The Man With No Name, Robin Hood, Sherlock Holmes and Jesus Christ.