The evolution of Bat-girl

Bat-girl beginnings

Bat-girl was birthed through DC comics as the female superheroine counterpart to Batman. She was introduced in 1961 as Betty Kane by Sheldon Moldoff and Bill Finger. In 1967Betty was replaced by Barbara Gordon who eventually became identified as Batgirl, without the hyphen. This character made her entrance in DC Comics #359, The million dollar debut of Batgirl, in January 1967.

Writer Gardner Fox and artists William Dozier, Carmine Infantino, and Julius Schwartz created her as the daughter of Gotham City police commissioner James Gordon. Barbara Gordon is a fictional female superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with superheroes Batman and Robin.

Batman television show introduces Batgirl

The producers of the 1960’s Batman television series on ABC requested a female to correspond with Batman and DC editor Schwartz complied. The new character made her debut in the third season of the television show and the comic book simultaneously. The season 3 premiere in September 1967 was titled "Enter Batgirl, Exit Penguin".

Yvonne Craig was cast in this role but it only lasted until March 1968 when the series ended. As Barbara Gordon, Craig was a librarian but as Batgirl, she wore a purple and yellow outfit and rode a purple motorcycle that was trimmed in white lace. The actress was praised by The New York Times for "adding a scrappy girl-power element" to the campy, tongue-in-cheek television show.

Yvonne Craig remained busy

After the Batman series ended, Yvonne Craig continued acting, taking guest roles in Mod Squad, Mannix, It Takes a Thief and Emergency. She was also in a movie with Elvis Presley and there were rumors that the two dated. Craig reprised her role as Batgirl during a 1974 public service announcement sponsored by the U. S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division. The purpose was to promote equal pay for women. In 1988 the Joker shot and paralyzed Batgirl in the graphic novel, The Killing Joker. Reportedly this saddened Yvonne Craig who had a strong connection to the character.

A Balerina emerges

Craig was discovered by ballerina instructor, Alexandra Danilova, and became the youngest member of the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo. The training she received assisted the actress when she performed her own stunts as Batgirl. She penned her autobiography, From Ballerina to the Batcave and Beyond in 2008.

During the 1960s, Craig appeared in many television drama series. She was five different female characters on The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, between 1959 and 1962. The actress portrayed five separate girlfriends for the title character who was portrayed by Dwayne Hickman. In 1960, Craig portrayed Jo, a young photographer in Man with a Camera, alongside Charles Bronson. In 1964, she guest-starred as an underwater photographer,named Carol on Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea.

In 1965, Craig appeared on The Big Valley in the episode titled "The Invaders". She also appeared on Star Trek as Marta a green alien. Yvonne Craig died on August 17, 2015,at age 78. She passed away at her home in Pacific Palisades, in Los Angeles, California. Her cause of death was from metastatic breast cancer that had spread to her liver.

Batgirl stripped

In 1999, in the storyline "No Man's Land", the character Helena Bertinelli, AKA the Huntress, assumes the role of Batgirl. She only portrays the superheroine for a few months until Batman strips her of the identity because she violated his moral codes. Within this same storyline, the character Cassandra Cain is introduced as the daughter of assassins David Cain and Lady Shiva.

Cassandra takes on the role of Batgirl under the watchful eye of Batman and Oracle. In 2000, Cassandra Cain became the first Batgirl ever to star in an" eponymous monthly comic book series". She was also one of the most prominent Asian characters to be featured in American comics.

Barbara Gordon returns

In 2006, this series was canceled but during the "company-wide storyline" titled "One Year Later", Cassandra Cain is turned into a villain who heads the League of Assassins. Readers were very critical of this move and after a lot of negative feedback, the character is restored to the manner in which she originated. After Cassandra Cain abandons her alter ego, the mantle of Batgirl is taken up by the character Stephanie Brown, who was known as Spoiler and later as Robin.

From 2009-2011, Stephanie Brown was the featured character of the Batgirl series. During the new 52 relaunch, DC comics subsequently relaunched all of their monthly publications, In this revision, Barbara Gordon recovers from paralysis after undergoing a surgical procedure. She then stars as the title character in the relaunched Batgirl series.

During the 2016 DC rebirth event, Barbara Gordon retained the role of Batgirl, Gordon's version of the super heroine has been adapted into the Batman franchise, which includes film, animation, television, collectible items, video games and other merchandise. Dan DiDio, the co-publisher of DC Comics, acknowledged that Barbara Gordon's Batgirl is the most popular version of the character. For fans of the 1960's television series, the sentiment is the same. Barbara Gordon is the one and only Batgirl, and Yvonne Craig will always be the true Barbara Gordon.