Character Profiles - Villains - Catwoman I/Selina Kyle
Real Name: Selina Kyle
Occupation: Villain/Hero
Weight: 133 lbs
Height: 5ft 7in
Eyes: Blue-Green
Hair: Black
Base Of Operations: Gotham City
Group Affiliations: Batman Family, Secret Society of Super-Villians, Injustice League, JLA
Marital Status: Single
Relatives: Magdalene Kyle (sister), Helena (daughter)
Earth-Two: Bruce Wayne ( husband), Helena Wayne (daughter), Karl Kyle (brother)
First Appearance: Batman #1 (1940)
Created by: Bill Finger, Bob Kane
After yet another robbery Selina is being pursued by Batman. Running past a building in the process of being demolished she spots a wall beginning to collapse onto the unaware Batman. With only a split instant of hesitation she springs forward to push him out of the way. Batman is saved but Selina is hit on the head by a falling brick and is knocked unconscious. Concerned about her injury Batman whisks her back to the Batcave for emergency treatment. While still unconscious she mumbles that it's time for passengers to buckle their seat belts as they will be landing shortly. When she finally regains consciousness she is disoriented and doesn't answer when Batman addresses her as Catwoman. Her puzzlement mounts when she spots the date on a wall calendar and says "it won't be 1950 for years yet." Now thoroughly confused Selina explains she is a stewardess for Speed Airways. Her plane had gone down and the last thing she remembers is being hit on the head as she tried to get out of the crashed plane. Batman immediately concludes that Selina must have gotten amnesia from the first blow and somehow the second one restored her lost memory. As Batman slowly recounts some of Catwoman's exploits Selina is horrified that she could have done such things and announces she wants nothing more to do with crime. Considering her amnesia as a mitigating circumstance Commissioner Gordon and Batman offer to let Selina go free if she will help them arrest Catwoman's current partner. Unwilling at first Selina becomes their undercover agent and Mister X is successfully captured. Selina then opens a pet shop but Batman keeps an eye on her, just in case.
Selina stayed on the straight and narrow for several years. One day we see her reading a newspaper story describing Batman's arrest of Catwoman. Angry at the article's implication that she was captured because she was a simple minded woman Selina is further annoyed by the taunting of some neighborhood crooks ridiculing her current status. Chafing under the restrictions of her unofficial parole and knowing how those crooks would never dare make fun of the formidable Catwoman. Selina decides to return to her old ways. Sneaking onto the roof of Gotham police headquarters she alters the Batsignal to show a giant cat on the clouds instead of the usual bat and so publicly announce the rebirth of Catwoman.
SILVER AGE
The Silver Age Origin is from Earth II and it involves the marriage of that universe's Selina and Bruce. Batman has Selina temporarily released from prison to help him battle Scarecrow. Later on while she's dressing burns he's received from a flaming arrow Batman tells her about his parents and the loneliness of his life's mission.
Encouraged by his uncharacteristic candor Selina finally admits she had concocted her story about only becoming Catwoman after she suffered amnesia. Ashamed then to tell the ease by which she had been duped and later victimized, she had been married before at an early age to a handsome wealthy man who had abused her. Eventually she divorced him, but being the vindictive sort he took back expensive jewelry he'd given her as well as taking steps to keep her penniless in the future. Seeking revenge she broke into his safe and took back her jewels. Intoxicated by the strength and independence the Catwoman persona gave her Selina took up the Catlife for many years. Bruce and Selina lived a happy life and had a daughter named Helena. But fate dealt a cruel card. A former henchman of Selina’s, Silky, tracked her to Wayne Manor and blackmailed her into dawning the Catwoman guise one more time. Batman managed, to track her down to rescue her but Catwoman was accidentally shot by a rouge bullet and fell to her death.
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