How Michigan Helped Shape the Origin of Batman
Was Michigan somehow instrumental in the creation of Batman?
Yes, we were.....in a couple of ways.
NUMBER 1:
Michigan had its own “Batman” (also called “Bird Man”) in a man from Clinton County, named Clem Sohn.
Clem was born on December 7, 1910, in the Michigan town of Fowler. After creating his own wingsuit, he became an American airshow daredevil during the 1930s. The wings were made from zephyr cloth on steel tubes, which made webbing under his arms that looked exactly like bat wings and attached to his legs.
This suit made it possible for him to glide thru the air after leaping out of a plane over a mile high. As he approached the ground, he would open a parachute and safely land.
Except for his final flight.
During an exhibition in France on April 25, 1937, Sohm went through the usual routine. He jumped out of the plane and glided through the air to the delight of 100,000 spectators. However, his parachute would not open. He pulled the cord of his emergency chute...and that, too, refused to open. Sohn fell to his death in front of that huge crowd.
Michigan’s ‘Batman’ was no longer.
Worldwide news about Clem's death spread, and it influenced Bill Finger - the man who became inspired to create Batman, making his debut in Detective Comics two years later.
NUMBER TWO:
The second Michigan influence on Batman’s creation was a figure from the Revolutionary War, General “Mad” Anthony Wayne.
General Wayne, from Pennsylvania, was able to peacefully take control of Detroit away from the British in 1796. The influence he had in this area of Michigan led to many things being named after him, such as Wayne County, Wayne State University, and Fort Wayne.
Bill Finger, Batman’s co-creator, named Batman’s civilian name “Bruce Wayne” after the general. In later years, the Batman storyline in comic books would claim Bruce was a direct descendant of General “Mad” Anthony Wayne.
So arguably, you can say Michigan indeed has ties to the 1939 creation of ‘Batman’.
US Greatest Daredevils: Clem Sohn
