image courtesy of DC Comics

Back in April, I wrote about the numerous events DC Comics had planned throughout this year to celebrate the 75th anniversary of Batman. Today is one of the bigger events—if not the biggest—of the year, as comic shops, bookstores, and libraries across the globe will celebrate Batman Day.

It's no coincidence that today is also the day before the annual San Diego Comic-Con, so what more perfect way to celebrate the comic book Caped Crusader than with a free comic book? Well, DC Comics is releasing a free Batman comic today, Detective Comics #27 “Special Edition”, that reprints the first Batman story from 1939 by creators Bob Kane and Bill Finger. The issue also includes a reimagined version of that first Batman story ("The Case of the Chemical Syndicate") by Brad Meltzer (who penned the popular post-modern take on superheroes, Identity Crisis), with some help from renowned designer Chip Kidd. In the interview below, Chip Kidd discusses the work behind the special edition comic, expounds on the history of the character, and his importance in the world of fiction and lasting appeal in pop culture.

Since comics are a visual medium, let's take a look at some cool infographics, posters, and videos that celebrate The Dark Knight's 75th:

• This Batman timeline is full of highlights from the character's 75 years worth of comic books, television, movies, and video games.
   
• Artist Salvador Anguiano created this incredibly detailed poster of Batman's different cowls throughout the years. Even cooler, here's an animated gif of them all!
  
  
   
• The folks over at HalloweenCostumes.com show us the Evolution of the Bat Symbol in the video below.
  
  
   
• DC animated universe guru Bruce Timm created this new Batman short film, "Batman: Strange Days", in celebration of the Bat's bday!
  
  
   
• As a companion to their list of the 75 Greatest Batman Covers of All-Time, Comic Book Resources has published their choices for the 75 Greatest Batman Stories.

From that list, I highly recommend checking out Frank Miller's better-than-The Dark Knight Returns,  Batman: Year One; Tim Sale and Jeph Loeb's seasonal mystery, Batman: The Long Halloween; Neal Gaiman's exploration of the Batman mythos, Batman: Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader?; Doug Moench's examination of Batman's psyche with the psycho psychologist Dr. Hugo Strange as the villain in Batman: Prey; Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely's Bruce Wayne-less Batman & Robin; Alan Moore and Brian Bolland's truly graphic novel Batman: The Killing Joke; Paul Pope's dystopian future of Batman: Year 100; and Neal Adam's completley bonkers Batman: Odyssey.

And just like that free comic book that you may pick up today from your local comic book store, you can get free comic books EVERY DAY at Free Library! (Well, free to borrow and read : )

Search in our online catalog for all the Bat-books and graphic novels, Bat-ebooks, Bat-DVDs, and Bat-inspired music and soundtracks from our collections; all for FREE with your library card!