Re-inventing Batman - How to launch a successful brand
Michael Uslan on re-branding the Batman character and taking him from Caped Crusader to The Dark Knight
Michael Uslan is more than the boy who loved Batman, he is the reason for the Batman movie franchise. He took what once was a Bam! Pow! Wham! cartoon character and transformed the mythic vigilante into the dark knight.
The executive producer and author talked to FOX411 about the rise of his Batman empire and his recent autobiography, “The Boy Who Loved Batman: A Memoir.”
“'The Boy Who Loved Batman' is about a journey; a journey we all take through life, and for me my journey began with my passion. I loved comic books," Uslan told us. "Batman was my favorite superhero of all time. Before I graduated high school, I had over 30,000 comic books dating back to 1936. I attended the world’s first comic book convention going back to 1964, only two hundred of us showed up at that first Comic Con.”
The self-proclaimed fanboy’s love of his childhood hero developed from a hobby into his life’s work due to sheer fortitude. “The first thing you need to do is get off the couch. If you think the world is going to come to you, you’re toast. So I got off the couch," he said. "I looked for any way to get my foot in the door. I had to find a way because I didn’t know anyone in Hollywood. I didn’t come from money. I’m a blue-collar boy from Jersey. I had to look for opportunities.”
While attending Indiana University, Uslan created the world’s first ever accredited college course in comic books. The course garnered much attention, most importantly from notable influencers in the comic book industry like Stan Lee, which led to Uslan’s first job at DC Comics.
At DC Comics, the comic book prodigy was given a shot to write Batman. Still in college, Uslan penned the Batman comic, and he did it his way.
“I wanted to show the world what the true Batman was like; a dark, serious creature of the night,” he said.
Uslan single-handedly evolved Batman into the Dark Knight we know today while changing the landscape of the comic book industry. This month, Uslan also became the first person to receive his doctorate in comic books from Monmouth University.
“I’m so proud and thrilled to be getting that," he said. "It’s a validation of my lifelong work to bring the world’s attention to comic books an art form.”
Click the video above for Fox Business' extended interview with Michael Uslan.
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