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This is a collage series deep dive I made exploring the long history of moral panics against Batman. Long before the '80s Dungeons & Dragons Satanic panic to the Barbie (2023) movie moral panic, there was moral panics over Batman in comics, that extended to Batman on TV and Batman movies.

The forth Batman moral panic continued from the Batman editor Whitney Ellsworth creating a DC Editorial Advisory Board censorship policy in 1941 triggered by Batman #1 (1940). Gunnar Dybwad was a German Professor of Child Psychology, Dybwad was also a pioneering advocate of neurodivergent rights for public schools inclusion of special education classes for mentally neurodivergent children with special needs -- to stop the mental institutionalization of neurodivergent children with autism, etc., and Dybwad was a member of DC's Editorial Advisory Board. Gunnar Dybwad's testimony from April 22nd 1954, for the United States Senate subcommittee moral panic of "juvenile delinquency" blamed on comic books, explained, "NATIONAL COMICS PUBLICATIONS INC. EDITORIAL POLICY FOR DC PUBLICATIONS"

"Killing. ─ Heroes should never kill a villain, regardless of the depth of the villainy. The villain, If he is to die, should do so as the result of his own evil machinations [meaning evil schemes]."

"Bloodshed. ─ Characters ─ even villains ─ should never be shown bleeding. No character should be shown being stabbed or shot or otherwise assaulted so that the sanguinary [meaning gory] result is visible. Acts of mayhem are specifically forbidden. The picturization of dead bodies is forbidden."

"Crime. ─ Good people should be good, and bad people bad, without middle ground shading. Heroes should act within the law, and for the law."

The full DC Editorial Advisory Board censorship policy restrictions were much more than I could fit into the collage, but listed in the collage are the main restrictions pertaining to Ellsworth's moral panic over Batman's vigilantism and violence -- killing villains.

The full DC Editorial Advisory Board censorship policy restrictions were, "NATIONAL COMICS PUBLICATIONS INC. EDITORIAL POLICY FOR DC PUBLICATIONS"

"1. Sex. ─ The inclusion of females in stories is specifically discouraged. Women, when used in plot structure, should be secondary in importance, and should be drawn realistically, without exaggeration of feminine physical qualities."

"2. Language. ─ Expressions having reference to the Deity [meaning God] are forbidden. Heroes and other good persons must use basically good English, through some slang and other colloquialism may be judiciously employed. Poor grammar is used only by crooks and villains ─ and not always by them."

"3. Bloodshed. ─ Characters ─ even villains ─ should never be shown bleeding. No character should be shown being stabbed or shot or otherwise assaulted so that the sanguinary [meaning gory] result is visible. Acts of mayhem are specifically forbidden. The picturization of dead bodies is forbidden."

"4. Torture. ─ The use of chains, whips, or other such devices is forbidden. Anything having a sexual or sadistic implication is forbidden."

"5. Kidnapping. ─ The kidnapping of children is specifically forbidden. The kidnapping of women is discouraged, and must never have any sexual implication."

"6. Killing. ─ Heroes should never kill a villain, regardless of the depth of the villainy. The villain, If he is to die, should do so as the result of his own evil machinations [meaning evil schemes]. A specific exception may be made in the case of duly constituted officers of the law. The use of lethal weapons by women ─ even villainous women ─ is discouraged."

"7. Crime. ─ Crime should be depicted in all cases as sordid and unpleasant. Crime and criminals must never be glamorized. All stories must be written and depicted from the angle of the law ─ never the reverse. Justice must triumph in every case. In general, the policy of DC Publications is to provide interesting, dramatic, and reasonably exciting entertainment without having recourse to such artificial devices as the use of exaggerated physical manifestations of sex, sexual situations, or situations in which violence is emphasized sadistically. Good people should be good, and bad people bad, without middle ground shading. Good people need not be stuffy to be good, but bad people should not be excused. Heroes should act within the law, and for the law." And Gunnar Dybwad explained to the Senate that the DC Editorial Advisory Board censorship policy "goes back to 1941." Gunnar Dybwad died in 2001.

www.thecomicbooks.com/dybwad.h…

There were "juvenile delinquent" moral panic movies called Juvenile Court (1938), Delinquent Parents (1938), Delinquent Daughters (1944), What About Juvenile Delinquency (1955), The Delinquents (1957), The Delicate Delinquent (1957), Juvenile Jungle (1958) and Riot in Juvenile Prison (1959).

Frankie Lymon and The Teenagers had a hit song "I'm Not a Juvenile Delinquent" (1956).
www.youtube.com/watch?v=wAtH90…

It was editorial censorship by Whitney Ellsworth that forced an overgrown boy scout pledge "no-kill rule, no-gun rule" upon Batman reinvented into a duly deputized agent of the law, as Adam West portrayed, instead of the original mysterious and menacing deadly vigilante from Detective Comics #27 (1939) that Michael Keaton portrayed. Batman editor Ellsworth even had the Joker reinvented into a harmless practical joker jewel thief, as Cesar Romero portrayed, instead of the original deadly killer clown from Batman #1 (1940) that Jack Nicholson portrayed who killed remorselessly with a chemical he used to kill his victims that left their corpses smiling -- the sign of death from the Joker. Whitney Ellsworth's widow Jane Ellsworth wrote to George Reeves historian Jim Nolt in a letter from May 23rd 1990 explaining about Whitney Ellsworth, "His philosophy in regard to the comic books was that they were for children; that they should be fun, clean, non-violent, and that the English should be correct (allowing for some slang). This is pretty much what became the 'Comics Code' [in 1954], and it stood DC in good stead when the national investigation into violence in the comic books occurred [in 1954]." Whitney Ellsworth died in 1980.

Description

This is a collage series deep dive I made exploring the long history of moral panics against Batman. Long before the '80s Dungeons & Dragons Satanic panic to the Barbie (2023) movie moral panic, there was moral panics over Batman in comics, that extended to Batman on TV and Batman movies.

The forth Batman moral panic continued from the Batman editor Whitney Ellsworth creating a DC Editorial Advisory Board censorship policy in 1941 triggered by Batman #1 (1940). Gunnar Dybwad was a German Professor of Child Psychology, Dybwad was also a pioneering advocate of neurodivergent rights for public schools inclusion of special education classes for mentally neurodivergent children with special needs -- to stop the mental institutionalization of neurodivergent children with autism, etc., and Dybwad was a member of DC's Editorial Advisory Board. Gunnar Dybwad's testimony from April 22nd 1954, for the United States Senate subcommittee moral panic of "juvenile delinquency" blamed on comic books, explained, "NATIONAL COMICS PUBLICATIONS INC. EDITORIAL POLICY FOR DC PUBLICATIONS"

"Killing. ─ Heroes should never kill a villain, regardless of the depth of the villainy. The villain, If he is to die, should do so as the result of his own evil machinations [meaning evil schemes]."

"Bloodshed. ─ Characters ─ even villains ─ should never be shown bleeding. No character should be shown being stabbed or shot or otherwise assaulted so that the sanguinary [meaning gory] result is visible. Acts of mayhem are specifically forbidden. The picturization of dead bodies is forbidden."

"Crime. ─ Good people should be good, and bad people bad, without middle ground shading. Heroes should act within the law, and for the law."

The full DC Editorial Advisory Board censorship policy restrictions were much more than I could fit into the collage, but listed in the collage are the main restrictions pertaining to Ellsworth's moral panic over Batman's vigilantism and violence -- killing villains.

The full DC Editorial Advisory Board censorship policy restrictions were, "NATIONAL COMICS PUBLICATIONS INC. EDITORIAL POLICY FOR DC PUBLICATIONS"

"1. Sex. ─ The inclusion of females in stories is specifically discouraged. Women, when used in plot structure, should be secondary in importance, and should be drawn realistically, without exaggeration of feminine physical qualities."

"2. Language. ─ Expressions having reference to the Deity [meaning God] are forbidden. Heroes and other good persons must use basically good English, through some slang and other colloquialism may be judiciously employed. Poor grammar is used only by crooks and villains ─ and not always by them."

"3. Bloodshed. ─ Characters ─ even villains ─ should never be shown bleeding. No character should be shown being stabbed or shot or otherwise assaulted so that the sanguinary [meaning gory] result is visible. Acts of mayhem are specifically forbidden. The picturization of dead bodies is forbidden."

"4. Torture. ─ The use of chains, whips, or other such devices is forbidden. Anything having a sexual or sadistic implication is forbidden."

"5. Kidnapping. ─ The kidnapping of children is specifically forbidden. The kidnapping of women is discouraged, and must never have any sexual implication."

"6. Killing. ─ Heroes should never kill a villain, regardless of the depth of the villainy. The villain, If he is to die, should do so as the result of his own evil machinations [meaning evil schemes]. A specific exception may be made in the case of duly constituted officers of the law. The use of lethal weapons by women ─ even villainous women ─ is discouraged."

"7. Crime. ─ Crime should be depicted in all cases as sordid and unpleasant. Crime and criminals must never be glamorized. All stories must be written and depicted from the angle of the law ─ never the reverse. Justice must triumph in every case. In general, the policy of DC Publications is to provide interesting, dramatic, and reasonably exciting entertainment without having recourse to such artificial devices as the use of exaggerated physical manifestations of sex, sexual situations, or situations in which violence is emphasized sadistically. Good people should be good, and bad people bad, without middle ground shading. Good people need not be stuffy to be good, but bad people should not be excused. Heroes should act within the law, and for the law." And Gunnar Dybwad explained to the Senate that the DC Editorial Advisory Board censorship policy "goes back to 1941." Gunnar Dybwad died in 2001.

www.thecomicbooks.com/dybwad.h…

There were "juvenile delinquent" moral panic movies called Juvenile Court (1938), Delinquent Parents (1938), Delinquent Daughters (1944), What About Juvenile Delinquency (1955), The Delinquents (1957), The Delicate Delinquent (1957), Juvenile Jungle (1958) and Riot in Juvenile Prison (1959).

Frankie Lymon and The Teenagers had a hit song "I'm Not a Juvenile Delinquent" (1956).
www.youtube.com/watch?v=wAtH90…

It was editorial censorship by Whitney Ellsworth that forced an overgrown boy scout pledge "no-kill rule, no-gun rule" upon Batman reinvented into a duly deputized agent of the law, as Adam West portrayed, instead of the original mysterious and menacing deadly vigilante from Detective Comics #27 (1939) that Michael Keaton portrayed. Batman editor Ellsworth even had the Joker reinvented into a harmless practical joker jewel thief, as Cesar Romero portrayed, instead of the original deadly killer clown from Batman #1 (1940) that Jack Nicholson portrayed who killed remorselessly with a chemical he used to kill his victims that left their corpses smiling -- the sign of death from the Joker. Whitney Ellsworth's widow Jane Ellsworth wrote to George Reeves historian Jim Nolt in a letter from May 23rd 1990 explaining about Whitney Ellsworth, "His philosophy in regard to the comic books was that they were for children; that they should be fun, clean, non-violent, and that the English should be correct (allowing for some slang). This is pretty much what became the 'Comics Code' [in 1954], and it stood DC in good stead when the national investigation into violence in the comic books occurred [in 1954]." Whitney Ellsworth died in 1980.