Monday, April 4, 2016

C is for Catwoman

Day Three - A to Z Challenge - "C"

C is for Catwoman
Now doesn't she look purr-fect...
Character Facts:
Abilities/Powers - Exceptional Martial Artist, Gymnastic Ability, Combat Skill
Occupation - Thief
Real Name/Secret Identity - Selina Kyle

Origin Story:
Selina Kyle was the daughter of Brian and Maria Kyle and the older sister to Maggie.  Her mother was very aloof and spent most of her spare time with cats, instead of her children.  Her father was an abusive, drunken man that liked to pick fights with Selina's mother.  Because of this awful home life, Selina spent as much time as she could at the gym, to escape the violence at home.
One day, upon her return from school, she found her mother dead. (She had committed suicide.)  It wasn't long after the death of Selina's mother, that her father ended up drinking himself to death.  Selina and her sister now found themselves as orphans.
Maggie was immediately placed into an orphanage, but Selina remained on the streets, stealing to stay alive.  She was caught several times and spent time in orphanages and juvenile hall.
Once she grew up, her crimes graduated to stealing from the homes of wealthy people and museums.  One night, while stealing a valuable totem from a museum, a hooded ninja stopped her from escaping and took the totem for himself.  Selina decided to follow the ninja and discovered a secret martial arts academy.  The Sensei of the academy was impressed by her quick reflexes and asked her join, so that she could harness her martial art skills.  She of course accepted.
It was upon catching a glimpse of Batman, bleeding after an encounter with an unnamed villain, that the idea of donning a costume came to her.  She figured if villains were terrified (and others were thrilled) to see a man in a bat costume, she could do the same...
...And that, was the beginning of the Catwoman.
(Source: comicvine.gamespot.com)

Interesting Tidbits:
-Catwoman made her debut in the spring of 1940.
-She is based on creator Bob Kane's cousin Ruth Steel and actress Jean Harlow.
-In her first comic appearance, she did not wear the "cat" suit; instead, she was disguised as an old woman.
-The catwoman character has been portrayed by 2 Oscar winning actresses, Michelle Pfeiffer and Anne Hathaway.

My Observations:
I have always enjoyed the catwoman character and love the fact that at times, she walks the line between good and evil.  Plus, I have always found her relationship with the Batman fun to watch.
Remember (from my Batman post), I grew up watching reruns of the 1960's Batman series, so one of my favorite Catwoman was played by Julie Newmar. (Even though, my favorite cat costume was Michelle Pfeiffer's suit.)
I think I like the character of the catwoman, because she was a strong willed woman that didn't let anyone push her around.  She wasn't always doing the "right" thing...okay, most of the time she was doing the "wrong" thing, but she certainly did it well. 

Well, another letter has come and gone...
...hope everyone enjoyed the letter "C".  I know it is my favorite letter in the alphabet! :)


9 comments:

  1. I love your posts; they're informative and just the right length. I'd never really thought about characters having backgrounds. To me they just "appear" in a story. Shows how shallow my literary skills are!! :)

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  2. I'm not a DC fan, but I did watch a lot of Batman as a kid and I always loved Julie Newmar too!

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  3. She is my granddaughters favourite, even went to school dressed as her for a superhero theme day they had lol.

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  4. I am so enjoying learning about these characters Carrie. I have heard of these first 3.

    Linda

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  5. She looks feisty, lovely work:)

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  6. You have a great blog! Good luck with the A-Z!

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  7. Another great post for your letter C and great stitching too of course!

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  8. I am now watching a really Dark Batman Series on American TV called Gotham. It is with Bruce as a young boy. I love Selina - the young Catwoman in this series, but never knew her background. Your post has been so helpful. Thank you

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  9. Very interesting! So she's another one with no superhuman powers. I always assumed she had some. Great stitching! :D

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