About the Book:
Michael Uslan bucked studio naysayers for 10 years to get Tim Burton’s Batman made and can take credit for the current big-screen flood of big-budget comic book movies. The Boy Who Loved Batman is the true, inspirational story of how a comics-obsessed kid conquered Hollywood to bring the Dark Knight to the silver screen.
Is any superhero cooler than Batman? He's a crime-fighting vigilante with a tragic past, a lawless attitude, and a seemingly endless supply of high-tech gadgetry. A teacher, writer and executive producer, Michael Uslan has been passionate about comic books and Batman in particular, since childhood. He began sharing his passion while at Indiana University where he created and taught the first ever accredited college course in comics. His career as a producer began in 1979 when he acquired the rights to Batman from DC comics, but it would be nearly ten years before his dream of bringing the caped crusader to the big screen would be fulfilled. That dream became a reality in 1989 with the release of Tim Burton's Batman. In the years since his initial success, he has remained as executive producer for all the Batman movies since, most recently with the hugely successful The Dark Knight Trilogy.
Michael Uslan has also written The Boy Who Loved Batman which chronicles his youthful passion for his favourite comic book character from the early years to today. In this fully illustrated memoir, he recalls his journey from early childhood fandom through to the decades he spent on a caped crusade of his own: to bring Batman to the silver screen as the dark, serious character he was at heart. His story traces his path from the wilds of New Jersey to the limelight of Hollywood, following his work as Executive Producer on every Batman film from Tim Burton's re-envisioning to The Dark Knight Rises. Through it all, he helped to create one of the most successful pop culture franchises of all time.
What people say:
"Mike Uslan went 'firmly in the direction of his dreams,' as Henry David Thoreau suggested, and on the journey helped redefine popular culture and confer respectability on a maligned art form. Mike's is a great American success story and The Boy Who Loved Batman is a terrific read." — Dennis O'Neil, comic book writer and editor of many works, including Green Lantern, Batman, and The Shadow
"The fact that Mike Uslan has developed his love for comic books into a full-blown (and very successful) career is nothing short of amazing. It's a wonderful world." — Joe Kubert, comic book artist of Sgt. Rock, Hawkman, Tarzan, Tor, and co-creator of the Joker and Robin the Boy Wonder
"Michael Uslan writes exciting superhero stories, produces blockbuster superhero films, curates historic superhero exhibitions Readers of this fascinating insider's look at how comics and movies are made will discover the biggest secret known to all of us in the business: Michael Uslan is a superhero." — Jerry Robinson, co-creator of the Joker and Robin the Boy Wonder
"Michael Uslan brought comic books to academia in the 1970s with class (figuratively and literally) and he brought Batman to Hollywood a decade later with the same sort of integrity. I've been reading or watching his work since my youth and the intellect always shined through - now with his memoir I also see the emotional backbeat of his hero's journey." — Los Angeles Times
"Don't miss this spellbinding tale of one man who saw what Batman was-and realized what he could become. See how Michael Uslan took a comic book hero and, through the magic of motion pictures, helped transform him into a world-wide icon." — Stan Lee, writer, editor and publisher, co-creator of iconic characters including Spider-Man, the X-Men, Thor, Iron Man, Black Panther and the Fantastic Four
"An inspirational tale of how one individual, armed only with a lifelong desire of restoring dignity to his beloved Batman, can prevail against all odds and emerge triumphant, forever altering the pop-culture landscape in the process. Informative, warmly witty and deeply human, it should be required reading, not just for comic book and movie fans like me, but for anyone looking for a concrete plan to make their own dreams come true." — Mark Hamill, voice of the Joker in Batman: The Animated Series and Arkham Asylum video game, creator of the Dark Horse comic, The Black Pearl, and Luke Skywalker in the original Star Wars trilogy
About the Author:
Michael E. Uslan is an American film producer with numerous award-winning projects to his credit. He has been a speaker at the Smithsonian Institution and was the first professor to teach a course in comic books at an accredited university. He lives in New Jersey.