Who knows Batman is Bruce Wayne? (Third Draft)

[Lorendiac]

Just over a year ago, I stumbled across a thread on DC's boards in which a bunch of people were throwing out names of people who knew Batman's secret identity. However, no one had bothered to try to compile all the suggestions into one neat, orderly list, to make life easier for those of us who were coming in late and wanted to make sure we weren't duplicating previous suggestions.

My duty was clear! I started cutting-and-pasting, and sorting the names alphabetically, and inserting several more names from my own memory of Batman lore. Then I posted my "First Draft" on several forums, accepted constructive criticism, and offered a more detailed "Second Draft" the following day. Then I waited just over a year before going back and rereading the further criticisms I got at the time, and doing a little extra research, and modifying things until I had a "Third Draft" I was ready to show the world.

My mission statement in this list is very simple. I want to cover just about everyone who has clearly known Batman’s secret identity in at least one story that met the following criteria:

1. It was published after the transition to Post-COIE continuity (for my purposes, I figure “Batman #400” in 1986, the final piece of Doug Moench's first run as a Batman writer, was the last Pre-COIE Batman story).

2. It was supposedly set “in regular continuity” at the time it was published, even if it later got retconned to some degree (or totally erased from history?).

A few notes on whom those rules exclude:

A) I once compiled a separate list of people who definitely knew the secrets of the Pre-COIE Batman of Earth-1, in the days before the transition to Post-COIE continuity. I was toying with the idea of combining the two lists at some later date -- but, upon reflection, I don't intend to do that yet. I'll post a revised version of that list at some other time, for the amusement of any fans who actually remember what Batman was like back in "the good old days," more than 20 years ago now. Meanwhile, on this list you will several people who first learned Batman's secret in Pre-COIE stories, but to qualify for this one, they either have "learned all over again" in Post-COIE continuity (Selina Kyle falls into this category) or else the Pre-COIE stories in which they learned were at some point confirmed as having still happened as part of the Post-COIE Batman's "backstory." (The five heroes who were Batman's co-founders of the "Outsiders" team in the early 1980s fall into that latter category.)

B) The original concept behind the title “Legends of the Dark Knight” when it started, almost two decades ago, was that its story arcs were not guaranteed to be rigidly tied to “regular Batman continuity.” So I am ignoring some LOTDK stories that included someone learning Bruce’s secrets. A conspicuous exception to that is the issues of LOTDK that constituted the end of “Knightquest: The Search” in 1994, since they were explicitly tied to the “regular continuity” of what had been occurring lately in such titles as “Batman,” “Detective Comics,” and “Shadow of the Bat.”

About the organization of the list: I've arranged names in alphabetical order, as sorted by “main alias” or “first name.” For instance, “Alfred Pennyworth” is under “A for Alfred,” instead of “P for Pennyworth.” Then I list in parentheses any other relevant information, including the character’s real name (if he normally uses an alias) and, when I can find it, information on which story informed us that he knew the secret. If he subsequently lost the knowledge, I mention that too.



WHO KNOWS BATMAN IS BRUCE? (Third Draft)


Aaron Langstrom (Son of Man-Bat. His knowledge of the secret was established in “Gotham Knights #45”)

Alexander Luthor (Dead. Apparently learned during the long period when he had nothing better to do in the “paradise dimension” than play peeping tom, watching events in the Post-Crisis DCU)

Alfred Pennyworth (Different versions have been told of how he learned, but either he was already working for Bruce when the Batman identity was created, or else he was hired later and quickly found out. Post-COIE references to the subject have generally -- but not invariably -- favored the idea that Alfred was already at Wayne Manor before Bruce’s parents died.)

The Appelaxians (Were able to find and invade the Batcave and capture Batman in “JLA: Year One” based on information gleaned from the Martian Manhunter’s secret files. Of course, I don’t know if the general plot of “JLA: Year One” is still in continuity in the Post-IC DCU. The roster of founding members of the JLA has retroactively been changed again, after all)

Aquaman I (Orin. He was present when the JLAers were sharing identities in “JLA #50” but I think he already knew Bruce’s secret.)

The Atom II (Ray Palmer. His ex-wife Jean Loring definitely knew in “Identity Crisis #7” that Bruce is Batman; presumably she heard it from him.)

Azrael (Jean Paul Valley. Dead. Learned during the “Sword of Azrael” miniseries)

Bane (Figured it out very quickly in “Knightfall” after looking at Bruce Wayne’s body language)

Batgirl III (Cassandra Cain. Learned when, for the first time, she saw Batman in his role as Bruce Wayne during the “Bruce Wayne: Murderer?” event. She recognized his body language instantly)

Benedict Asp (Learned in “Legends of the Dark Knight #61.” Then he died)

Bird (Now believed dead. Bane told him in “Knightfall”)

Black Canary II (Dinah Lance. Her current knowledge was recently confirmed in the “JLA: Crisis of Conscience” story arc, although a few years earlier, in “Bruce Wayne: Murderer?” she clearly didn’t know Bruce was Batman)

Black Lightning (Jefferson Pierce. Learned in “Batman and the Outsiders #13.” Still knew in a comic published in 1996, which means it was Post-Zero Hour. He had originally learned in a Pre-COIE story, along with the other original members of the Outsiders, so I’m figuring that they all know too, in Post-COIE, Post-Zero Hour continuity, unless someone can show me evidence that some of them don’t)

Blue Beetle II (Ted Kord. Dead. I think he learned in “Countdown to Infinite Crisis” – at any rate, he promptly got himself killed)

Booster Gold I (Michael Carter. Called himself “Supernova” for awhile during “52.” I’m not clear on just when he learned, although I suppose coming from several hundred years in the future might give him an advantage in knowing things that will have become “matters of public record” by then?)

Cain (David Cain. I don’t remember just when he realized, but I believe it was clear that he knew by the time of “Bruce Wayne: Fugitive.”)

Carleton LeHah (Learned during the “Sword of Azrael” miniseries)

Catwoman I (Selina Kyle. Bruce voluntarily told her during “Hush” – we don’t know for sure if she already knew or suspected; we can fill in the blanks any way we please!)

Changeling (Garfield Logan. As a member of the Teen Titans in the early 80s, he learned the secrets of Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson. However, the part about his knowing Batman's secret ID was reportedly erased by a retcon from Denny O'Neil at the time of Zero Hour. I don't know if he's learned all over again since then)

Chronos I (David Clinton. Found out the secret IDs of Batman and several other JLAers a long time ago, according to an “Identity Crisis” retcon. Then he got mindwiped by Zatanna. Then Despero recently helped him rediscover those memories in “JLA: Crisis of Conscience.” Then they got wiped out[/B] (or suppressed, or whatever) by Zatanna all over again . . . until further notice?)

The Crime Doctor (Bradford Thorne. Dead. Learned in his first appearance, in “Detective Comics #494” – a Pre-Crisis story, incidentally. One issue later, he went into a coma from mercury poisoning. Years later, he recovered. Since that time, I gather that no Post-Crisis story has ever clearly told us that he does – or didn’t – remember Batman’s identity after he awoke.)

Cyborg (Vic Stone. As a member of the Teen Titans in the early 80s, he learned the secrets of Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson. However, the part about his knowing Batman's secret ID was reportedly erased by a retcon from Denny O'Neil at the time of Zero Hour. I don't know if he's learned all over again since then)

Damian (Batman’s newly-introduced long-lost son. Presumably he has known all his life, thanks to his mommy, Talia.)

Deadman (Boston Brand. Since he is normally an invisible and intangible ghost who can go anywhere and spy on anyone, it would be very easy for him to learn any secret identity if he got interested enough to bother, and he demonstrated his knowledge of where to find the Batcave[/B] (right under Wayne Manor, natch!) in “Batman #530”)

Deathstroke the Terminator (Slade Wilson. He probably knew Pre-COIE because of the things he learned by having Terra infiltrate the Titans in preparation for “The Judas Contract.” He definitely learned Dick Grayson’s secrets at that time. Several years after COIE, in “Deathstroke the Terminator #8,” Slade entered Wayne Manor to ask Bruce Wayne for help. Bruce and Slade were both wearing tuxedoes instead of masks at the time Slade approached him, but in context, it was quite clear that Slade wanted -- and eventually got --Batman’s help. However, that story was published in the early 90s, Pre-Zero Hour, and I’m not sure if there’s ever been a Post-Zero Hour story in which it was made clear to us that Slade still knows. [See the note at the end of this list about the Zero Hour Retcons.])

Deathwing (Comes from an alternate future timeline, now defunct, in which he had been brainwashed by the Time Trapper so he could pass himself off as Dick Grayson, the Nightwing of “ten years from now.” We were eventually told he wasn’t really a Dick Grayson from the future, but in that case he still must have been very well-briefed on all Titans lore and Dick Grayson’s biography in particular, including the role of Bruce Wayne/Batman in his life, in order to carry the role with conviction)

Despero (Restored various suppressed memories to the Secret Society of Super-Villains in the “JLA: Crisis of Conscience” story arc . . . and as it turned out, those memories included the knowledge that Batman is Bruce Wayne[/B] (not to mention several other JLA secret IDs). In the process, Despero apparently learned this secret himself[/B] (if he didn’t already know? He is a telepath, after all). At the end of the arc, Despero was subdued by Zatanna’s magic and allegedly was going to be taken off to Oa for containment, but – as far as I can tell – he still had all that knowledge of secret IDs inside his head. The other villains whom he had helped to regain these memories included: Chronos, Felix Faust, Floronic Man, Matter Master, Star Sapphire, The Wizard)

Doc Creasey (Dead. Bought the secret of Batman’s identity from “The Nobody” in “Shadow of the Bat #13.” One of Joker’s henchmen killed Creasey before he could make any use of his new knowledge)

Donna Troy (Sometimes known as Wonder Girl I, Wonder Woman IV (I think she'd be the fourth user of the name), Troia, etc. I've completely lost track of what alias she might be using today, if any? As a founding member of the Teen Titans, she learned the secrets of Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson. However, the part about her knowing Batman's secret ID was reportedly erased by a retcon from Denny O'Neil at the time of Zero Hour. I don't know if she's learned all over again since then)

The Elongated Man (Ralph Dibny. His knowledge was recently confirmed in the “JLA: Crisis of Conscience” arc)

Faith (She refers to Batman as “Bruce” during the “JLA Classified: Sacred Trust” story arc)

Felix Faust (Found out the secret IDs of Batman and several other JLAers a long time ago, according to an “Identity Crisis” retcon. Then he got mindwiped by Zatanna. Then Despero recently helped him rediscover those memories in “JLA: Crisis of Conscience.” Then they got wiped out[/B] (or suppressed, or whatever) by Zatanna all over again . . . until further notice?)

Flash III (Wally West)

The Floronic Man (Jason Woodrue. Found out the secret IDs of Batman and several other JLAers a long time ago, according to an “Identity Crisis” retcon. Then he got mindwiped by Zatanna. Then Despero recently helped him rediscover those memories in “JLA: Crisis of Conscience.” Then they got wiped out (or suppressed, or whatever) by Zatanna all over again . . . until further notice?)

Fritz (A thug who worked for Benedict Asp. Learned in “Legends of the Dark Knight #61.” Then he died)

Geo-Force (Brion Markov. Learned in “Batman and the Outsiders #13.” See “Black Lightning” entry for my reasons for listing him as knowing “in modern continuity”)

Green Arrow I (Oliver Queen. Already knew by the time of a conversation with Batman in “Green Arrow #5”[/B] (the third series of that name). I’m told that it is far from clear just when and how he found out in the modern continuity, however)

Green Lantern #whatever (Hal Jordan, formerly known as Parallax, and later as The Spectre II, before reverting back to “Green Lantern.” His knowledge was confirmed during the recent “JLA: Crisis of Conscience” story arc. I say “#whatever” because, strictly speaking, I think millions of other people across the universe must have been “Green Lanterns” in the eons before Hal Jordan ever met Abin Sur)

Halo (Violet Hunter. Learned in “Batman and the Outsiders #13.” See “Black Lightning” entry for my reasons for listing her as knowing “in modern continuity”)

Harbinger (Lyla, the former assistant to the Monitor. Had access to information about everyone interesting)

Harold Allnut (Dead. Presumably found out shortly after Batman met him and took him home to the Batcave in “Batman #458.”)

Hawkgirl (Kendra Saunders. In “Hawkgirl #51,” an OYL issue, she thinks of “Batman” as also being “Bruce” who can drive around in limos all the time)

Hawkman (Carter Hall. His knowledge was recently confirmed in the “JLA: Crisis of Conscience” arc)

Henri Ducard (One of Bruce’s old teachers; he deduced the secret in the “Blind Justice” story arc, which has allegedly been erased from continuity, which would certainly explain why I don’t remember ever seeing Ducard make any use of this knowledge in any subsequent appearances in other comics)

Hourman III, from the 853rd Century (Tyler. Dead. The secret was also known to a bunch of his friends from the Justice Legion who appeared in the “DC One Million” event, because the identities of modern-era heroes are all available in public records in the 853rd century)

Hugo Strange (A borderline case. Hugo kinda-sorta-sometimes thinks he knows, but – as far as I can tell in the modern continuity -- has never actually proven it for sure. For instance, he's never captured Batman and then ripped off his cowl to reveal the face of Bruce Wayne underneath. That exact scenario actually happened in Pre-COIE continuity, but that story seems to have been erased from history, many years ago. I have on my hard drive a rough draft of a post that examines the Weird Retcons of Hugo Strange’s Continuity in more detail; I’ll polish it up and post it someday)

Hush (Thomas “Tommy” Elliot. We learned at the end of “Hush” that he had learned it from Riddler in a conversation we never saw, before that story arc even started. I’m told that we have heard nothing of him thus far in any story following the OYL leap forward in DC’s titles; apparently it is not even known if he is currently alive or dead?)

Ion (Kyle Rayner, formerly a Green Lantern. Learned in “JLA #50.”)

Jack Drake (Dead)

Jason Todd (Formerly Robin II, later The Red Hood II. More recently a “Nightwing” -- I’m not sure if he still uses that name today, and I’ve lost track of what the numbering would be, given that Power Girl and Cheyenne Freemont have also been using that name in OYL stories)

Jean Loring (Refers to Batman as “Bruce” in “Identity Crisis #7”)

Jeannie Bowen (In the “Blind Justice” story arc, which has allegedly been erased from continuity)

Katana (Tatsu Yamashiro. Learned in “Batman and the Outsiders #13.” See “Black Lightning” entry for my reasons for listing her as knowing “in modern continuity”)

Kathy Sutton (Wife of Red Tornado II. Demonstrates her knowledge that Batman is also Bruce Wayne in “Justice League of America #1”[/B] (the newest series)

Lady Shiva (Nightwing commented that she was on the list of enemies who definitely knew, in a conversation he had with Robin III (Tim Drake) in “Gotham Knights #8.” I don’t think we know just when or how she supposedly found out)

Leslie Thompkins (In the current continuity, she was an old friend of the Wayne family who found out soon after Bruce invented his new identity.)

Lois Lane (Probably learned from her husband Clark – she obviously knew at the time of her appearance in “Hush,” although a few years earlier, when she teamed up with Batman to steal the Green Kryptonite Ring from President Lex Luthor in the White House, she definitely didn’t know. Which surprised Batman, because he’d assumed her loving husband must have told her by then!)

Man-Bat (Kirk Langstrom. His knowledge was established in “Gotham Knights #45”)

Martian Manhunter (J’onn J’onnz. May have learned by telepathic prying in “JLA: Year One” if that is still in continuity)

Matches Malone (Dead. But he had somehow figured it out before he died, according to a letter column in “Detective Comics #765”)

 

[Lorendiac]

Matter Master (Mark Mandrill. Found out the secret IDs of Batman and several other JLAers a long time ago, according to an “Identity Crisis” retcon. Then he got mindwiped by Zatanna. Then Despero recently helped him rediscover those memories in “JLA: Crisis of Conscience.” Then they got wiped out[/B] (or suppressed, or whatever) by Zatanna all over again . . . until further notice?)

Maxwell Lord (Dead. Apparently learned the secret from Brother Eye, or perhaps by telepathic prying?)

Metamorpho (Rex Mason. Learned in “Batman and the Outsiders #13.” See “Black Lightning” entry for my reasons for listing him as knowing “in modern continuity&#8221

Neron (Can see anywhere. Visited the Batcave in “Underworld Unleashed #2&#8221

Nightwing I (Dick Grayson, formerly Robin I and Batman III)

"The Nobody" (Dead. A convenient label for a homeless man, real name unknown, who learned Batman’s identity and then was killed by the man he sold it to (Doc Creasey), in “Shadow of the Bat #13&#8221

Nomoz (Learned during the “Sword of Azrael” miniseries)

Nyssa Raatko (AKA Ra’s al Ghul II. Dead. Demonstrated her knowledge of Bruce’s secret in the “Death and the Maidens” miniseries. I don’t recall that we ever learned how she knew – she had been estranged from her father, the original Ra’s al Ghul, for decades before Ra’s (or anybody else) ever heard of “Batman,” so I doubt she heard it from her daddy)

Oracle (Barbara Gordon, formerly the first Batgirl. She’s known for a long, long time. Over the years, there’s been more than one explanation of just how and when she found out the secrets of Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson. The “Batgirl: Year One” mini showed one version of how she found out; as far as I know; it’s probably still the “official” version in modern continuity.)

Owlman (Thomas Wayne, member of the Crime Syndicate of America, on the Earth in the Antimatter Universe. Introduced in Grant Morrison’s “JLA: Earth-2.” Once he visited the regular DCU Earth, it was a foregone conclusion that he’d figure it out. In fact, he located and visited the graves of Bruce’s parents (analogs of his own parents in the other universe). I consider that adequate proof that he figured out that Batman is the sole survivor of the filthy rich Wayne family of Gotham in the “regular DCU” timeline)

The Phantom Stranger (He seems virtually omniscient. In “Batman/Phantom Stranger” he dropped in on Bruce Wayne and his conversation made it clear he knew)

Plastic Man (Eel O’Brian. Learned in “JLA #50&#8221

Ra's al Ghul I, and various henchmen (Already knew the secret, from behind-the-scenes detective work, when he made his debut way back when in “Batman #232.” That carried over to Post-COIE continuity, unlike many other Pre-COIE stories wherein people learned Batman’s secret ID. At least some of Ra’s hirelings have also known, when it suited his purpose to let them know, but I don’t have an exact count of just how many have heard the secret from him)

Raven (Also calls herself "Rachel Roth," although I believe that's just an alias. As a member of the Teen Titans in the early 80s, she learned the secrets of Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson. However, the part about her knowing Batman's secret ID was reportedly erased by a retcon from Denny O'Neil at the time of Zero Hour. I don't know if she's learned all over again since then)

Red Arrow (Roy Harper, previously Speedy I and Arsenal. As a founding member of the Teen Titans, he learned the secrets of Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson. However, the part about his knowing Batman's secret ID was reportedly erased by a retcon from Denny O'Neil at the time of Zero Hour. I don't know if he's learned all over again since then)

Red Tornado II (Not sure when he learned in the latest version of modern continuity, but probably before “JLA: Crisis of Conscience” when Batman is working to repair him in the Batcave)

Riddler (Edward Nigma. At the very end of “Hush,”he revealed that he had already figured it all out, behind the scenes, before that 12-part story arc even started. Now, however, he appears to have totally forgotten during his long spell in a coma, as indicated (after he finally recovered) – in his appearances in Dini’s run on “Detective Comics.&#8221

Robin III (Tim Drake. Revealed that he had already known the secrets of Batman and the original Robin for several years before he ever got around to mentioning his knowledge to Dick Grayson and Bruce Wayne in face-to-face conversations during the story arc “A Lonely Place of Dying” in 1989)

Roy Kane (Dead. Learned and died in the “Blind Justice” story arc, which has allegedly been erased from continuity)

Ruby (Apparently her real first name. Dead. A female criminal who broke into the Batcave in “Batman #577” and learned Batman’s secret identity and then conveniently died by the end of the issue, as did her accomplices, “Ruby’s Brother” and “Sneaky Pete.&#8221

Ruby's Brother (Dead. We never knew his real name. See entry for “Ruby&#8221

Sasha Bordeaux (Learned in “Detective Comics #756” when she found some of Bruce’s Bat-equipment – we later were told he’d planned it that way)

Sentinel (Alan Scott, formerly the Golden Age Green Lantern. Showed that he knew in “Detective Comics #784&#8221

Sherlock Holmes (Showed that he had deduced it independently in “Detective Comics #572,” before he and Batman met face-to-face. As far as I know, there’s no reason to think that’s been retconned)

Shondra Kinsolving (Learned in “Legends of the Dark Knight #61.” Then she promptly regressed to early childhood, mentally, and was placed in a sanitarium. In “Hush” there was a very brief, very vague reference to the idea that eventually “she got better.” She may or may not remember anything about Batman’s secrets now; who knows?)

Silver St. Cloud (Learned during the Steve Englehart/Marshall Rogers run on “Detective Comics” that is reprinted in the TPB “Batman: Strange Apparitions.” Batman didn’t tell her; but after she’d been seriously dating Bruce Wayne for awhile, and then got a good look at Batman with the lower part of his face unprotected by his mask, she recognized his jaw in a heartbeat. That was a Pre-COIE story arc, but she’s had some more recent appearances that have established that in “modern” continuity she still knows the secret which she learned during their love affair, way back when)

Sneaky Pete (Dead. See entry for “Ruby&#8221

The Spectre I (Jim Corrigan. Dead and gone, now. Visited the Batcave in “Batman #541.&#8221

The Spectre III (Crispus Allen. Apparently learned in #1 of his own series)

Star Sapphire IV (Deborah Camille Darnell. Dead. Found out the secret IDs of Batman and several other JLAers a long time ago, according to an “Identity Crisis” retcon. Then she got mindwiped by Zatanna. Then Despero recently helped her rediscover those memories in “JLA: Crisis of Conscience.” Then they got wiped out[/B] (or suppressed, or whatever) by Zatanna all over again . . . until further notice?)

Starfire (Koriand'r. As a member of the Teen Titans in the early 80s, she learned the secrets of Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson. However, the part about her knowing Batman's secret ID was reportedly erased by a retcon from Denny O'Neil at the time of Zero Hour. I don't know if she's learned all over again since then)

Sue Dibny (One fan claims that she knew in the old “Justice League International” series. If so, that knowledge may have been erased in a retcon after Zero Hour. And I’m pretty sure her husband knew more recently, in “Identity Crisis,” and it seems likely that she knew anything Ralph knew)

Superboy-Prime (Clark Kent of the Pre-COIE Earth-Prime. Presumably he knew “Batman = Bruce Wayne” from a very early age, thanks to comic books, TV shows, etc.)

Supergirl #whatever (Kara Zor-El, the Rebooted Version)

Superman (Clark Kent, Kal-El)

The Synaptic Kid (Only appeared in “Detective Comics #633.” Learned Batman’s identity telepathically, then – after a very confusing story – ended up in a comatose condition with a mental breakdown, as a result of the shocking experience of messing around inside the complexities of Batman’s head without an invitation to be there. Let this be a lesson to us all . . .)

Talia (In her first appearance, she saw the face under Batman’s mask when she was administering first aid after he’d been battered into unconsciousness, but she didn’t instantly recognize him. Or at least she said she didn’t! However, even if we take that claim at face value, it seems clear that her daddy, Ra’s al Ghul (who debuted in a later story) must have brought her up to speed on Batman’s secret ID soon after he discovered it, and so she’s consistently known Bruce’s secret since the early 1970s, in both Pre-COIE and Post-COIE material)

Terra I (Tara Markov. Dead. During her membership in the Titans in the early 1980s, she learned all their secret identities. At the time, and for many years thereafter, it appeared that this meant she (and her partner in crime, Deathstroke the Terminator) had thereby learned Batman's secret identity as well. This was probably retconned after Zero Hour -- see a note at the bottom of this post)

Trogg (Bane told him in “Knightfall&#8221

Tsunetomo (Dead. One of Bruce Wayne’s martial arts teachers. Recognized Batman’s fighting style in “Detective Comics Annual #3&#8221

Waverider (Learned all sorts of secrets, including Batman’s identity, when he was examining the possible futures of different heroes during the “Armageddon 2001” event published in 1991)

White Martians (According to a statement made in the “JLA: New World Order” story arc, there were 78 of them. In the “JLA: Terror Incognita” story arc, it became clear that with their telepathy and all that, they definitely knew Batman’s secret identity, among others. However, in the later “JLA: Trial by Fire” arc, they all got skragged, as far as I can tell. At least, the 78 evil ones who’d tried to conquer the Earth got skragged. I am told that the character “Miss Martian” is allegedly a long-lost 79th White Martian with a much better moral code; if that’s true, then as far as I know, she is not aware of Batman’s secret identity, but I’ve been wrong before.)

William Randolph Wintergreen (Dead. Used to be Deathstroke the Terminator’s butler and friend. Wintergreen’s knowledge of Bruce Wayne’s double life was demonstrated in “Deathstroke the Terminator #9” in the early 90s – but he and Deathstroke were very tight, so it’s logical to assume that he first found out at the same time his employer did, back in the Titans continuity of the early 1980s. As with Deathstroke, I don’t know of any story that’s clearly established that Wintergreen still knew Batman’s secrets in the Post-Zero Hour continuity (before he died, which made it something of a moot point))

The Wizard (William I. Zard. Found out the secret IDs of Batman and several other JLAers a long time ago, according to an “Identity Crisis” retcon. Then he got indwiped by Zatanna. Then Despero recently helped him rediscover those memories in “JLA: Crisis of Conscience.” Then they got wiped out[/B] (or suppressed, or whatever) by Zatanna all over again . . . until further notice?)

Wonder Woman I (Diana. Apparently it is not crystal-clear just when she learned, but these days she definitely knows)

Zatanna (Zatanna Zatara. Her knowledge of his identity was recently confirmed during the “JLA: Crisis of Conscience” story arc when she visited the Batcave and called him “Bruce” while trying to apologize for mindwiping him many years ago[/B] (as previously revealed in a retcon flashback in “Identity Crisis&#8221. She offered to do anything she possibly could to make it up to him, and Batman listened to her speech and then simply told her to leave.[/B] (Considering that he didn’t hit her, file criminal charges or a civil lawsuit against her, scream obscenities at her, or suggest she go mindwipe herself and her former co-conspirators to balance the scales by removing their memories of his secrets this time around, I thought he handled it rather well.))

Zombie (Bane told him in “Knightfall&#8221



As always, I welcome constructive criticism – such as suggestions regarding people I’ve completely omitted from the list, or comments on what I got wrong in my brief summaries of who certain people are and why they know (or used to know) the secret. Before you start offering that criticism, however, you might want to read the rest of this post, where I explain a few of the decisions I made on what to leave off the list.

Stray Notes on Doubtful Cases

In the early 1980s, when I was buying monthly issues of the first Marv Wolfman/George Perez run on "The New Teen Titans," it was clear that everybody in the group knew that Robin (later Nightwing) was Dick Grayson, and that Bruce Wayne was his mentor, Batman. I have heard that later, probably around the time of Zero Hour, Denny O'Neil retconned that to say that NONE of the other Titans had ever known who Batman was, even though they knew who his first Robin was. Period! So I'm not clear on how many current or former Titans are supposed to know who Batman is, right now, in modern continuity; but they definitely knew for awhile (the late 80s and early 90s) after COIE had come and gone. Something similar seems to have happened to some of the JLAers who knew Batman's secrets in Pre-COIE and Post-COIE-but-Pre-Zero-Hour era, although some of those characters now seem to have had their knowledge of his real name retconned right back in again. (It's hard to keep up. I suspect this is one area where this Draft could definitely stand some improvement, if anyone wants to cite specific stories in which one former JLAer or another seems to know all about Batman's secrets, before or after Zero Hour.)

Likewise, when Tim Drake was with Young Justice, he was under strict orders not to reveal any of Batman's secrets to his new teammates. A year ago, someone tried to tell me that Superboy (Kon-El) definitely knew Batman's secret identity way back in the 1990s, but the story he cited was one I later bought and read, without finding any evidence of Kon-El's knowledge in it. If anyone knows of any evidence that any former member of Young Justice (besides Tim) was ever brought up to speed on Batman's secret identity, please tell me where that evidence may be found!

It has never been firmly established that Jim Gordon knows the secret. It's been hinted -- a few dozen times -- that he may think he knows more about Batman than Batman has ever explicitly told him, and that he may think he knows more about Bruce Wayne than Bruce has ever explicitly told him, but I've never yet read a scene in "regular continuity" in which Gordon says: "There goes Batman, also known as Bruce Wayne!"

I didn't bother listing all the people from Pre-COIE Earth-2 who would know (including the Golden Age versions of Lois and Clark, who both died in IC). It’s been pointed out to me that some of those characters appeared to be getting some of their memories of their “native” Pre-COIE Earth-2 suddenly restored to them near the end of the Infinite Crisis; I don’t know offhand if it’s ever been firmly nailed down that any of them now remember that there was an Earth-2 Batman whose real name was “Bruce Wayne.”

I listed Owlman from Grant Morrison's "Earth-2" -- but I don't know how many of his buddies in the Crime Syndicate of America know his secret identity. Any of them who did know could use that to deduce that Bruce Wayne is Batman in the main Earth of the DCU. (I think someone once told me -- I believe it was in a post that's no longer available online when I looked -- that the Superwoman and Ultraman of that universe also know Owlman's secret identity, but -- as the fan pointed out at the time -- Ultraman is far from being the sharpest knife in the drawer, so it might be a real stretch to assume that he could figure out who "Batman" was on that basis.)

I had Spoiler on the previous drafts of this list, because I remembered (vaguely) that in the stories collected in the “War Drums” TPB she knew how to get in and out of the Batcave on her own, at the time she became a Robin. I believe I had the impression that this meant she had to know that the Batcave was located squarely underneath Wayne Manor, which would imply that she knew Batman and Bruce Wayne were the same guy.

When I’m wrong, I’m wrong! I’ve removed her from the list this time around because I got enough criticism on that point, a year ago, that I finally went back and reread “War Drums” and came to agree with my critics. As near as I can tell: in the last months of her life, Stephanie Brown knew Tim’s secret identity, and knew Tim and Alfred Pennyworth were close, and knew Batman and Alfred Pennyworth were close, and knew how to find and enter the Batcave any time she wanted to visit, and knew how to log in to the computers in the Batcave and secretly study Batman’s contingency plans for worst-case scenarios . . . but she evidently did not know that “Bruce Wayne” is Batman’s real name, and implicitly did not know that the Batcave was located directly below Wayne Manor!

I don’t say that this makes any sense! I only say that this is, in fact, how she was being written, regarding what she knew and what she didn’t, during the stories reprinted in the “War Drums” and “War Games” TPBs!

(Although frankly, given that she knew about Alfred Pennyworth’s connection to Batman, it staggers my imagination to think that she never pursued that lead to find out where and for whom he normally worked as a butler.)

 

[cozzie]

Bane

 

[Doctor Baywatch]

har har.

talk about a "secret identity"

 

[Kraven]

What about the Joker?

 

[union_jak]

The Joker has probably figured it out (much like Commissioner Gordon), but neither want to know, to them Batman is Batman.

I'd say Shiva would have found out while training Bruce Wayne after he broke his back.

 

[Lorendiac]

Bane

He's already on the list. The alphabetical order places him immediately above Batgirl III (Cassandra Cain) -- and by coincidence, they both learned the secret in the same basic way. Nobody told it to them; they just each figured it out the first time they got good looks at "Bruce Wayne's" body language! (Apparently Bruce's acting skills aren't all they could be.)

 

[cozzie]

He's already on the list. The alphabetical order places him immediately above Batgirl III (Cassandra Cain) -- and by coincidence, they both learned the secret in the same basic way. Nobody told it to them; they just each figured it out the first time they got good looks at "Bruce Wayne's" body language! (Apparently Bruce's acting skills aren't all they could be.)

so he was, my mistake

 

[RobC]

That seems pretty complete. I agree, Gordon and Joker both almost definitely do know, but choose to ignore it for their own purposes.

 

[hippie_hunter]

Holly Robinson knows who he is. It was shown in Countdown that her list of cell phone contacts included Bruce, Dick, and Selina.

Sinestro should know too considering that a Sinestro ring went to Batman saying Bruce Wayne of 2814.

And I beleive that John Stewart also knows.

 

[Arkady Rossovich]

This list was a pretty good read,i would say to have a seperate list for everything Pre-COIE.As i can imagine it would be a huge list.