Batman (comic book) work, and first interior-story work, appeared in "Batman" #19 (Oct.-Nov. 1943), for which he drew the cover and the first three Batman stories, and penciled the fourth Batman story, inked by Norm Fallon. Like all Batman artists of the time, Sprang went uncredited as a ghost artist for Kane. Villains which debuted during this early era included the Mad Hatter in issue #49 (October 1948) and Killer Moth in issue #63 (February 1951). In 1953, Sheldon Moldoff became another one of the primary Batman ghost artists who, along with Win Mortimer and Dick Sprang, drew stories credited to Bob Kane,
Superhero film (which debuted in Marvel Comics) and set the stage for further comic book film adaptations. After the comic book boom and the success of several comic book adaptation films (including superhero films) in the 1990s, the first decade of the 21st century brought increased interest in the genre and some of the most profitable superhero franchises, many from Marvel Enterprises. The success of the "X-Men" TV series had made 20th Century Fox license the film rights in 1994. After the success of "Men in Black" in 1997, Columbia Pictures licensed the film rights of "Spider-Man" in 1999. 20th Century Fox's