This Day in Comic Book History — September 17, 2026
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Epic Panels Presents
This Day in Comic Book History
Thursday, September 17, 2026 — Today in Comics: September 17
Spotlight
Gotham's Own Holiday: Batman Day Lands on September 17
DC2016 & 2022
Bat-signal projection · Wikimedia Commons
DC Entertainment launched Batman Day back on July 23, 2014, timed to San Diego Comic-Con and the character's 75th anniversary. Once the annual tradition settled into a fall date on the third (sometimes fourth) Saturday of September, the calendar handed the Caped Crusader the exact date of September 17 not once but twice — first on September 17, 2016, and again on September 17, 2022.
Both years followed the same winning formula that's kept Batman Day going for more than a decade: free digital and print comics for fans, in-store scavenger hunts and cosplay contests at comic shops worldwide, and — the signature gesture — the actual Bat-Signal lit up on buildings and landmarks across multiple continents. In 2016, DC also used the date to spotlight new *Batman* rebirth-era storylines; by 2022, the celebration folded in tie-ins to *The Batman* film and new merchandise drops, cementing Batman Day as one of the industry's biggest non-con marketing events. It's a fitting tribute to a character who first swung onto the page in Detective Comics #27 back in 1939 and has anchored DC's line ever since.
More From This Date
Small Press Expo Opens Its Doors (2016)
Indie2016
Small Press Expo, 2017 · Wikimedia Commons
The Small Press Expo, the premiere showcase for self-published and small-press comics and home of the Ignatz Awards, opened its 2016 run on September 17 at the Bethesda North Marriott Hotel & Conference Center in Maryland, running through the 18th. Founded in 1994, SPX has long served as ground zero for alternative cartoonists to debut new minicomics and graphic novels directly to readers and publishers like Fantagraphics and Drawn & Quarterly.
Writer Roger Stern Is Born (1950)
MarvelDC1950
Original illustration — swap for licensed art
Born September 17, 1950, Roger Stern became one of the industry's most dependable superhero scribes, moving fluidly between the Big Two. At Marvel he shaped long runs on *The Amazing Spider-Man*, *The Avengers*, *Captain America*, and *Doctor Strange*, co-creating characters including the Hobgoblin, Nebula, and Monica Rambeau. Jumping to DC, Stern co-created Doomsday and helped steer the *Death of Superman* saga — giving him a hand in two of comics' most consequential character debuts on opposite sides of the publisher aisle.
In Memoriam: Cartoonist Joe Matt (2023)
Indie2023
Original illustration — swap for licensed art
Alternative cartoonist Joe Matt died on September 17, 2023, at age 60. Best known for his unflinchingly confessional autobiographical series *Peepshow* (1992–2006), Matt chronicled his own flaws and neuroses with a candor that made him a defining voice of the 1990s alt-comics scene alongside contemporaries like Chester Brown and Seth. Earlier in his career he worked as a colorist on Matt Wagner's *Grendel* and *Mage*, and his later work earned multiple Harvey and Eisner Award nominations.
First Issues, Debuts & Premieres
Oddly Normal #1 Hits Shops (2014)
Indie2014
Original illustration — swap for licensed art
Writer-artist Otis Frampton relaunched his all-ages fantasy series *Oddly Normal* through Image Comics on September 17, 2014. The book follows Oddly Normal Jones, a half-witch, half-human girl navigating a magical school after being expelled from the human world — a colorful creator-owned debut that found a dedicated readership for its blend of Harry Potter–style school hijinks and heartfelt family drama.
Panel of the Day — Trivia
Batman Day doesn't have a fixed calendar date — DC pegs it to the third Saturday of September, which means the date wanders year to year. That quirk is exactly why September 17 got the honor twice within a single decade (2016 and 2022) rather than every year. The next time September 17 falls on that third Saturday, Gotham's searchlight tradition will be due for a third calendar-date rerun.
