Alfred Pennyworth (New Earth)

Alfred Thaddeus Crane Pennyworth
Mainstream Universe‎, 1986‎-2011‎
Real Name	Alfred Thaddeus Crane Pennyworth
Relatives	Jarvis Pennyworth (father, deceased), Wilfred Pennyworth (older brother), Daphne Pennyworth (niece) · Bruce Wayne (legal ward)
Affiliation	Batman Family, Outsiders
Base Of Operations	Wayne Manor and the Batcave
Status
Citizenship	British
Marital Status	Single
Occupation	Butler for Bruce Wayne and Caretaker of Wayne Manor
Characteristics
Gender	Male
Height	5' 10"
Weight	160 lbs (73 kg)
Eyes	Blue
Hair	Black
Origin
Universe	New Earth
Creators	Bob Kane · Jerry Robinson
First Appearance	Batman #16 (May, 1943)

We soldier on undaunted, you and I, Master Bruce. And if I may say so, sir... I couldn't beg, borrow or steal a finer way to live my life.

— Alfred Pennyworth

History

Alfred has been the Wayne Family butler all of Bruce's life, and he helped his master establish his superhero career from the beginning. Alfred was hired away from the British Royal Family by Bruce's parents, and virtually raised him after their murder. Alfred has also been romantically linked to Dr. Leslie Thompkins.

His resourcefulness came to the fore in the No Man's Land event, . Batman was missing for weeks, leaving Alfred alone to watch the city. He used his skills as an actor, storyteller, medic, and spy to survive and collect information on the recently destroyed society. Alfred even used hand-to-hand combat in a rare on-panel fight sequence between him and a pair of slavers that ended with his rescue by a just-returned Batman.

Alfred and Owlman of the Outsiders

After Batman's death, Alfred set up a new Outsiders team, in an effort to fill Batman's shoes with their combined efforts .

Alfred Pennyworth and Bruce Wayne

Powers and Abilities

Abilities

A former field medic, Alfred is capable of performing minor surgery and stitching wounds for Batman. His skills of disguise and acting mean that he can work undercover on cases for Batman, and his ability for vocal mimicry means he can impersonate Bruce Wayne on the telephone convincingly.

Notes

Publication History

Created by writer Bob Kane and artist Jerry Robinson, he first appeared in Batman #16 (April-May 1943), overweight and clean-shaven. This specific incarnation was later named as Alfred Beagle and used as the family manager of the Earth-Two Wayne and Grayson.

This printed page version of Alfred would be changed after "Alfred the Butler" was presented in the 1943 Batman movie serial. William Austin, the actor who played Alfred, was trim and sported a thin moustache. DC editors wanted the printed page version of Alfred to resemble his cinematic counterpart, so in Detective Comics #83 (January 1944), Alfred vacationed at a health resort, where he slimmed down and grew a moustache. This look has remained with the character ever since, even surviving the apparent death of the Earth-One version of Alfred (in Detective Comics #328 in 1964) and his resurrection (in Detective Comics #356 in 1966).

When Earth-Two was formally reintroduced into regular DC comic usage, the old heavier Beagle would be brought back.

Trivia

• While not as skilled at hand-to-hand combat as Bruce Wayne, Alfred is nearly as resourceful. Batman: Gotham Adventures #16 has him kidnapped, only to readily escape and overcome his captors without even mussing his suit. It is later mentioned that he's been kidnapped unsuccessfully 27 times.

• He is the only member of the Batman Family that is allowed by Bruce Wayne to own a firearm.

• The character is very popular, having received a nomination for the R.A.C. "Squiddy" Award for Favorite Supporting Character in 1994 and for Best Character in 2001. He was also nominated for the Wizard Fan Award for Favorite Supporting Male Character in 1994.

• Like most of the Earth-One Batman Family members, Pennyworth never met Beagle, although he did meet the Earth-Two Huntress and Earth-Two Grayson, who mentioned Beagle to Pennyworth.

Related

• 1,214 Appearances of Alfred Pennyworth (New Earth)
• 139 Images featuring Alfred Pennyworth (New Earth)
• 73 Quotations by or about Alfred Pennyworth (New Earth)
• Character Gallery: Alfred Pennyworth (New Earth)

External Links

• Alfred Pennyworth article at Wikipedia
• Alfred Pennyworth profile at the Oracle Files
• Alfred Pennyworth profile from Batman: The Animated Series
• Comic Book Awards Almanac

Footnotes

This is an in-universe article with out-of-universe material.

This article covers information about something that exists within the DC Universe, and should not contain out-of-universe material. Please remove all out-of-universe material, or include it in a separate section at the bottom of the article. And take off that silly costume.

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