Don - Batman first appeared in 1939 when Bob Kane would have been 25 years old. The photo you show features Batman hitting the Joker, who debuted in 1940.    Kane actually did little of the drawing, but took much of the credit.   In fact, much of the Batman character was created by Kane's partner Bill Finger - a man that Kane screwed out of much of the credit (and money) that was due.   There is also some dispute over who created the Joker.   Kane certainly played an important role in Batman's creation, but it was more of a team effort.