10 Most Interesting Batman Villains You've Never Heard Of
6. Professor Radium
Professor Radium is one of the Dark Knight's oldest nemeses, having first appeared all the way back in Batman #8 in 1941. Before becoming Professor Radium, he was Professor Henry Ross, a scientist who studied radium, which he posited could be used to bring the dead back to life.
Basically, he was Dr. Frankenstein, who opted to use radium instead of lightning to animate the dead, and like the good Dr. Frankenstein, he was successful. He managed to revive dead dogs in his experiments, which were, in no way, authorized by the university.
His boss found out what he was doing and believed his research a hoax, so he canned him for stealing thousands of dollars worth of radium, which was the property of the university. He didn't take it well, so he decided to prove his research wasn't a hoax by killing himself. He left a note for his research assistant with instructions on how to revive him, which he did.
Unfortunately, he didn't come back his usual cheery self, as he was radioactive, and could kill with a touch. He learned this the hard way when he accidentally killed his assistant. He eventually killed his girlfriend and came to the attention of authorities. Batman tracked him down, and the formerly good professor ended up sinking into the river while wearing a lead suit he had hoped would contain his deadly radiation.