Cary Bates (born 1948)[1] is an American comic book, animation, television and film writer.
Among his contributions to the Superman mythos, he and artist Curt Swan co-created the supervillains Terra-Man[7] and the 1970s version of the Toyman[8] as well as the superhero Vartox.
The tale was an inspiration for Mark Millar's Superman: Red Son limited series published in 2003.
[14] Bates appeared in his own comics as himself several times, alongside superheroes such as the Silver Age version of the Flash[15] and the Justice League of America.
[18] He and artist Carmine Infantino crafted a Batman backup story for Detective Comics #500 (March 1981).
Cary Bates was head scriptwriter on the 1988–1992 live action Superboy television series,[4] and co-wrote (with Mario Puzo and John Briley) the 1992 film Christopher Columbus: The Discovery, produced by Superman: The Movie producers Alexander and Ilya Salkind.
In 2023, Bates was interviewed about his career by writer Mark Millar for his YouTube series about comic book creators.