Yvonne Craig (1937-2015)
Filed under the name Yvonne · May 8, 2026
Yvonne Craig is remembered fondly for playing Batgirl in the classic 1960s "Batman" series, a role that clearly meant a lot to generations of fans who grew up watching her on screen. Naku, I don't get much time for old television between hospice shifts and now caring for my own mother at home too, but I understand the particular joy of a character who let young people, especially young girls back then, see someone capable and heroic looking like they could be one too. My daughter is in medical school now, and I think about what representation like that means for a young person deciding who they might grow up to become — sometimes it's just one character on a screen that plants a seed nobody even notices taking root. Craig's role in that show gave a whole generation something to look up to, which is its own quiet, lasting gift, even decades later. Family sacrifices for a child's dream in all kinds of ways; sometimes it's a mother working double shifts, sometimes it's just someone brave enough on television to show what's possible.