drop subtle hints while not stating directly a character's orientation. Overt gay and lesbian themes were first found later in underground and alternative titles which did not carry the CCA's seal of approval. In recent years the number of LGBT characters in mainstream superhero comics has increased greatly. At first gay characters appeared in supporting roles, but their roles have become increasingly prominent. The trend has prompted both praise from the LGBT community and organizations like the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), and criticism from conservative groups. Critics have made accusations that comics are attempting to subvert readers into a "gay lifestyle", trying to "lure young American boys into the kinky web of homosexuality and AIDS". DC Comics The Encyclopedia of Gay Histories and Cultures (2000) notes that gay subtext can be found in DC Comics publications as early as the Golden Age of Comic Books, with readers inferring homosexuality between superheroes and their same-sex sidekicks and on the women-only Paradise Island. The introduction to Sandman Mystery Theatre: The Tarantula discusses this in the case of the replacement of Dian Belmont with Sandy, the Golden Boy in The Sandman serial in Adventure Comics. Batman's relationship with Robin has famously come under scrutiny, in spite of the majority of creators associated with the character denying that the character is gay. Psychologist Fredric Wertham, who in Seduction of the Innocent asserted that "Batman stories are psychologically homosexual," claimed to find a "subtle atmosphere of homoeroticism which pervades the adventures of the mature 'Batman' and his young friend 'Robin.'" It has also been claimed that Batman is interesting to gay audiences because "he was one of the first fictional characters to be attacked on the grounds of his presumed homosexuality," and "the 1960s TV series remains a touchstone of camp." Frank Miller has described the Joker as a "homophobic nightmare," and views the character as sublimating his sexual urges into crime fighting. Burt Ward has also remarked upon this interpretation in his autobiography, noting that the relationship between the two could be interpreted as a sexual one. In the first appearance of the Nightmaster, a fat man who seems to be a closet homosexual gay basher repeatedly calls Jim Rook a "cutie pie", compliments his hair, and grabs his girlfriend, saying (to Rook) "And what? You gonna hit me with your purse?" after which his friends start hitting Rook with a