Being blind, Doctor Mid-Nite is widely regarded as comics' first physically impaired superhero, predating Stan Lee's creation of Daredevil for Marvel by more than 20 years.
In a statement that accompanied the first three screeners, Geoff Johns, the DC stalwart explained why he created Courtney Whitmore in the first place: "It is a story about how family is created by bond, not blood. Stargirl was, obviously, named after and inspired by my sister, Courtney. It is her spirit and optimistic energy that I wanted to put back in the world with Stargirl." Geoff's sister died young in a plane crash, and now, over twenty years after he first wrote the 'Stargirl' comics in her honour, Courtney Whitmore is finally starring in her very own show. It's fitting then that the Stargirl pilot opens with a flashback which establishes the importance of family and legacy.
Before "Stargirl," Geoff was approached about an idea for Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E., however, they couldn't include Pat Dugan's signature S.T.R.I.P.E. armor. Geoff felt it was inaccurate to tell the story without the armor and refused. This is one of many reasons why he enjoyed making the 2020 series, Stargirl. They were able to stay true to the source material in a realistic way. From the first moment he thought of live-action casting for Pat Dugan, Geoff envisioned Luke Wilson in the role. So much so, that he wrote the script with Luke in mind, mailed the Pilot to Luke with a letter, and met with him to speak about it. Geoff explained that Luke had that, "grounded, trying-to-do-the-right-thing-but-maybe-not-always-capable-of-doing-it" thing that captured Pat Dugan.
In the comics, Blue Valley was originally the hometown of Wally West/Kid Flash.
Geoff Johns, the former president and chief creative officer of DC Entertainment, considered his sister akin to a superhero, but instead of otherworldly strength or special powers, her special gift involved her generous heart and sense of adventure. "She always wanted to help people. She was very positive. She walked in a room and she just had energy," Johns said of 18-year-old Courtney, who was killed in 1996 in the TWA Flight 800 plane explosion off the coast of Long Island, N.Y. "She was fearless," Johns added. He's keeping the spirit of his sister alive with the new series " The show was "born out of a desire to keep her spirit alive," he said recently, adding that he wanted to "put that positive energy I thought she had back into the world."