FULTON COUNTY, Ga. - When it comes to Batman, there's no bigger fan of the Caped Crusader than a man in Fulton County, and he's got a Guinness World Record to prove it.
Brad Ladner owns an amazing 8,226 individual pieces of Batman memorabilia, making his collection the biggest ever.
He started collecting 35 years ago with Batman comics, and then eventually moved to collecting toys and statues.
The Fulton County man told Guinness that his most prized possession is a Batman Sanity statue, which features the hero and many of his super villain nemeses.
Other rare pieces in his collection are a Batman Camel Cigarette box made for the European market and a 1989 costume continuity binder from the 1989 "Batman" movie.
"Things from movies and media are displayed and organized by the brand, so ‘Batman ’66’ stuff is together, ‘Batman ’89' movie stuff is together, animated stuff is together," Ladner said.
Ladner says that a lot of his collection comes from stores, but he spends a lot of time digging through eBay.
"I had a database where I coded it to search multiple eBays across multiple countries, almost instantly, so I could find items that were really only ever released in foreign markets," he said.
While Ladner thinks it's "cool" to be recognized for his massive collection, he says it's important to not let a hobby control your life.
"It is important to keep a hobby, a hobby, and not make it too much of a part of your life," he said.