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This page covers the DC comicbook hero Joker also known as Red Hood , Clown Prince of Crime , Jack Napier , Harlequin of Hate , Joe Kerr , Rekoj , Patient 223 , the Jocund Jack of All Crimes , the Claiph of Clowns , the Mogul of Mountebanks , The Ace of Knaves , Mr. J , Puddin' , Batman's arch nemesis . If this is not the page you were looking for check here.
The maniacal Joker is Batman's most dangerous foe. Unpredictable, murderous and surprisingly cunning, the Joker is a threat to both heroes and villains alike.
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Creation
There where three guys working on the Batman comics: Bob Kane, Bill Finger and the young Jerry Robinson. Joker, their creation was originally going to be a very "clowny" type of clown. Not the suave character he was later drawn in as because of Finger pointing out stills of Conrad Veidt in the Man Who Laughs; an old silent film based on Victor Hugo’s novel "L'Homme Qui Rit". There are even some panels that where directly copied from the photographs. This was the early Joker of the 40s, with blue/black circles around his eyes and unlike Gwynplaine (the man who laughs) he was a murderous clown, who (even back then) could move his lips to form a frown; also unlike Gwynplaine. Each one of the Batman creators takes credit for creating the Joker, but one thing is for sure Jerry Robinson came up with the concept of the Jokers calling card.
Origin
The Joker was originally a criminal known as the Red Hood. While Batman was chasing him he accidentally fell into a batch of chemicals. When he emerged from the chemicals his skin was dyed white, hair turned florescent green, and he gained a lunatics grin smile.
The Joker does not have a definitive history before the chemical accident, however the most widely-accepted story is told in The Killing Joke. In this story arc the Joker is originally an engineer at a chemical plant. He quits his job to pursue his dream as a comedian. He does not succeed and is in debt while needing to support his pregnant wife. Desperate for money, he agrees to help two criminals break into the plant he used to work at. While discussing plans with the two men he is informed by the police that his wife has died in a freak accident testing a baby bottle heater. Although he then tries to back out of the plan, the criminals force him into it. Inside, they convince him to wear the Red Hood mask to “help protect his identity”. They are caught by a security guard and start shooting. Batman shows up and in a desperate attempt to escape, the Red Hood jumps over the railing and falls into the chemicals. He emerges as the Joker.
According to BATMAN CONFIDENTIAL #7 the Joker was a master at the art of deactivating even the toughest security systems, but alas this was no life for him. What is the point of using a gift such as this if there is no thrill or chase involved? So, he quits using his skill and trips the alarms on purpose to draw the cops’ attention.
Also, in “Batman: Legends on the Dark Knight #50” a handsome man with low self esteem named Melvin Reipan claims to be Joker’s cousin. Joker doesn’t deny this, but he won’t let this man call him what is supposedly his birth name. Melvin occasionally manages to say, “Ja—err I mean Joker” hinting on the fact that Joker’s name might be Jack; like in the (1989) movie, (B:TAS) cartoons or in Batman Confidential. It might also be telling you that the character from the Batman/Planetary crossover “Night on Earth” is using Joker’s original name, Jasper. The Joker also has a tendency to refer to himself as Joseph so he can make the joke, “My name is Joseph Kerr aka Joe Kerr” and in few occasions pre-Joker get’s called Joe, like in Alan Moore’s “Killing Joke”. Even with all these random references us, the readers aren’t sure of Joker’s true birth name.
It was later revealed in Gotham Knights (#50-55) that the Riddler knew what happened to Joker’s wife. He says that the criminals kidnapped and killed his wife to get him to help them with the crime. The Joker was referred to as Jack in this story.
Black and White
How come Batman and Joker make such a great team? Is it because the Batman is such a great straight man for the Joker's comedic games? In Joker’s opinion this is probably correct, but there are oodles upon oodles of reasons why the Joker and the Bat fall so perfectly into place; side by side. The Joker is the antithesis of Batman; he is everything that made Batman into this creature of night. Both the Clown Prince and the Dark Knight have worn the mask of tragedy at one point in time; however the Batman can’t seem to take his off. Now the Joker wears the mask of comedy. Yet again another reason why the Batman and Joker are the perfect example of good and evil; even though they each have a face that represents the opposite of who is underneath. Batman and the Joker make such a great team because they are opposites and stand for completely different values.
In the second issue that the Joker appears in he falls of a building and while Batman catches him he utters, “You are to valuable a prize to lose”. And he hasn't lost him since.
Good ol' Joker
The Mass Murderer
Throughout his criminal career the Joker has committed hundreds of crimes ranging from nonsensical and bizarre to destructive and deadly, making him a highly unpredictable foe. Although he is said to be constantly reinventing his personality, the Joker is typically an egoist as well as a nihilist. He sees no value to human life and therefore his murders are always part of a joke that only he understands.
Ledger commented on the part, describing his character, the Joker as a "psychopathic, mass-murdering, schizophrenic clown with zero empathy."
Many of the Joker's crimes have left a deep impact on Batman. The first was in The Killing Joke when he paralyzed Oracle. The Joker knocked on the Gordon's door and when she opened the door, he shot her and the bullet hit her spine paralyzing her. The Joker proceeded to kidnap James Gordon and tortured him to prove that “one bad day can turn anyone into me”. Batman rescues Gordon and Joker willingly returns to Arkham Asylum.
In A Death in the Family, the Joker kills the 2nd Robin, Jason Todd. Jason was searching for his mother to discover that she was being blackmailed by the Joker. He tries to rescue her but fails and is beaten badly by the Joker with a crow bar. The Joker then blows up the warehouse they were in and Jason is killed before Batman could rescue him.
In The Joker: Devil's Advocate, the Joker is falsely accused of committing a murder and is put on trial. The Joker pleads guilty and Batman believes that the Joker did not commit these crimes because it was uncharacteristic. Batman eventually succeeds in finding the real killer and proves that the Joker was framed.
In Joker: Last Laugh arc the Joker finds out he is infected with a terminal brain tumor and plans a big crime spree to make sure he goes out with a bang. He uses a venom to "jokerize" super villains locked up in the Slab, making them insane as well as bear a physical resemblance to him. They escape and proceed to wreck havoc across the world. The Joker also tries to get Harley impregnated before he dies. The U.S. declares war on the Joker under the orders of President Lex Luthor. Later Black Canary discovers the Joker’s CAT scan was modified to look like he was dying. Eventually Nightwing faces the Joker in a 1 on 1 fight because the Joker would like to kill the first Robin before he dies. Nightwing defeats him and kills him but Batman would revive the Joker and send him to jail.
During No Man's Land, the Joker murders Sarah Essen Gordon, wife of James Gordon. In the end he surrenders to Batman and Gordon points his gun at the Joker, however ends up only shooting him in the knee. The Joker is at first distraught that he may never walk again, until he realizes that Gordon was just avenging his daughter's paralysis. He interprets it as a joke and laughs, "Good one, Commissioner!"
At the end of Infinite Crisis, the Joker kills Alex Luthor.
In Emperor Joker, Mr. Mxyzptlk pays The Joker a visit in the slab in New York. Bored of his pranks being ruined, Mxyzptlk decides to give less than 1% of his powers to Joker to see the havoc he would cause, but Joker tricks him and gains 99% of his powers and remakes the the universe in his image. Joker is Emperor of the Earth. His JLA (The Joker League of Anarchy, consisting of Scorch, Bounty, Gorgeus Gilly, Skizm, Poisonous Ivy, Enigma, Gravedigger Lad- Jimmy Olsen and as the leader Bizzaro) Ignition is also featured although the Joker does not remember creating him. The original JLA are all super villains in this upside down world, The Flash is an over weight boy named The Flab, Wonder Woman is afraid of men and a house wife, Aquaman can not go into water, Martian Manhunter is three feet tall and tries to blow up the earth so he see other planets, Plastic Man can turn into any credit card or ATM and Green Lantern is now know as The Yellow Paper Lantern. Superman is considered as the worlds worst super villain and is kept in Arkam(wardened by Solomon Grundy) due to the fact that he killed Lex Luthor-who is actually a jester in Jokers court. Lois Lane replaces Lex in this world as the business tycoon. She appears bald and owns Lane Corp. Joker is ultimately beaten by Superman, tricking Joker into admitting that Batman will all ways be bigger than him granting Batman Mxyzptlk and the ability to rewrite the universe to its proper order. At the height of his power The Joker killed or rewrote The Spectre and had the ability to destroy all life in the universe if not the universe its self. After his powers were gone Superman gave The Spectre permission to give Batman's memories of death and torture to the Joker in order for Batman to be sane again. The last image is of the joker in his new cell drooling madly onto the floor.
Harley Quinn
Dr. Harleen Quinzel was an intern at Arkham Asylum, very much interested in the criminally insane. As she worked, the Clown Prince of Crime researched her name which intrigued his mad mind. As he put it, “It’s a name that puts a smile on my face!” He lures Harley into his fiendish trap by telling her stories of an abusive father, runaway mother and overall an awful childhood. After spending time with the silver tongued Joker she falls madly in love and runs off to a costume shop where she steals a Harlequin costume and other accessories which allow her to free the Joker from his padded cell. Finding her self obsessed to the point of insanity Harleen Quinzel a once brilliant psychologist is now but a villainous side-kick, named Harley Quinn. She also claims herself to be Joker’s girlfriend. Joker isn't interested really in her, and he tried to replace her henchgirl in Joker's Millions. Harley has also been seen in a Semi-relationship with Poison Ivy. So, Her sexuality has been questioned.
Joker and Harley
Characteristics
Gender--Male
Height--6' 5" (1.95 m)
Weight--192 lbs (87 kg)
Eyes--Green
Hair--Green
Unusual Features--facial nerves are paralyzed, which makes him appear as if he is persistently grinning, white face and green hair is due to chemical exposure
Powers and Abilities
Pain Resistance
Tainted Blood
Joker Venom Immunity
The Joker is a skilled inventor and chemist. Using several comedy-themed weapons, such as: his patent laughing gas, a bang spear-gun, explosive woopie-cushions, acid flower and high voltage joy buzzer, the Joker manages to create an MO which fits his grotesque appearance. The Joker is immune to his own venom as well as various similar toxins.
The Joker has some kind of psychic ability because he knows he’s a character in a comic book and he can see Deadman. This might also be caused by his insanity.
In “A Clown at Midnight” there is a panel in which the Joker is sitting in a cell at Arkham waiting for the Dark Knight’s arrival. As he’s waiting a mosquito lands on his unnaturally pale arms and attempts to suck his blood. Quickly the insect dies for the blood in the mad man’s veins acts like a poison, killing off its unknowing prey.
The Joker does not posses any outright superpowers, however he does show several inhuman abilities. The Arkham Asylum story arc suggests that he is 'super-sane'; that he sees how the universe really is, without any personal illusions, and that his entire personality can alter to fit the circumstances. He has the great strength that madmen are often said to have, and is quite agile. And, like so many comic-book characters, he always has the habit of cheating death.
The Joker also has the tendency to break the fourth wall and seems to have a heightened sense of awareness that he is a comic book character. He is the only character to talk directly to the reader and has the ability to do things such as "turn" the comic page or handle his own word balloons. The Joker also seems to know that he exists as Batman's perfect foil. In "Going Sane" (in Legends of the Dark Knight #65-68), the Joker, thinking that he has killed Batman, figures there is no point to him being the Joker anymore and gets plastic surgery and attempts to lead a normal, sane life. However, upon discovering that Batman is still alive, he reverts to insanity and continues his life as a mass murderer.
Sexuality
The Joker's a complex man and so is his sexuality. Most don't even consider his sexuality because psychopaths don't have the capacity to love. We, the comic readers, are still uncertain of the Joker's true feelings. However this clown prince has been alive since 1940 and much has happened.
Homo: In The Dark Knight Returns the Joker was written in as a homosexual. In some comics his shoes have gained a few inches in the heel department.
Hetero: He has a lovely assistant, who just might assist in a few other areas.
Bat-sexual: If the battles between the Joker and his "nemesis" where thought of as something else in the Joker perverted mind he might be 'Bat-Sexual'. This has been a theory for quite some time because of his obsessive behavior towards the Dark Knight. There are some encounters between the Batman and the Joker such as the one in Arkham Asylum: A Serious House On Serious Earth where the Joker slaps the Bat's butt. This could be taken as his just playing around and trying to tick him off or as something more. Also, in The Dark Knight Returns the Joker refers to Batman as Darling. However, Referring to Batman as "Darling" could just be a way to Piss Bats off.
Asexual: The Joker has no sexual drive he only does it to hurt the other person when he leaves or does it to get something in return. These actions have been shown in All Star Batman & Robin, The Boy Wonder#8 and It's Joker Time.
Death was described as sex for the Joker in a comic illustrated by Marshal Rogers and that may possibly be the only type he craves.
Auto-sexual: The Joker is so vain he finds only himself appealing. People such as Haley Quinn adore him to the point where he knows he just is that great and therefore when he does it with her, he does it to prove his greatness.
Symbolism
Seeing as the clown is supposed to symbolize happiness, fun and not at all death and destruction looking at other references will give a clearer look into the Joker’s character.
His colours are a definite portal into his dementia. The white skin was said to represent the way Joker hasn’t been able to die since his ‘death’ in his second appearance because he is possibly already dead; a zombie like figure walking amongst the living. That theory was mentioned by Alex Ross when he spoke on the Batman (1989) special. The violet attire could in fact be there to demonstrate his royalty or at least the fact that he is incredibly vain and finds much beauty in himself.
Le Mat is a Marseille Tarot card and was said to represent the Joker in Clash of Symbols (Detective Comics #617) written by Alan Grant. He represents the mystical cleverness bereft of reason within us, the childlike ability to tune into the inner workings of the world. There are things commonly found in the image of this card that also have explanations; such as the sun that sits in the background. It is the divine nature of the Fool's wisdom and exuberance. Le Mat, like the Joker is fully equipped with everything he may need in his quest for experience and chaos. He is often illustrated with a flower that represents the way he sees beauty. Frequently accompanied with a dog or wolf, le Mat is distracted by the hardships of the world. This beast may also represent the fools animal desires. In a few versions of the card, he is seemingly unconcerned that he is standing on a cliff apparently about to leap. This action has been thought to illustrate the fool’s acts of idiocy, trust or simply carelessness.
Elseworlds
The Joker has appeared in numerous forms some of which are a sorcerer, female, and sane. Thanks to Elseworlds we can view the Harlequin of Hate in different ways without completely changing him. For you see even as the Dark Joker, sorcerer of an alternate universe you still get to chuckle at his morbid pranks and antics, but you also observe as he creates monsters out of people using magical abilities. Oddly enough, the Dark Joker devours human brains in this version. The female Joker or Bianca Steeplechase resembles the Joker, but isn’t at all as funny and treats Hailey (alternate Harley) in a much kinder way then the Joker ever did. The Joker is obviously nothing without the Bat, so when he dies in a comic the Joker gets a new face and becomes sane once more. This doesn’t last long for the Batman returns from his ‘slumber’. These are just a few of the extravagant changes that occur to the Joker through Elseworlds.
Deaths : The many deaths of the Joker are a common theme among Elseworld comics. This might be because of the reaction others get and because he is the most evil of all villains.
Kingdome Come : The aged prankster was the turning point in Superman’s life. The vile thing the Joker has done drove Magog to the point were he knew the only way to deal with the clown was to finish him off. This act led to chaos in the society.
Blood Storm: Armed with holy water the Joker marched into the vampire Batman’s life, killed his only hope at surviving without blood shed, and allowed the demonic Bat to suck him dry so that his heart would be black.
Movies
The Batman : Movie (1966)
The Adam West Batman of the sixties had every thing he’d ever want in his utility belt, Bat-mobile or Bat-cave, so what about the Joker? Why did Cesar Romero seem to be the less threatening Joker? Unfortunately these questions cannot be solved. In this particular movie the central villains were Riddler, Penguin, Joker and finally curvaceous Catwoman. Both Riddler and the squawking Penguin have a greater reputation then Romero’s Joker. Could it be because this wasn’t a Joker you could sink your blood thirsty teeth into? In my honest opinion this Joker was much too campy and unrealistic, but he did fit the era. The energy within this Clown Prince of Crime was explosive, but E. Nigma could sadly out laugh the Joker. There were many faults within this character at the time, but Romero still filled in the role of the Joker decently for his happy time. Gladly, that overly campy Joker isn’t the way most remember him; they remember Jack.
Batman (1989)
The Great and Wonderful Clown Prince of Crime shows himself in this great and stunning movie filmed by Tim Burton. Jack Napier, played by Jack Nicholson, is a big time mobster who works for mob boss Carl Grissom. Jack is Grissom's right hand man and most trusted acquaintance. Grissom sends Napier to Axes Chemicals to raid them. Little did Jack know that what he got himself into would turn him into the Batman's worst and most dangerous foe. As there in axes chemicals the police arrive, once they do Jack realizes that he was set up by his boss, Grissom. While trying to escape the Batman shows up and Jack falls into toxic waste. When he does it turns his face green and his skin white, along with his lips red. He is then known as the Joker. After words Grissom believes that he had done away with Jack. Later as he comes out of the shower Jack shows up in his apartment, “Jack is that you? Thank god, I thought you’ve been..” “Fried!?” asks the Joker, “You set me up. Over a woman, a woman!” They continue to argue on the subject for a few more seconds and then the Joker shoots Grissom again and again. After he does he takes over his empire, although many of the other gangsters don’t like it, the Joker kills one gangster to show whose boss. As the Movie goes on we learn that the Joker falls madly in love with Viki Vale and that he had killed Bruce Wayne’s parents. Later in the Movie, the Joker invites Viki to an art studio and ruins all the paintings and talks to her about being his girl. Batman then comes and takes Viki away, “Where does he get those wonderful toys?” Later the Joker gets angered by the Batman, and he puts a deadly poison into all sorts of cosmetics. When combined they turn people into dead, and yet smiley people. As the city worries the Batman later exploits the Joker’s code and reveals what Joker had poisoned and they do a giant recall. As the Movie goes on the Joker creates a huge parade to lure out the citizens of Gotham, he does so by giving away 20 million dollars. As the parade goes on, he tricks the citizens and with the balloons that he has he begins to spray out a lethal poison, only to be stopped by the Batman. Batman then steals away his balloons using the Batplane, a mad and furious Joker then says, “He stole my balloons. He stole my balloons! Why didn’t anyone tell me he had one of those, things?” He then kidnaps Viki and takes her atop the Gotham cathedral, after the fight with Batman he falls down the giant tower and when the police surround him they hear laughter. That’s when they reveal a recording of the Jokers laughter.
The Dark Knight (2008)
This movie had the darkest interpretation of the Joker. It was as if the ones guilty for creation this movie went straight to the Golden Age Joker, the psychopathic clown who thought a human life mean nothing; they are only pawns in the grand scheme of things. Heath Ledger played the macabre clown and made him more sinister then ever. In the first five or six minutes of the movie there is a brilliant scene that demonstrates how truly cunning the Joker is. In this movie adaptation the Joker only applies make up to make him clown-like. This is not how the comics portray him, but it works for the newer generation of movie goers.
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