King Cole lost his kingdom and his family to the armies of the Adversary and was forced to take refuge with a group of non-human Fables in a cave. He kept them in good spirits with his natural exuberance and he kept them alive good spirits by sacrificing his ration of the food to the group. When he became ill with starvation the non-human fables left the cave to find food for him. Under his leadership, the group finally made their way to the Mundane World where other escaped Fables were setting up a colony outside New Amsterdam (Later New York City) in the American Colonies. Word had spread of what King Cole had done and he was nearly unanimously elected the Mayor of Fable Town.

Unfortunately, years later as New York grew closer to the edges of Fable Town, King Cole was forced to send the non-human fables to The Farm, a reservation in upstate New York to keep “the “Mundanes” from discovering Fable Town’s true nature. This unpopular decision disappointed many Fables who had supported him unquestioningly prior. He continued to serve as Mayor, though most of the real work was done by his Deputy Mayor, Snow White.

Wanting to get his hands on the influx of money coming into the Fable Town coffers from the recently confiscated estate of Bluebeard, Prince Charming challenged King Cole for Mayorship in an election and won. Cole was despondent and stayed drunk for some time. However, when the Sinbad came to visit with his entourage as an emissary from the Arabian Fables, it turned out Cole was the only Fable in town who spoke their language and he became instrumental in diffusing a hostile situation and creating peace between Fable Town and the Arabian fables. He was chosen to become the official representative of Fable Town West to Fable Town East. To his surprise, he discovered the Arabian fables had not yet abandoned their homelands. He now resides in the beautiful Baghdad of legend.