Origin of the Joker

The Joker is probably the most widely known Batman Villain of all the Batman Villains.I suppose that is normal seeing as he made his first appearance in Batman #1 in 1940.The Joker is a mastermind of acriminal and was introduced as a violent sociopath who murders people and commits crimes simply for his own entertainment.Every superhero needs an arch enemy and the Joker is Batmans’.He is responsible for a number of tragic events in the Batman series including the paralysis of Barbara Gordon (Batgirl/Oracle) and the murder of Jason Todd who was the second Robin.He was also responsible for killing Commissioner Gordon’s wife Sara.

The real identity of the Joker is unknown despite their being different versions of his origin throughout the years.Each version is consistent in that it depicts him as having fallen into a vat of chemicals causing a reaction to his appearance.The chemicals bleached his skin white, dyed his hair green and turned his lips bright red, giving him almost a clown-like appearance.

Although initially a brutal sociopath, the character transformed somewhere during the later 1940s into more of a goofball thief. That portrayal held until the late 1950s and early 1960s when he was again transformed into more of a bloodthirsty villain.

The Joker was played by Jack Nicholson in the 1989 film Batman while Heath Ledger portrayed the character in the 2008 Batman Begins sequel, The Dark Knight.It will be interesting to see which portrayal of the Joker becomes more popular with moviegoers.My money is on the Heath Ledger version.Sorry Jacko.

Origin

The most commonly accepted version of the origin of the Joker can be seen in “The Killing Joke.” It depicts him as having been a chemical engineer at a chemical plant who quits his job to become of all things, a stand-up comedian.Needless to say he failed miserably.Having a pregnant wife increased his desperation to find a way to support his growing family so he agreed to help two criminals break into the same plant where he was formerly employed. During the planning, police contact him and inform him that his wife and unborn child have died in a household accident.

Overcome with grief, he attempts to back out of the plan to break into the chemical plant but the criminals strong-arm him into staying on plan.As expected the robbery doesn’t go well and both criminals are shot almost immediately and as the former engineer tries to escape, he is confronted by Batman.

Of course the Batman strikes fear into the hearts of criminals everywhere and terror drives the engineer to leap over a rail plummet into a vat of chemicals. Upon surfacing in a nearby run off pool the Joker sees his horrid reflection reflected in the water and is immediately driven insane.Thus was born the Joker.