Throughout the illustrious history of Joker comics, the character’s origins have remained somewhat of a mystery. Various writers and artists have provided their take on how the Clown Prince of Crime came to be, but there’s still no 100% official origin story for Batman’s greatest foe.
Joker’s literal origin, however, is slightly more well-defined, though not entirely free of confusion. Bill Finger, Bob Kane, and Jerry Robinson collaborated on the character, drawing inspiration from Conrad Veidt’s Gwynplaine in 1928’s “The Man Who Laughs.” But the details of who had more input remain murky. What became immediately clear following The Joker’s debut in 1940, however, was that the trio had created a villain worthy of more than a single-issue appearance.
In a 1984 interview (via Ain’t It Cool) Robinson recalled how he’d always intended to give Batman a worthy adversary, saying:
“I felt that Batman needed a supreme arch-villain to test him…Batman didn’t need another crime lord like Al Capone. I felt he needed something more exotic…the strip needed an antagonist that would be more enduring; a continuing conflict in the literary tradition of Holmes and Moriarty or King Arthur and Mordred.”
But in a 2008 interview with NPR, comic book writer Steve Englehart recalled how the initial plan was to have the Joker killed off at the end of “Batman” #1. As he explained, “They added a panel at the end of the story where, in the ambulance, the doctor goes, ‘Well I’m amazed this guy’s actually going to live!'”
Source From: www.slashfilm.com
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