The Joke's on Jerry

The joke's on writer Jerry Robinson. So the story goes, fifty years ago, while attending New York's Columbia University, he approached Batman creator Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger with the ultimate match for the brooding caped crusader. Mr. Robinson never dreamed that his jovial jester, inspired partly by a deck of playing cards, would evolve to become, what can be argued, as the most recognizable of all of Batman's classic villains.

Today the Joker continues to reign supreme. Blame it on Jack Nicholson's performance as "the clown prince of crime" in the summer of 89's smash movie "Batman". ("Winged freak terrorizes city. Humph! Wait'll they get a load of me.") Or any number of other representations from "Killing Joke" to Ceasar Romero's Joker ingrained in our minds via re-runs. "From the beginning, I knew the Joker had potential," Mr. Robinson said.

"His sense of zaniness and flair for the bizarre was a compelling contrast to Batman's seriousness and dark overtones. "Clowns are such contradictions, funny yet sad. Friendly yet somewhat evil in appearence" he said. "That is what I was trying to capture with the original Joker.""And the face! It was one you couldn't forget once you'd seen it."

While Mr. Robinson applauds Mr. Nicholson's 1989 performance as well as the other writer's recent interpretations, he does have some problems with the behavior his "Joker" has displayed. "The Joker was not created to be some maniacal terrorist, but someone to test Batman", he said. " He was never just another two-bit thug." "Now a days it seems that everyone's trying to out-do themselves to show how evil they can make him." "They miss the essence of the character completely."

As you all know, in the movie version, the man who kills Bruce Wayne's parents eventually becomes the Joker. In the comic book, they were killed by a lowlife named Joe Chill, and there was no explanation of the Joker's origin when he first appeared in the Spring of 1940. Presently 'The Killing Joke" remains the definitive explanation as to the events that lead to the creation of Batman's archest enemy.

Though Mr. Robinson is credited with the creation of the Joker, he doesn't own any rights to the character. "Back then you really never gave it much thought". "Today, I could retire a thousand times over if I would have kept him." From 1941 to 1946, he penciled and inked hundreds of Batman stories. He also named Robin, the boy sidekick Bob Kane created. Mr. Kane disputes Mr. Robinson's initial influence on the creation of the Joker, saying  instead that he developed the character after seeing the silent movie "The Laughing Man". From whosever mind he sprang, there is no dispute that owning a piece of the Joker is quite profitable. You would have to look no further than Mr. Nicholson's share of merchandising from his "Joker" portrayal. I think that it presently rivals some third word coutries GNP for the last year.

But Robinson does have his supporters. "More than any other artist, Jerry Robinson set the visual tone for the 89' Batman feature," noted Brian Augustyn, an associate editor at DC Comics, in "The Greatest Joker Stories ever Told." "His crisp line, dynamic figure drawing and daring page layouts made the stories come alive".

Although Mr. Robinson has distanced himself away from his "creation" is has continued to remain active in the comic scene. He is past president of the National Cartoonists Society and three time winner of the coveted Rueben Award (Best Comic Book Artist, Best Syndicated panel, Best Special Feature). Among his more than 30 published works is "The Comics: An Illustrated History of Comic Strip Art," considered a definitive study of the genre. His daily syndicated political cartoon "Life with Robinson," runs in more than 50 newspapers.

Even with all this, his Joker connection continues to draw the most attention. "Working with Bob, and especially Bill, who was a wonderful writer, was fascinating," Mr. Robinson said. "You had the feeling we were developing something that was far beyond the simple pulp hero and villain." I think that I can speak for all of us when I say that I'd have to agree.