'The Man Who Laughs' (1928)
Conrad Veidt starred in this semi-silent film based on Victor Hugo's novel in which the son of a lord is punished for his father's disrespect to the king by having his face carved into a permanent grin. Stills of Veidt were used as inspiration by the Joker's creators, artist Bob Kane, writer Bill Finger and artist Jerry Robinson -- the creators have long disputed who actually came up with the character.
'Batman' #1 (1940)
The Joker's first appearance came in the Batman's first solo comic book (the Dark Knight had been appearing for a year in the pages of Detective Comics). His origin wasn't explained and his criminal style was nowhere near as elaborate as it later became. At the end of his first clash with Batman, he ended up behind bars.
He was originally supposed to die with his second appearance, but he was spared by en editor at the last minute. He continued to threaten Batman into the 1950s, when the Comic Code Authority watered down the murderous character to become simply an impish thorn in Batman's side.
'Batman' (TV series) (1966-1968)
Cesar Romero -- the mustached Joker.
Romero appeared in 18 episodes of the campy 1960s series that removed all of Joker's homicidal streak and turned him into a cackling prankster. This was a reflection of the way the character was portrayed in the comics at the time, where superheroes were treated with little seriousness.
Romero refused to shave his mustache for the role, and it can still be seen beneath his white makeup in close-ups.
'Batman' / 'Detective Comics' (1973-78)
Throughout the 1970s, a variety of artists and writers, including Dennis O'Neil, Neal Adams, Marshall Rogers and Steve Englehart, sought to return the Joker to his murderous roots. In particular, the story "The Laughing Fish" in Detective Comics #475, in which he creates fish in his own smiling image and seeks to patent them, helped define the character for the next decade, placing a great and greater emphasis on his lethal insanity.
'The Killing Joke' (1986)
Cited by many as the single most influential Joker story, this standalone graphic novel by Alan Moore told the Joker's origin, showing him as a failed stand-up comedian who turns to crime and becomes deformed when he jumps into a vat of chemicals during a factory break-in. The book drew a particularly bleak vision of Batman and his arch-nemesis, with a story that involves the Joker paralyzing Commissioner Gordon's daughter, Barbara (aka Batgirl), then torturing the policeman with nude photos of her.
Both Christopher Nolan and Tim Burton have cited "The Killing Joke" as a primary influence on how they portrayed the villain in their films.
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And this above all: to thine ownself be true, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man.
Polonius, Hamlet Act I, sc iii
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