Since its first appearance in Batman #1 in 1940, the Joker was at the forefront of Batman’s Rogues Gallery, Batman’s yin to yang. He was a criminal mastermind, goofy prankster, and sadistic psychopath responsible for the death of Jason Todd, who was the second Robin, and for the paralysis of Barbara Gordon in Alan Mooreiconic Killer joke. The Joker as a movie character won an Academy Award recently. Heath Ledger V The Dark Knight And Joaquin Phoenix V Joker. He stands apart as a unique entry in the classic DC supervillain canon, an unbridled force of chaos with an unparalleled savvy to wreak hell on Earth. And its story begins with a 1928 silent film. The man who laughsadaptation Victor Hugo1869 novel.

“The Man Who Laughs” Looks Beyond Appearance

Gwynplaine (Conrad Veidt) and Dea (Mary Philbin) share a moment in The Man Who Laughs.
Image via Universal Pictures

The film begins in the court of King James II (Sam De Grasse), where the court jester Barkilfedro (Brandon Hurst) represents Lord Clancharlie (Conrad Veidt), a nobleman in exile who returned for his son Gwynplaine. Before executing Lord Clancharlie, the king informs him that Gwynplaine now has a smirk carved into his face by a compracico surgeon (a comparcico, as Hugo describes it, is a group of wanderers who bought and sold children, whom they turned into monsters through mutilation. ). Gwynplaine is abandoned, and as he walks through a snowstorm, he saves a blind girl. The couple was sheltered by a kind showman named Ursus (Cesare Gravina)and his pet wolf Homo (Zimbo). Older now, Gwynplaine (Veidt) and DeaMary Philbin) travel with Ursus, performing in his plays. Gwynplaine became famous for his frozen smile and was nicknamed “The Laughing Man”. And yet he can only be ashamed of his appearance, and although he and Dea are in love, Gwynplaine believes that he is not worthy of her. At Southwark Fair, Gwynplaine is recognized as heir to Lord Clancharlie’s estate, which belongs to the Duchess Josiana (Olga Baklanova).

The Duchess watches Gwynplaine perform and is intrigued by him, sending Gwynplaine a note asking him to meet her at midnight. When he arrives, the Duchess tries to seduce him, but is interrupted by the announcement that in order to legitimize her claim to Lord Clancharlie’s estates, she must marry Gwynplaine. The Duchess laughs at the idea, and Gwynplaine, embarrassed and ashamed, runs home. Dea, troubled by his absence, is glad he’s back, but Gwynplaine is overcome with guilt and she lets Dea feel his disgusting smile for the first time, believing she should know how ugly he really is. To his surprise, Dea does not recoil, but reassures him that her blindness allows her to see. real Gwynplaine. Just then, the guards burst in and arrest Gwynplaine, sending him to jail. Barkilfedro later informs Ursus that he and Dea have been banished from England, and mockingly lies that the “laughing charlatan” has been killed. As they prepare to leave, Gwynplaine is released and taken to London, where he is to be inducted into the House of Lords and married to the Duchess. He refuses and, with the help of the residents, escapes to the docks. Homo hears Gwynplaine’s screams and Ursus turns their boat around to take him on board. The four were reunited and then sailed happily ever after from England.

The Man Who Laughs Inspired The Joker

Close-up of Conrad Veidt as Gwynplaine in The Man Who Laughs.
Image via Universal Pictures

The man who laughs promoted by Universal as a horror film, the precursor to Universal Classic Monsters, made famous by the studio from the 1930s to the 1950s. This classification greatly misrepresents the film, which seeks to explore themes of acceptance, beauty within, and the inhumanity of man to man. The man who laughs is not going to scare his audience, but rather challenges them. So, if the movie itself says nothing about the Joker, then what? It is a treacherous ugliness made from a permanent smile carved into the boy by an evil man. The terrible look was created by a makeup genius Jack Pierce, thanks to the use of a dental appliance that kept Veidt’s mouth hooked at the corners. Out of context, the image is striking, disturbing and, most importantly, memorable. When the team from Bob Kane, Bill FingerAnd Jerry Robinson sought retribution for their Batman, the image of Veidt from The man who laughs gave them the look they were looking for, physical characteristics that belied his actions.

However, how it ends depends on which of the three provided the report. Robinson began working with Kane and Finger shortly after Batman’s debut. They began mulling over the idea of ​​retribution for their hero, with Robinson intent on creating an enemy that would challenge Batman at every level, Professor Moriarty for Sherlock Holmes Batman. Robinson also settled on the idea of ​​a controversial bad boy-like character with a sense of humor. This idea prompted Robinson to show Kane and Finger a Joker card from a deck of cards, which looked especially insidious. Finger thought the face looked like Gwynplaine from Veidt’s film. The man who laughs, and found footage from the movie to show the other two, and thus the Joker was born… at least according to Robinson. Kane, on the other hand, insisted that Robinson had nothing to do with the creation of the Joker. It was Finger who brought the book of Veidt’s picture to show to Kane, saying, “Here’s the Joker.” Even this contribution was not recognized, as Kane was considered the sole creator of Batman until 2015, when DC Entertainment announced that Bill Finger would begin to be credited for his work. Finger, by the way, usually attributed the creation of the Joker to a group effort.

Regardless, the common thread between the stories is that the Joker was definitely inspired by Veidt in The man who laughs. It would be hard to say otherwise, since the Joker immediately comes to mind when you see pictures of Veidt from the movie. Over time, they became inextricably linked, leading to the ironic situation where The man who laughsa film about how to look into the past is now widely known For appearance. Now this is funny.