# Red hair like the Joker... how is this happening? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 28, 2012, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-hair-like-the-joker-how-is-this-happening/629650 "2012-07-28T05:13:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Coustralee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Coustralee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coustralee)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-hair-like-the-joker-how-is-this-happening/629650/21 "2012-07-28T14:27:31Z")
i never did trust ronald mcdonald ---
**Author:** ![Lasciel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e79b87/32.png) [@Lasciel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lasciel)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-hair-like-the-joker-how-is-this-happening/629650/22 "2012-07-28T14:31:42Z")
I don’t know about you, but if reinforcing the “lives in basement” stereotype puts me and dozens of other “fanboys” into a category further away from the “insane mass murderer” stereotype, then, yes, I’ll take that. I much prefer a slightly mocking and easy-to-dispute stereotype about intrapersonal skills and nerdiness than one where people call the cops because they worry that I’m going to blow them away simply because I’m dressing up as a character from a film or book. Please understand - I KNOW the dude is unhinged, and that he was either basing that unhingedness or purposefully relating that unhingedness to a specific character for his own unhinged purposes. I just think that character relation is secondary to the unhinged part. That’s why I think it’s unfortunate that everyone in the media is harping on the “OMG he dressed up like the Joker” aspect. People watching this trial unfold are going to pay most attention to and remember the parts that are repeated, and it’s been repeated MANY TIMES that he was “dressed like the Joker.” I would really rather them repeat multiple times that he was dressed in kevlar, and that _he told a police officer that he was the Joker_, which is the actual truth, makes his mental state a bit more clear, and doesn’t make everyone worried about harmless freaks like me who like dressing up in costume for fun events rather than for mayhem. I understand that it’s not going to happen, because the truth isn’t a neat soundbyte that leads directly into a superficial examination of “violent movies” influencing behavior for their news show, but yes, it does bother me. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-hair-like-the-joker-how-is-this-happening/629650/23 "2012-07-28T14:35:22Z")
It’s partly not going to happen because of the reasons you stated. It’s mostly not going to happen because it’s totally irrelevant if he tried to look like the Joker and got the hair color wrong. Maybe he is color blind. ---
**Author:** ![Lasciel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e79b87/32.png) [@Lasciel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lasciel)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-hair-like-the-joker-how-is-this-happening/629650/24 "2012-07-28T14:36:53Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Maybe he is color blind. I’m a bad person - I laughed. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-hair-like-the-joker-how-is-this-happening/629650/25 "2012-07-28T14:38:21Z")
“Well Anderson it’s important to note that the Joker actually had green hair. Some Batman fans are quite upset about that.” ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-hair-like-the-joker-how-is-this-happening/629650/26 "2012-07-28T14:39:28Z")
> [@Lasciel](#): > > I’m a bad person - I laughed. I was snarking but I bet the colors look pretty similar to my brother. ---
**Author:** ![TurboNuke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f19dbf/32.png) [@TurboNuke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TurboNuke)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-hair-like-the-joker-how-is-this-happening/629650/27 "2012-07-28T14:50:08Z")
People think this is the Joker. [http://thegreatwhitedope.blogspot.com/2012/07/official-mecha-blog-zilla-interview.html](http://thegreatwhitedope.blogspot.com/2012/07/official-mecha-blog-zilla-interview.html) ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-hair-like-the-joker-how-is-this-happening/629650/28 "2012-07-28T14:54:38Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > He said he was the joker. The fact that red hair dye is easier to find that green combined with the fact that he is batshit crazy makes it plausible he was trying to look like the joker in his mind. Could that be the plan, or am I overthinking it? _“Your honor, my client pleads not guilty by reason of insanity. Could he tell right from wrong? Why, he couldn’t even tell green from red! He’ll testify that he believes himself to be the sworn enemy of Batman – and then spell out that he thinks Batman got his powers from a radioactive spider bite!”_ ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-hair-like-the-joker-how-is-this-happening/629650/29 "2012-07-28T15:04:17Z")
Red\*\*/\*\*Green color blindness, may-hap? ---
**Author:** ![SuperNelson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7feea3/32.png) [@SuperNelson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuperNelson)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-hair-like-the-joker-how-is-this-happening/629650/30 "2012-07-28T15:24:28Z")
Judging from the arraignment photos, I think someone’s confused The Joker with Sideshow Bob. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-hair-like-the-joker-how-is-this-happening/629650/31 "2012-07-28T15:25:05Z")
> [@SuperNelson](#): > > Judging from the arraignment photos, I think someone’s confused The Joker with Sideshow Bob. And Batman with Bartman. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-hair-like-the-joker-how-is-this-happening/629650/32 "2012-07-28T15:33:53Z")
He wasn’t dressed like the Joker. His hair was probably already red. He just didn’t change it nor his clothes once he decided that he was the Joker. ---
**Author:** ![edwards\_beard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7bcc69/32.png) [@edwards\_beard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/edwards_beard)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-hair-like-the-joker-how-is-this-happening/629650/33 "2012-07-28T16:03:13Z")
> [@KneadToKnow](#): > > I appreciate that those images appear to back you up, but that statement is incorrect. Cesar Romero’s joker makeup always included green hair. Those images are either degraded or suffer from very poor lighting which is creating a false reddish hue. I believe they were taken from the original batman movie trailer, if you watch the trailer, the joker has red hair there too. Interestingly enough…the same scenes in the movie itself he has green hair. [original trailer](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CrSaBRiZ2U) ---
**Author:** ![Feyrat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/fbc32d/32.png) [@Feyrat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Feyrat)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-hair-like-the-joker-how-is-this-happening/629650/34 "2012-07-28T16:28:10Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > It’s partly not going to happen because of the reasons you stated. It’s mostly not going to happen because it’s totally irrelevant if he tried to look like the Joker and got the hair color wrong. > > Maybe he is color blind. You’re missing the point, probably deliberately so you can laugh at the basement-dwelling fanboys instead of paying attention. He WASN’T dressed like the Joker. At. All. The hair color is the least of the things he got wrong. It’s entirely wrong, there was absolutely zero about him that was Joker-like. The fact that he may have said “I am the Joker” means about as much as if he’d said “I am the Eggman, I am the Walrus.” Nothing. What irritates me is that the media is running with the “crazy fan of the movie dressed as the Joker thing,” based on a hair color that isn’t even close to the correct color for that costume, and continues to reinforce it. And no, the lighting or treatment in those pictures of Cesar Romero is bad. His hair is green in those pictures. It looks red because of the lighting. [![](http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UHbEpaVVkO0/TVvwhnX4pyI/AAAAAAAAEfs/1Os1feUidGU/s400/cesar-romero-joker.jpg) ](http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UHbEpaVVkO0/TVvwhnX4pyI/AAAAAAAAEfs/1Os1feUidGU/s400/cesar-romero-joker.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-hair-like-the-joker-how-is-this-happening/629650/35 "2012-07-28T16:39:19Z")
I blame Carrot Top and all his “fancy toys”. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-hair-like-the-joker-how-is-this-happening/629650/36 "2012-07-28T16:44:52Z")
Other people have speculated that he was dressed as Bane based on his gas mask even though the mask was functional and not a costume choice. The angle is just too tempting for some people to ignore, which is unfortunate because it’s really stupid and kind of childish. Even if he’d been in perfect Heath Ledger getup, the driving force behind his actions was the fact that he’s a psycho. So what if he happened to latch onto the Batman franchise instead of blaming it on Jesus or his neighbor’s dog? A sick brain - hell, a _healthy_ one, too - can pluck meaning and messages out of anything. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-hair-like-the-joker-how-is-this-happening/629650/37 "2012-07-28T16:46:16Z")
People keep talkin’ about him, baby. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-hair-like-the-joker-how-is-this-happening/629650/38 "2012-07-28T17:21:00Z")
> [@edwards\_beard](#): > > I believe they were taken from the original batman movie trailer, if you watch the trailer, the joker has red hair there too. Interestingly enough…the same scenes in the movie itself he has green hair. > > [original trailer](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CrSaBRiZ2U) Compare [this image](http://www.comicbookgalaxy.com/troublewithcomics/uploaded_images/CesarRomeroJoker-764782.jpg) to the second one from the above list. It’s clearly the same picture and it’s clearly green hair. The problem is with the color reproduction. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-hair-like-the-joker-how-is-this-happening/629650/39 "2012-07-28T17:28:06Z")
> [@Nzinga\_Seated](#): > > [Here you go.](http://www.hollywoodfamousfark.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/86b3joker-hospital-0720-500x339.jpg) [That’s not the Joker, though.](http://www.wearysloth.com/Gallery/ActorsR/14932-1293.gif) ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-hair-like-the-joker-how-is-this-happening/629650/40 "2012-07-28T17:35:38Z")
Maybe he thought he was Jim Carey’s [Riddler](http://www.virginmedia.com/images/1comicbaddies-gal-riddler.jpg)? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-hair-like-the-joker-how-is-this-happening/629650.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-hair-like-the-joker-how-is-this-happening/629650.md?page=3)