# Where the Joker got his looks **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 31, 2009, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-the-joker-got-his-looks/515883 "2009-10-31T21:15:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-the-joker-got-his-looks/515883/1 "2009-10-31T21:15:31Z")
I just saw a movie last night, a silent film from 1928 titled “The Man Who Laughs”. Absolutely great film starring the well known actor Conrad Veidt. This link is from our newspaper: > **[A joker with a familiar face](https://www.cjonline.com/story/entertainment/local/2009/10/29/a-joker-with-a-familiar-face/16530574007/)** > > The silent movie character that inspired a comic book villain comes to the big screen tonight at the 12th annual Silents in the Cathedral. > When "The Man Who Laughs" is shown as the main feature of … I love learning trivia like this. I only wish my brain would recall important stuff! The audience that gathered filled the church, and it’s pretty big. We were even inspired to cheer, at the moment the dog sank his fangs into the bad guy’s throat, and then again when he swam to a boat and was rescued. The duchess mentioned in the article, Josiana, was a real slut, and there was brief nude shot of her getting out of the bath. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-the-joker-got-his-looks/515883/2 "2009-10-31T21:27:15Z")
It’s a Victor Hugo story, & one of the guys who worked on Batman back in the day did mention it as an inspiration. Not that later writers have maintained the idea of a man always laughing but crying on the inside. ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-the-joker-got-his-looks/515883/3 "2009-10-31T22:15:57Z")
Also known as the [Glasgow Smile](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glasgow_smile). ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-the-joker-got-his-looks/515883/4 "2009-10-31T23:32:35Z")
[Here](http://img264.yfrog.com/img264/6770/jokersat.jpg)’s a Tshirt I designed last year. ---
**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:** [November 1, 2009, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-the-joker-got-his-looks/515883/5 "2009-11-01T01:01:26Z")
> [@lissener](#): > > [Here](http://img264.yfrog.com/img264/6770/jokersat.jpg)’s a Tshirt I designed last year. No image. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2009, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-the-joker-got-his-looks/515883/6 "2009-11-01T01:10:17Z")
Hm. Works for me. Anyone else test it? [http://img264.yfrog.com/img264/6770/jokersat.jpg](http://img264.yfrog.com/img264/6770/jokersat.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2009, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-the-joker-got-his-looks/515883/7 "2009-11-01T01:10:48Z")
Works for me. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2009, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-the-joker-got-his-looks/515883/8 "2009-11-01T01:15:42Z")
Ebert has a good essay on the film [here](http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20040118%2FREVIEWS08%2F40802005%2F1023).