Everyone knows that the Joker is one of the most famous supervillains of all time, but not many realize that the character was based on a real person. The evil clown wasn't always an outcast. In fact, he might have been right in front of you the whole time...
The Joker's Story
Jack Nicholson, Heath Ledger, and Joaquin Phoenix have all donned the sinister smiling clown makeup once before. Each actor was praised for their performances as the supervillain Joker character, although the man that inspired the criminal was far worse than any of these characterizations. His role in real life became the basis for the creepy clown...
Creepy Conrad
The true story of the Joker begins in Germany back in the 1800s. Born in Berlin in the year 1893, a child named Conrad Veidt was an ambitious and excitable young man. He wanted to become a surgeon one day, though not for long. In high school, he became infatuated with acting as a career and dropped out to pursue a life in the limelight...
Family Outcast
Conrad was ecstatic about following his passions, but his father was less than enthused by the idea. He felt that his son’s decision was a waste and rather foolish. He would even tell Conrad that “an actor is an outcast.” Conrad was heartbroken, but not deterred. Rather than give up as a result of his father’s rejection, Conrad decided to press ahead...
Playing the Part
Conrad decided to not only ignore his outcast status but fully embrace it as part of his career. The actor began going for roles that were described as a social pariah. His ability to capture the life and mind of someone so unusual earned him widespread acclaim, though the performer still wanted to push the envelope and his abilities even further...
Pushing the Envelope
Conrad leaned into his roles in real life. After becoming recognized for his strange characters, he began acting strangely in his every day. He'd go to theaters dressed in a cape and monocle, similar to the appearances of classic villains at the time. It was intriguing, but just like the Joker, soon Conrad’s commitment to his artistic craft went a bit too far...
Developing Obsession
Conrad became dedicated in all forms. A local actor offered him free acting lessons, which Conrad accepted. He soon was enamored with perfecting every performance, getting to the point that he'd skip meals and stopped bathing regularly. He lost weight quickly, and his new haunting figure would prove to be helpful in his new search for roles...
Spooky Sleepwalker
His ghastly looks helped him land quite a role. In 1920, Conrad was given the role of a killer sleepwalker in the silent film The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, which is one of the most famous films of the era. The young actor’s strikingly gaunt features and the horror themes made the movie a success, and Conrad soon had his choice of future roles...
Demon Of The Silver Screen
After the movie's release, Conrad became known as the “Demon Of The Silver Screen." He found consistent work in horror films, but his acting style was a little unusual, according to other actors he worked with at the time. He had a talent for making the horrible seem innately human, which only led to more and more growing successes...
Land Without Women
In 1929’s Land Without Women, Conrad landed the leading role in what would be Germany’s first talking picture. It was official, he had fully instituted himself as one of the nation's most prolific actors. His power on the silver screen was energizing. He was whip-smart and, unlike the Joker, wanted to use his intelligence for the good of mankind...
Conrad's Wife
In the 1930s, Joseph Goebbels began to infiltrate the German film industry with propaganda. The Nazis required all German actors to fill out a questionnaire of their background. Conrad listed himself as “Jewish” in solidarity with his wife, Ilona Prager.
Gobbels Strikes Back
Goebbels knew Conrad wasn't Jewish and saw his action as an affront. He subsequently placed the actor under strict house arrest, hoping he would be able to have him killed later. However, the movie studio he was with at the time managed to have him released so he could continue shooting. He was free and escaped imprisonment...
Great Escape
Though he escaped persecution, he knew he was now considered a target. He chose to leave Germany and flee to Great Britain. He was a naturalized citizen by 1939 and went on to star in a collection of English films like The Thief of Bagdad. His character even inspired the character of Jafar from Aladdin! It all seemed so good...
Typically Typecast
In 1941, Conrad knew he had to make a change to keep his career afloat. He decided to relocate to America and try his luck at a big Hollywood career. He figured he would get typecast as a Nazi due to his aggressive German accent. He made an oath to himself that these Nazi characters were always depicted as evil villains, and one character changed his life…
Casablanca
The movie was Casablanca and Conrad's performance was as the villainous Nazi, Major Heinrich Strasser. Though not his first role, it was one that would later define his entire career, at least by American standards. He became a huge hit, and the legend of this role was enough to hide his most terrifying past parts...
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His "Joker"-inspiring performance came from a 1928 German flick titled The Man Who Laughs. In this, Conrad portrayed the role of Gwynplaine, a quirky (and scary) circus actor who falls for a blind woman. Though the movie was meant to be viewed as a romantic drama, some viewers saw it as a horror film due to Conrad's creepy character...
Gwynplaine's Grin
His smile made the character go from romantic love interest to eerie villain easily. Gwynplaine wears a wide, spooky smile throughout the film. This happened as a result of a childhood accident resulting in deformity. His grim grin wasn’t applauded back in 1928, but when applied to the right character, American pop culture knew he could be a star...
Conrad and Batman
The Batman co-creator Bill Finger and Bob Kane were struggling to devise a signature look for their latest villain. Eventually, the duo discovered an image of Conrad as the circus performer and they were struck by the sinister smile. The white, pale skin and the widespread grin were perfect! With these new additions, the Joker was created...
The Dark Knight
The influence of Gwynplaine fell by the wayside in the earlier versions but was seen again in The Dark Knight from 2008. Starring actor Heath Ledger as the Joker, fans adored the attention to detail in his character. In the movie, Ledger's Joker even remarks that his scars came from a childhood disfigurement, a reference to where he really got those scars...
The Killing Joke
Conrad's influence didn't stop there. His film, The Man Who Laughs, inspired The Killing Joke, a graphic novel which was the jumping-off point for Joaquin Phoenix in his performance of Joker (2019). Both the novel and film are directly drawn from Gwynplaine and even Conrad’s life, depicting both people as tragic outcasts...
Best Joker
People were impressed and amazed by Joaquin Phoenix’s incredible characterization of the villain. He was praised for his dedication to the role, but as his history can attest, Joaquin and the Joker actually have more in common than most people realize. If Conrad was the distant inspiration, Joaquin was the parallel to this comic book part...
Children of God
Joaquin had always led a pretty unusual life, even from the very beginning of his life. He was destined to be an unusual character. Originally born in the Puerto Rican city of San Juan, his name was originally Joaquin Rafael Bottom. Though he would one day become a huge movie star, in his youth, he and his family were members of the Children of God cult.
Life Abroad
Joaquin lived a life abroad and on the seas. Traveling with parents John Lee and Arlyn, as well as his four other siblings, Joaquin Phoenix grew up visiting everywhere within South America with the aforementioned Children of God. Eventually, in 1978, his parents became bored with the religion and returned to America on a cargo ship.
New Beginnings
The family was ready for a new chapter in their lives. They changed their last name from "Bottom" to “Phoenix” as a metaphor for a fresh start. Soon after, the big family settled in California and tried to make a break in the entertainment field. His mother worked as a secretary for an NBC executive, and Joaquin and his siblings began performing for extra income.
Seven Brides For Seven Brothers
They often spent their time singing on streetcorners or bussing to auditions. Eventually, the Phoenix kids were discovered by Iris Burton, a famous Hollywood agent who was able to get the duo parts in commercials and television shows. In a 1982 episode of Seven Brides For Seven Brothers, Joaquin made his acting debut alongside his brother River.
River's Rise
As the kids got more and more acting jobs, there was a clear frontrunner for the most successful member of the Phoenix family. River was collecting better and higher-paying jobs than any of his siblings. He was in Stand By Me (1986), Running On Empty (1988), and My Own Private Idaho (1991). Joaquin was an underdog, but maybe not for very long...
Disgraced Return
Disgraced in his failure, Joaquin and his father returned to Puerto Rico. However, after getting back, they learned that River had overdosed outside of a bar called The Viper Room. He was pronounced dead hours later. Tabloids turned to Joaquin for comments and outbursts, but instead, Joaquin retreated from the limelight to mourn his brother.
Back to Act
He was eventually convinced by his family to return to acting. He played a murderer in To Die For, but his other films found little success. Movies such as U Turn (1997), Inventing the Abbotts (1997), and Clay Pigeons (1998) were rated poorly. It wasn't until his performance in Gladiator that the young actor earned any recognition for his roles.
Rapper Phoenix
He acted for a few more years but then took a sharp career turn. He claimed he was leaving Hollywood for good and was instead going to pursue a rap career. People thought he was crazy, which was the plan all along. It was all a stunt for his movie I’m Still Here. He wasn't off his rocker yet, but he still had a few more tricks up his sleeve...
Acting Again
Though his rap career was short-lived, it earned him even more fame. He was offered the best roles of his career throughout the 2010s, acting in acclaimed performances such as The Master (2012), Her (2013), and Inherent Vice (2014). Each role he took on earned him more awards, nominations, and recognition throughout the industry.
Joker
It was clear that Joaquin had really come into his own as an actor. He was such a master of the craft that he was eventually offered a role in Todd Phillip’s Joker as the titular character. Though it would be the most difficult performance of his career, it would later be hailed by critics and audiences alike as one of the best he'd ever done...
Secret Scars
Even though he's been in the limelight for years, fans always wondered how he got the scar on his mouth. It fit perfectly for his performance as the Joker, but in real life, no one knew. Was it a cleft lip? Maybe it resulted from a childhood accident? Or maybe, was there something more sinister in Phoenix's past that he wouldn't feel comfortable revealing?
A Mark of God
As it turns out, that was the way the actor was born. Technically speaking, the scar is a microform cleft, which is the easiest case of a cleft lip. However, the actor frequently refers to it as an "act of God." He explained that before he was born, his mother felt a sharp pain, and the family attributed that pain to his mystery marking.