the Joker
The Joker is a cartoon and movie character, introduced in 1940 in the mythology of Batman (comic the Killing Joke). It was played by Conrad Veidt (in The Man Who Laughs, based on Victor Hugo's novel), Cesar Romero, Mark Hamill, Jack Nicholson, Heath Ledger, Jared Leto, Joaquin Phoenix. The Joker represents Mercury the Fool (=Christ). |
In card games the Joker is the unpredictable Wildcard.
Shriners (33d degree masons) and the Order of Jesters (Urbano Colonna-Sforza) use the jester as symbol.
Mason Victor Hugo wrote The Man Who Laughs.
Aleister Crowley considered laughter an essential part of his religion.
In 1947, the year of his death, Elizabeth Short was found with a Glasgow Smile (the Black Dahlia media ritual).
Serial killers John Gacy (convicted for 33 murders) and Ed Gein were programmed to play the role of Joker. Bob Dylan wrote the song Jokerman.
Matthew Modine played the role of Private Joker in Stanley Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket. Tim Curry played a Joker character in Stephen King's It.
The death of Brandon Lee and River Phoenix in 1993 represented the symbolic death of the Joker.
Alex Jones played the role of Joker in 2000. Eminem also played the role of Joker. The band Slipknot had a Joker character.
Joker Heath Ledger died in 2008. Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell and Jude Law played Ledger's role in The Imaginarium of Dr Parnassus.
Barack Obama was depicted as Joker on street posters in 2009.
The James Holmes Phoenix ritual in 2012 was the symbolic rebirth of the Joker/Christ Heath Ledger at the Aurora theatre.
Joaquin Phoenix played the Joker in Joker (2019) with Robert De Niro. It told the story of events that led up to the murder of Bruce Wayne's parents (beginning of Batman Begins).
the James Holmes Phoenix ritual