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ow pgs; tape on int. cvr & cf
2nd Joker cover; classic Joker story
The face of the Joker has become one of the best-known images of the 20th Century, burned into the brains of comics fans and non-readers alike. Jerry Robinson's greatest contribution to pop culture, a macabre hybrid of The Man Who Laughed, villainous clown, and pulp baddie, arguably as popular as the Batman himself, is the single-most-requested cover rogue in comics collecting. His classic Golden Age appearances invariably command top prices in any condition, as rabid Clown Prince of Crime collectors vie over copies, rarely, if ever, putting their treasures back on the market, making them even more valuable and sought-after. This issue, boasting the classic image of multiple Joker visages across a barrage of balloons, is among the toughest to track down in acceptable condition, and is probably one of Robinson's best Joker frontispieces. While early Batman issues could look crude and blocky as Bob Kane's army of staff artists labored to approximate his boxy style, Robinson's Joker was in a class by itself, always complex and startling, and leap years ahead of any other renditions through to the Bronze Age.