[go: up one dir, main page]

    Release CalendarTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV News
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb SpotlightFamily Entertainment GuideIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsEmmysSan Diego Comic-ConSummer Watch GuideBest Of So FarDisability Pride MonthSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • Language
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Watchlist
Sign In
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Use app
  • Biography
  • Trivia
  • FAQ
IMDbPro

Jerry Robinson(1922-2011)

  • Writer
  • Additional Crew
  • Art Department
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Jerry Robinson
Jerry Robinson was an American comic book artist from Trenton, New Jersey. He was one of the earliest creative staff of the "Batman" stories by DC Comics. Robinson is primarily remembered for co-creating two popular characters: Robin/Dick Grayson and the Joker. The first was the most prominent sidekick hero in comics, and the second was one of the most prominent super-villains. Robinson was inducted into the Comic Book Hall of Fame in 2004.

In 1922, Robinson was born in Trenton, New Jersey. Trenton briefly served as the capital of the United States in 1784. Robinson was born to a Jewish family. His father was entrepreneur Benjamin Robinson. Benjamin was from European Russia (the European regions of the Russian Empire). He had emigrated to the United States in 1895, primarily to avoid conscription into the Imperial Russian Army. Mae Robinson (Robinson's mother) was a bookkeeper from Lower Manhattan.

As a teenager, Robinson aspired to become a journalist. He studied journalism at Columbia University, but dropped out before earning a degree. In 1939, Robinson was hired by Bob Kane to serve as an assistant for his small artist studio. Kane had already created the Batman character, and needed help to produce more stories. His new job required Robinson to move to The Bronx, as he had to live in proximity to Kane's own residence.

Robinson started out as both a letterer and a background inker for the "Batman" stories. He was then entrusted with inking secondary figures in the stories. By 1940, Robinson became the Batman series' primary inker, while George Roussos served as the inker for the background art. To supplement their income, Robinson and Roussos also worked as inkers and background artists for the superhero comic series "Target and the Targeteers", published by Novelty Press.

In late 1940 or early 1941, Robinson became a company staffer for National Comics (a predecessor for DC Comics). National was the publisher for Batman, and reportedly wanted the exclusive services of the people who were working in the popular "Batman" series.

In 1940, Bob Kane and Bill Finger contemplated adding a sidekick figure to the Batman series. Robinson suggested code-naming the character "Robin", naming him after Robin Hood. Robinson had reportedly read several books about Robin Hood as a boy. The trio of co-creators worked on Robin's origin story. Robin/Dick Grayson was depicted as an orphaned circus performer who becomes the legal ward of Batman/Bruce Wayne. The boy sidekick soon became a popular character, and served as the main inspiration for the creation of several other sidekick characters during the Golden Age of Comic Books (c. 1938-1956).

Also in 1940, Kane, Finger, and Robinson created a new super-villain, the Joker. The character's appearance was modeled on the visual appearance of actor Conrad Veidt in the film, "The Man Who Laughs" (1928). In the film, Veidt was portraying Gwynplaine, a Victor Hugo character whose mouth has been mutilated into a perpetual grin. Like him, the Joker had a permanent mirthless smile. Robinson reportedly came up with the initial idea for creating the new villain, but Bob Kane claimed in interviews that it was Kane and Finger who had the idea to model the character on Veidt.

Robinson's other contributions to the "Batman" supporting cast was redesigning Batman's butler Alfred Pennyworth into a slender figure, and offering ideas for the design of the villain Two-Face/Harvey Dent. He is not credited with creating either of the two characters, but he had a hand in their development.

In 1943, Bob Kane stopped drawing new comic book stories for Batman, as he wanted to focus on the "Batman" newspaper comic strip. Robinson took over the artist duties for the Batman comic book stories, primarily sharing this role with Dick Sprang. They both served as ghost artists, with Kane continuing to be credited as the series' artist.

In 1944, Robinson created his own artist studio. His business partner was fellow comics artist Mort Meskin (1916-1995), who had worked extensively for Fiction House, MLJ Comics (later renamed to Archie Comics), and National Comics. The main customer of their small studio was Spark Publications (1944-1946), a Massachusetts-based company owned by pulp fiction writer Ken Crossen ( 1910 - 1981). Spark went bankrupt in 1946, due to a decline in its sales. Consequently, Robinson and Meskin shut down their own studio.

During the next several years, Robinson worked as a freelance artist, and as an illustrator for textbooks. In the 1950s, Robinson worked as a cover artist for "Playbill" (1884-), a monthly magazine whose main audience is theatergoers. He also started producing political cartoons for newspapers. In the 1960s, he started working primarily as a newspaper cartoonist. He was the only credited creator for the syndicated comic strip "True Classroom Flubs and Fluffs" (1965-1967), which humorously depicted real-life error perpetrated by American students.

In 1967, Robinson was elected as the new president of the National Cartoonists Society (1946-). It is an organization for professional cartoonists in the United States, though it works primarily as a way for cartoonists to socialize with each other, rather than a labor union. His term ended in 1969. From 1973 to 1975, Robinson served as the president of the Association of American Editorial Cartoonists.

In 1974, Robinson published the non-fiction book "The Comics". It was a comprehensive guide the history of newspaper comic strips. In the mid-1970s, Robinson championed creator rights for comic book creators. He was one of the leaders of a campaign that demanded full recognition and compensation of Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster as the creators of Superman. In 1975, DC Comics agreed to grant lifetime stipends and a credit in all broadcast and published Superman work to Siegel and Shuster.

In 1978, Robinson established "CartoonArts International", a New York City-based cartooning newspaper syndication service which distributes political and humor cartoons, caricatures, and graphics internationally. By the 2010s, the syndication service represented about 550 artists from 75 different countries.

In 1999, Robinson co-created the manga series "Astra", working with artists Shojin Tanaka and Ken-ichi Oishi. Originally published in Japanese, the series was translated and published in English by an imprint of Central Park Media (1990-2009). It was Robinson's first comic-book related work in decades.

In May 2007, Robinson was hired as a creative consultant for DC Comics. The extent of his duties to the company was left undefined in its press release. In December 2011, Robinson died in his sleep in Staten Island. He was 89-years-old. He was survived by his wife Gro Bagn and two of their children. His legacy endures as his comic book creations remain popular.
BornJanuary 1, 1922
DiedDecember 7, 2011(89)
BornJanuary 1, 1922
DiedDecember 7, 2011(89)
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank

Known for

Joaquin Phoenix in Joker (2019)
Joker
8.3
  • Writer
  • 2019
Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga in Joker: Folie à Deux (2024)
Joker: Folie à Deux
5.2
  • Writer
  • 2024
Christian Bale in The Dark Knight : Le Chevalier noir (2008)
The Dark Knight : Le Chevalier noir
9.0
  • Additional Crew(Alfred Thaddeus Crane Pennyworth & The Joker, uncredited, DC Comics)
  • 2008
Batman: Genesis
Batman: Genesis
Short
  • Writer

    Credits

    Edit
    IMDbPro

    Writer



    • Interview with the Batman
      • characters
      • In Production
      • Short
    • Batman: Genesis
      • characters
      • In Production
      • Short



    • Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga in Joker: Folie à Deux (2024)
      Joker: Folie à Deux
      5.2
      • characters created by
      • 2024
    • Matthew Lillard, Kevin Conroy, William Hanna, George Newbern, Eric Bauza, Jeremy Shada, Maisie Williams, and Daniel DiVenere in MultiVersus (2024)
      MultiVersus
      6.2
      Video Game
      • character: The Joker
      • 2024
    • Death Battle (2010)
      Death Battle
      7.4
      TV Series
      • Robin created by
      • Joker created by
      • 2016–2020
    • Superman: Agent of Batman
      • characters created by
      • 2020
    • Matthew Lillard and Frank Welker in Joyeux Halloween, Scooby-Doo! (2020)
      Joyeux Halloween, Scooby-Doo!
      6.2
      Video
      • based on characters from: Scarecrow/Dr. Jonathan Crane (as DC)
      • 2020
    • Chris R. Notarile, Tom Patrick Propofsky, and Dani J. Scott in Martha/Joker (2020)
      Martha/Joker
      7.5
      Short
      • characters
      • 2020
    • Joaquin Phoenix in Joker (2019)
      Joker
      8.3
      • based on characters created by
      • 2019
    • Steve Blum, Ed Boon, Matthew Yang King, Sunil Malhotra, Ron Yuan, and Dimitri 'Vegas' Thivaios in Mortal Kombat 11 (2019)
      Mortal Kombat 11
      7.9
      Video Game
      • character created by: The Joker
      • 2019
    • Guy A. Grundy and Kevin Porter in Super Horror Beat Down (2018)
      Super Horror Beat Down
      5.5
      TV Series
      • Joker created by
      • 2018
    • Super Power Beat Down (2012)
      Super Power Beat Down
      8.2
      TV Series
      • Joker created by
      • Robin created by
      • 2012–2017
    • Kevin Porter in Truth of the Mask (2014)
      Truth of the Mask
      6.2
      Short
      • characters
      • 2014
    • Lloyd Ahlquist and Peter Shukoff in Epic Rap Battles of History (2010)
      Epic Rap Battles of History
      8.1
      TV Series
      • Robin created by
      • 2012
    • Jensen Ackles and Bruce Greenwood in Batman et Red Hood: Sous le masque rouge (2010)
      Batman et Red Hood: Sous le masque rouge
      8.0
      Video
      • character created by: Joker (uncredited)
      • 2010
    • Patient J (Joker) (2005)
      Patient J (Joker)
      7.1
      Short
      • Joker created by
      • 2005
    • John Fiorella in Grayson (2004)
      Grayson
      7.3
      Short
      • characters (uncredited)
      • 2004

    Additional Crew



    • Icons Unearthed (2022)
      Icons Unearthed
      7.6
      TV Series
      • additional materials
      • 2024
    • Ben Affleck and Henry Cavill in Batman v Superman : L'Aube de la justice (2016)
      Batman v Superman : L'Aube de la justice
      6.4
      • character: Alfred Thaddeus Crane Pennyworth (uncredited)
      • 2016
    • Morgan Freeman, Gary Oldman, Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Matthew Modine, Anne Hathaway, Marion Cotillard, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt in The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
      The Dark Knight Rises
      8.4
      • character: Alfred Thaddeus Crane Pennyworth (uncredited)
      • 2012
    • Christian Bale in The Dark Knight : Le Chevalier noir (2008)
      The Dark Knight : Le Chevalier noir
      9.0
      • characters: Alfred Thaddeus Crane Pennyworth & The Joker
      • creative consultant: DC Comics (uncredited)
      • 2008
    • Christian Bale and Katie Holmes in Batman Begins (2005)
      Batman Begins
      8.2
      • characters: Alfred Thaddeus Crane Pennyworth & Dr. Thomas Wayne (uncredited)
      • 2005
    • George Clooney, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Alicia Silverstone, Uma Thurman, and Chris O'Donnell in Batman & Robin (1997)
      Batman & Robin
      3.8
      • characters: Richard John "Dick" Grayson/Robin & Alfred Thaddeus Crane Pennyworth (uncredited)
      • 1997
    • Batman Forever (1995)
      Batman Forever
      5.4
      • characters: Richard John "Dick" Grayson, Alfred Thaddeus Crane Pennyworth & Dr. Thomas Wayne (uncredited)
      • 1995
    • Michelle Pfeiffer, Danny DeVito, Michael Keaton, and Christopher Walken in Batman : Le Défi (1992)
      Batman : Le Défi
      7.1
      • character: Alfred Thaddeus Crane Pennyworth (uncredited)
      • 1992
    • Michael Keaton in Batman (1989)
      Batman
      7.5
      • characters: Alfred Thaddeus Crane Pennyworth & The Joker (uncredited)
      • 1989

    Art Department



    • Secret Origin: The Story of DC Comics (2010)
      Secret Origin: The Story of DC Comics
      7.6
      Video
      • art contributor
      • 2010
    • Adventures Into Digital Comics (2006)
      Adventures Into Digital Comics
      6.2
      • art contributor
      • 2006

    Personal details

    Edit
    • Alternative name
      • DC
    • Born
      • January 1, 1922
      • Trenton, New Jersey, USA
    • Died
      • December 7, 2011
      • Staten Island, New York City, New York, USA(undisclosed)
    • Spouse
      • Gro Bagn1954 - December 7, 2011 (his death, 2 children)
    • Publicity listings
      • 1 Print Biography
      • 3 Articles

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Created characters for the Batman comic books including: co-creating, with Bob Kane and Bill Finger Batman's sidekick Richard John "Dick" Grayson/Robin, as well as Batman villain Anthony "Tony" Zucco and Batman's most famous villain in his rogues gallery, The Joker.
    • Quotes
      Villains, I always thought more interesting. I think the name came first: The Joker. Then I thought of the playing card.

    FAQ

    Powered by Alexa
    • When did Jerry Robinson die?
      December 7, 2011
    • How did Jerry Robinson die?
      Undisclosed
    • How old was Jerry Robinson when he died?
      89 years old
    • Where did Jerry Robinson die?
      Staten Island, New York City, New York, USA
    • When was Jerry Robinson born?
      January 1, 1922

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
    Follow IMDb on social
    Get the IMDb App
    For Android and iOS
    Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • License IMDb Data
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Your Ads Privacy Choices
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2025 by IMDb.com, Inc.