Rupert Thorne

Rupert Thorne
Rupert Thorne as depicted in Detective Comics #469 (May 1977). Art by Walt Simonson (penciller), Al Milgrom (inker), and Jerry Serpe (colorist).
Publication information
Publisher	DC Comics
First appearance	Detective Comics #469 (May 1977)
Created by	Steve Englehart (writer) Walt Simonson (artist)
In-story information
Species	Human

Rupert Thorne is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. The character is a crime boss and enemy of Batman.

Thorne has made several appearances in animated DC media, such as Batman: The Animated Series, in which he is voiced by John Vernon, and the DC Universe animated series Creature Commandos, voiced by Benjamin Byron Davis.

Publication history

Created by Steve Englehart and Walter Simonson, the character first appeared in Detective Comics #469.^[1]

Fictional character biography

Thorne is introduced as a corrupt politician with extensive ties to organized crime and ambitions of becoming a crime boss in his own right. Doctor Phosphorus blackmails him with evidence of his crimes into turning the city against Batman. After Phosphorus is defeated, Thorne decides not to waste the opportunity and persuades his fellow city councilors to declare Batman an outlaw. He attempts to gain complete control of Gotham City by running for Mayor but fails.

Thorne is one of three criminals (the other two being the Penguin and the Joker) who make a bid at Hugo Strange's secret auction for Batman's secret identity. He kidnaps and tortures Strange to force him to divulge it rather than risk losing the auction. Strange resists, however, and apparently dies in the process. After disposing of his body, Thorne is haunted by eerie sounds and visions of Strange.^[2]

After failing in his campaign against Batman and spending some time in hiding, he secretly returns to Gotham.^[3] He gets the corrupt Hamilton Hill elected as mayor and orders him to fire Police Commissioner James Gordon in favor of Peter Pauling, who is on Thorne's payroll. Thorne finally identifies Bruce Wayne as Batman after acquiring photos of him changing into his costume from reporter Vicki Vale. Thorne then hires Deadshot to kill Wayne.^[4] Deadshot is unsuccessful, but before Thorne can deal with the problem, he begins to succumb to Strange's manipulations; the professor is revealed to have faked his death while using elaborate special-effects devices to simulate ghostly encounters. Thorne becomes paranoid, convinced that Hill and Pauling are plotting against him and trying to drive him insane. He shoots Pauling dead but is eventually apprehended by Batman and brought to justice.^[5]

Decades later, Thorne returns in Detective Comics #825 (November 2006). He is serving a lengthy prison sentence in Blackgate Penitentiary when a vengeful Doctor Phosphorus unsuccessfully attempts to kill him.^[6]

In Batman: Three Jokers, Thorne is shown to still be incarcerated at Blackgate when Batman visits Joe Chill.^[7]

Other versions

An alternate universe variant of Rupert Thorne appears in Gotham by Gaslight. This version is a respected member of Gotham's city council who later becomes interim mayor in the aftermath of Jack the Ripper's killing spree.

In other media

Television

• Rupert Thorne, with elements of Carmine Falcone and Sal Maroni, appears in Batman: The Animated Series, voiced by John Vernon.^[8] This version is Gotham's most powerful crime boss who contributed to Two-Face's creation.
• Rupert Thorne appears in The Batman episode "The Bat in the Belfry", voiced by Victor Brandt.^[8]
• Rupert Thorne appears in Batman: Caped Crusader, voiced by Cedric Yarbrough.^[8] This version is a cunning politician, crime boss, and rival of the Penguin who, similarly to the Batman: The Animated Series incarnation, contributed to Two-Face's creation.
• Rupert Thorne appears in flashbacks in the Creature Commandos episode "Priyatel Skelet", voiced by Benjamin Byron Davis.^[9]

Film

• Rupert Thorne was originally intended to appear in Batman (1989) before being replaced with film-original character Carl Grissom (portrayed by Jack Palance).^[10]
• Rupert Thorne appears in Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman, voiced again by John Vernon.^[8]

Video games

• Rupert Thorne appears in the Sega CD version of The Adventures of Batman & Robin, voiced again by John Vernon. Clayface assumes his form to distract Batman and Robin from his operations.
• Rupert Thorne appears as a character summon in Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure.^[11]

Miscellaneous

• Rupert Thorne appears in The Batman Strikes!.
• An alternate universe variant of Rupert Thorne appears in the Justice League: Gods and Monsters prequel comic.

See also

• List of Batman family enemies

References

1. Greenberger, Robert (2008). The Essential Batman Encyclopedia. Del Rey. p. 349. ISBN 9780345501066.
2. Detective Comics #469-#479 (May 1977 - September–October 1978). DC Comics.
3. Detective Comics #507 (October 1981). DC Comics.
4. "5 Batman Villains We Have Yet To See In The Movies". pulpinterest.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2014.
5. Batman #354 (December 1982). DC Comics.
6. Detective Comics #825 (January 2007). DC Comics.
7. Batman: Three Jokers #2. DC Comics.
8. "Rupert Thorne Voices (Batman)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved July 27, 2024. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.
9. Flook, Ray (October 20, 2024). "Creature Commandos: Benjamin Byron Davis Voicing Rupert Thorne". Bleeding Cool. Retrieved October 21, 2024.
10. Mankiewicz, Tom (1983-06-20). "The Batman" (TXT). www.scifiscripts.com.
11. Eisen, Andrew (October 2, 2013). "DC Characters and Objects - Scribblenauts Unmasked Guide". IGN. Retrieved July 27, 2024.