The Joker #09 (The Clown Prince of Crime)

Final Issue! The Joker tries to steal an actor's priceless cat, but Catwoman beats him to it, which begins a three-way conflict.

In what would turn out to be the last issue of this series, the Joker decides to impersonate a movie star named Benny Springer in an effort to live vicariously through the comedic actor's fame. Springer is making a comeback in a movie called "The Cat and the Clown" and his co-star is a cat named Hiawatha (who, after a screening a rough cut of the film at the studio, is evidently the real star). But before the Joker can abduct Springer, he is intercepted by Catwoman -- who is more interested in turning Hiawatha into a prize pet. Things quickly turn violent when Springer -- now disguised as the Joker in an attempt to rescue Hiawatha -- and the real Joker turn up at Catwoman's lair. Both proceed to duke it out in an effort to convince Catwoman that he is the authentic Clown Prince of Crime. Amused at first, then bored by the pair, Selina turns her attention to Hiawatha -- and is shocked when the cat hisses and attacks her. In the end, it is Hiawatha who unmasks the real Joker -- except this crafty feline doesn't rub up against his master, but instead frames the real Joker as the fraud. Cops are called, bedlam ensues, Catwoman escapes and the true Joker ends up back in jail -- but not before he somehow manages to get his hands on the master print of "The Cat and the Clown" and re-cut it with him as the star.

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