One of the hot news stories is about fans of Heath Ledger wanting DC Comics to retire the character of The Joker from future films to honor the late actor and his performance. The fans argue that it is like retiring the number 23 that Michael Jordan wore to play Basketball. I wonder if they are truly serious about this proposal or if it is just a ploy to get their 15 minutes of fame.
Let's consider the idea.
First: The Joker IS Batman's archenemy. He was introduced in Batman #1 (Spring 1940) as Batman's first enemy and has played a crucial role in the story development for almost 70 years. To remove the possibility of his appearance in any future Batman movie, or in fact, any DC Comic movie would be so drastically limiting that it would deprive the next generation of superhero believers a wealth of stories.
Second: Although I would be the first to admit that Heath Ledger's role as The Joker was the pinnacle of his career. I ask you to look at the rest of his career. Michael Jordan had his number retired because he had a life-long record of playing excellent Basketball. Ledger Fan's want one of the ultimate villains in the history of comics to be retired because a half-rate actor had one excellent moment on screen. They think that one shiny bauble in a sea of horrible acting earns Ledger the right to be honored in this way.
I know that acting and movie preference can be opinionated or Siskel and Ebert would never have had jobs. But, again I have to ask, are you serious? Can you honestly point at any other movie ledger stared in that was in anyway spectacular enough to add to one great role? I say not. Take a second and look at his resume and tell show me another diamond in the rough and I might give him some more credit as an actor but stay away from a legend in the Comic world and don't compare the careers of a Basketball great to the acting career of Heath Ledger.