Actor Cesar Romero is probably best known for his role as The Joker in the 1960s Batman series, a portrayal that would later define the character and cast a large shadow over future screen adaptations. But well before Romero put on the green wig and red lipstick, he had a successful and varied career. He acted alongside the Rat Pack in Ocean’s Eleven and Carmen Miranda in Week-End in Havana. Most of his roles fell into the ‘Latin Lover’ stereotype, a mold he did not fit in his everyday life. Yet, despite on-screen limitations, Romero was still able to imbue each character with a sense of humanity. In the new biography Cesar Romero: The Joker is Wild, author Samuel Garza Bernstein goes in depth about Romero’s life pre-Hollywood, his career pre-Joker, and his 1980s renaissance as an A-list TV actor. On FilmWeek, Larry speaks with Garza Bernstein about Romero’s legacy.

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