Carl Grissom

Carl Grissom is a minor villain in the 1989 Batman movie. He was portrayed by Jack Palance.

History
Carl Grissom is the most powerful crime lord in Gotham City, with some or even most of the Gotham City Police Department (except Commissioner Gordon) on his payroll, including Lieutenant Max Eckhardt. When the recently-elected District Attorney Harvey Dent begins to make connections between Grissom and Axis Chemicals, Grissom panics, knowing that the evidence stored at the factory is enough to have him sent to the electric chair.

Grissom also finds out somewhere along the line that his mistress, Alicia Hunt, has been having an affair with his second-in-command, [[Joker (1989 film)|Jack Napier]. So to take his revenge, Grissom sends Napier and his crew to Axis Chemicals to seize the evidence before Dent can. At the same time, he calls Lt. Eckhardt and orders him to lead a team of police officers to kill Napier. However, the plan goes wrong when Commissioner Gordon intervenes to take Napier in alive. Eckhardt then attempts to escape, but is shot in the chest and killed by a vengeful Napier. Napier is then confronted by Batman, but falls into a vat of chemicals, leaving Grissom to believe that Jack is dead, much to his delight.

The next day in the night, after a shower, Grissom has a visit from Napier, who survived the fall in the vat of chemicals and now wants revenge for setting him up. Grissom feigns relief, but Napier scoffs him, playing wise to Grissom's moves. Grissom then pleads for his life by offering to cut a new deal with Napier, but Napier refuses and instead reveals his new identity: the Joker, with green hair, white skin, and a widened, permanent grin. At that point, the Joker shoots Grissom to his death and takes over his crime empire.