Cesar Romero didn't have to worry about a lot of things while playing The Joker
Sometimes playing a role is more than being on set, reciting your lines, and dressing in clothes you'd never wear in real life. You have to look and sound the part.
For example, when an actor plays the love interest, they usually mirror society's current beauty standards and speak seductively. If they're playing a bully or antagonist, they need to look scary and emphasize words.
But what's required to play a comic book villain on a television show? According to Cesar Romero, it was more freeing than most roles. "I love it. It's a kooky, way-out character, the easiest I ever played," he told The Associated Press in 1966. "I can be as hammy as I like and do all the things we were told not to do: mug, over-act, accentuate. It's fun because you're not tied down, inhibited."
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Romero played The Joker on the 1966 Adam West-led series Batman. His look was hard to miss: styled green hair, purple suit-like attire with matching gloves, and a button-up underneath. His makeup included white paint on his face, dark arched eyebrows, and a red-outlined smile that extended far past his lips.
For a sitcom, this would be scary, but in Gotham, he was a fashionable bad guy. Since his character's appearance was sharp, Romero didn't have to be.
"Why I don't have to worry about circles under the eyes or whether my hair is combed."