The Penguin would tell him to go cry a river.
When he ran for Gotham’s mayor in 1966—with his old foe, Batman, as his main opponent—he was opposed not only by the incumbent mayor but the entire Gotham Police Department, whose officers all proudly wore Batman campaign buttons.
In the classic Batman TV episode “Hizzoner the Penguin”—that’s “His Honor,” if you’re not familiar with early 20th century political lingo—and the follow-up, “Dizzoner the Penguin,” the villain nearly won the mayorship with a lively and ruthless campaign that would put Corey Lewandowski to shame.
And just like Trump, who we almost certainly will see again, it wouldn’t be Penguin’s last foray into politics. The dapper birder and jewel thief gained a taste for politics, going back to the campaign trail in 1992’s “Batman Returns” and later comics. While never as successful as Lex Luthor, who took the presidency in the 90s, Penguin is Gotham’s closest thing to a Trump-like figure, with no lines separating his political ambitions, his business enterprises and his illicit underworld activities.
But it was the 1966 episode that introduced the Penguin to politics. It’s still a blast to watch today, mixing the series’ madcap camp with an edge of political satire. It’s also a fascinating cultural artifact from a time of rising anxiety about how television was upending American democracy, reflecting fears that have become so baked-in to our political discourse you sometimes need a reminder that they once seemed new.
Gotham was never the same after Penguin gained an interest in politics. Neither was politics, for that matter.
