| Carmine Falcone | |
|---|---|
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| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Batman #405 (March, 1987) |
| Created by |
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| In-story information | |
| Full name | Carmine Falcone |
| Species | Human |
| Place of origin | Gotham City |
| Team affiliations | Falcone Crime Family |
| Notable aliases | TheRoman, Don Falcone |
| Abilities | Criminal mastermind Expert marksman |
Carmine Falcone is avillain appearing inAmerican comic books published byDC Comics, portrayed as a powerful Italian-American mob boss, anenemy ofBatman, and an acquaintance of the Wayne family. He has also been sometimes depicted as the illegitimate father ofCatwoman in media outside of the primaryDC Universecontinuity.
In live-action, the character has been portrayed in film byTom Wilkinson inBatman Begins (2005) and in television byJohn Doman inGotham (2014–2017). InThe Batman shared universe, Falcone has been portrayed byJohn Turturro in the filmThe Batman (2022) andMark Strong inThe Penguin miniseries (2024).
Carmine Falcone made his debut in the four-part storyBatman: Year One written byFrank Miller andDavid Mazzucchelli in 1987.[1] In the comics, Falcone is a powerfulMafia chieftain nicknamed "TheRoman", where his stranglehold overGotham City's organized crime is referenced as "The Roman Empire" at least once. InYear One, his penthouse is designed in aRoman architectural style.[citation needed]
The character is based onMarlon Brando's portrayal ofDon Vito Corleone from the filmThe Godfather (1972).Jeph Loeb, writer ofBatman: The Long Halloween, stated in an interview that he paralleled the Falcone family to that of theCorleone family: Falcone's power and wisdom akin to Vito Corleone, his sonAlberto's personality and appearance that ofFredo Corleone, and his daughterSofia's temper matching that ofSonny Corleone. Lastly, his elder son Mario's deportation toSicily, physical appearance, and desire to legitimize the Falcone family are all traits shared withMichael Corleone.[2]
In aflashback inThe Long Halloween, gangster Vincent Falcone brings his badly wounded son, Carmine, who had been shot several times by his rival Luigi Maroni, toThomas Wayne. Fearing Maroni would finish the job at a public hospital, he begs Wayne, one of the city's best doctors, to perform surgery atWayne Manor. A youngBruce Wayne watches his father save Falcone's life. Years later at Thomas andMartha Wayne's funeral, Carmine Falcone, now part of his father's crime family, tells Bruce that he can always ask a favor of him should he need it.
InBatman: Year One, Falcone is shown to be the most powerful figure inGotham City, with the mayor, city council, and much of Gotham's police force in his pocket and all of the city's criminal outfits under his control.[3] His power comes under attack with the arrival of the mysterious vigilanteBatman. Despite GCPD CommissionerGillian B. Loeb's desperate attempts to stop him, Batman's attacks on Falcone's crime family become even more brazen and Falcone decides to have Batman killed. Batman further embarrasses Falcone by rescuingCatwoman when the mobster and his henchmen catch her trying to rob them. In the process, Catwoman leaves Falcone permanently scarred when she scratches him with the metal claws of her costume.
Falcone orders his nephewJohnny Viti to kidnap the family of DetectiveJim Gordon, but the attempt is foiled. When Gordon and District AttorneyHarvey Dent's investigations start threatening his power, Falcone orders an unsuccessful hit on Viti out of fear that he might talk. The failed hit results in the Falcone family getting embroiled in a mob war with Viti's boss Carla inChicago, which serves only to further diminish Falcone's influence in Gotham.
DuringThe Long Halloween, the weakened Falcone family is targeted by aserial killer calling himself Holiday, who targets and kills at least one member of the Falcone crime family each month on a holiday. When Batman and Dent burn his hoard of stolen cash, Falcone strikes back by hiring costumed "freaks" who becomeBatman's rogues gallery. Convinced that Dent is secretly Holiday, Falcone persuades his former rivalSal Maroni to kill Dent while standing trial for murder. Falcone arranges for Maroni to obtain a vial of acid, which he hurls at Dent during a court proceeding. The acid disfigures the left side of Dent's face, leading to his becomingTwo-Face. Two-Face kills Falcone following acoin flip that lands on the scarred side.[4] Falcone's son Alberto, presumed to have been the victim of the killer, confesses that he committed the Holiday killings in an attempt to be accepted into the family business.[5]
InBatman: Dark Victory, Falcone's grave is robbed and his body disappears. It is later revealed that Two-Face has Falcone's body in his possession and froze him usingMr. Freeze'scryogenic technology. Selina Kyle visits Falcone's grave, believing him to be her biological father.[6]
In 2011, "The New 52" rebooted the DC universe. Carmine Falcone appears inBatman Eternal as a former mobster determined to reclaim his empire after Commissioner Gordon is framed for mass murder.[7] Falcone is unaware of the larger plot against Batman, and was informed that he would have a chance to strike by an anonymous letter sent to him by thetrue mastermind.
Carmine Falcone was revealed to have a cousin namedLuca Falcone who was killed by theRed Hood Gang.[8]
In 2016, DC Comics implemented a relaunch of its books called "DC Rebirth", which restored its continuity to a form much as it was prior to The New 52. In the "War of Jokes and Riddles" storyline, theJoker contacts Carmine Falcone and instructs him to kill theRiddler within an hour. His men fail to complete the assignment, leading the Joker to kill them. ThePenguin then takes over his business interests on Joker's behalf.[9]
Carmine Falcone is later be involved in a gang war with the Penguin, which led to both of them being arrested by the police. While incarcerated atBlackgate Penitentiary, Falcone and Penguin instigate prison riots against each other. One of Falcone's men attempts to target an incarcerated Jim Gordon and is saved byRex Calabrese. While surprised that Calabrese is still alive, Carmine is extradited to Hong Kong while warning that Calabrese will be taking back control of Gotham City.[10]
Carmine Falcone is a criminal mastemind. He is also an expert marksman.
The following are relatives of Carmine Falcone:
Jeph Loeb created Mario for Batman: Dark Victory, and based the character off of Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) from The Godfather film trilogy.
