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Is the character Harley Quinn, introduced in the 90s Batman cartoon, based on a slightly similar character Alicia Hunt from the '89 Batman movie? Both are blonde, masked paramour of the Joker, both "fall" out a window in their introductory stories. Is Harley based on Alicia?
I'm looking for sourced information, word of God of DC, Tara Strong, Bruce Timm, Mark Hamill, anyone actually connected with Batman cartoons, movies or comics, or even credited researchers. Not idle speculation.
From Wikipedia:
Harley Quinn first appeared in the Batman: The Animated Series episode "Joker's Favor", as what was originally supposed to be the animated equivalent of a walk-on role; a number of police officers were to be taken hostage by someone jumping out of a pop out cake, and it was decided that to have the Joker do so himself would be too bizarre (although he ended up doing it anyway). Dini thus created a female sidekick for the Joker. Arleen Sorkin, a former star of the soap opera Days of Our Lives, appeared in a dream sequence on that series in which she wore a jester costume; Dini used this scene as an inspiration for Quinn. Having been friends with Sorkin since college, he incorporated aspects of her personality into the character. Quinn was also inspired by a mutual female friend's "stormy (but nonviolent) relationship", according to Timm.
It's also part of howtogeek.com quiz and when you pick the right option, it will give you this description:
The Harley Quinn character was created by Paul Dini and Bruce Timm. Paul Dini was inspired by a surreal scene from an old Days of Our Lives episode wherein actress Arleen Sorkin appeared in a dream sequence dressed in a jester outfit. Dini drew on that scene to create Quinn’s costume and on Sorkin’s performance and personality to shape the character. Further, Dini and Sorkin were old college friends, so when it came time to give Quinn a voice, Dinn was able to call on Sorkin and enlist her help in bringing Harley Quinn to life with her signature highly animated and childlike speech.
Here is that scene:
There is no confirmation I can find about Alicia Hunt being inspiration of Harley Quinn except the wikia link, which is unsourced.
Alicia was based on the character of Circe (the original Black Mask's ex-girlfriend and henchgirl). He also targeted Circe and forcibly disfigured her with the chemicals in order to force her to reunite with him. Circe would ultimately kill herself, leading Black Mask to replace her with a mannequin that he talked to as if it were a real person.
Alicia could also been a very loose inspiration for the character of Harley Quinn in Batman: The Animated Series (as simply both women were lovers of the Joker, stood by his side and had blonde hair. Even Alicia's disfiguration and makeup resemble Harley Quinn's make-up).
