When he was 17 years old, Jerry Robinson literally got tapped on the shoulder by Batman creator Bob Kane, who asked the skinny, self-taught artist if he wanted to draw comic books. Robinson had caught Kane's attention at a tennis camp in upstate New York by wearing a white jacket covered with his wigged-out illustrations. Soon thereafter, Robinson drew the cover for Batman No. 1 and became a key contributor to the Dark Knight's narrative DNA. During his brief but prolific sprint through the DC Comics universe, the New Jersey native visualized sidekick Robin along with uber-villains like the Penguin, the Scarecrow and Two-Face. As chronicled in N.C. Christopher Couch's new book, Jerry Robinson: Ambassador of Comics, the artist's crowning achievement came on a cold winter night in 1939, when he first sketched out The Joker after riffling through a deck of cards. See more of Robinson's striking comic book art in the gallery above. Above: Joker Sketch Robinson reluctantly handed off the first Joker story to writer Bill Finger, who initially killed off the antic evil-doer. Editor Whitney Ellsworth decided the Joker should live, and the rest is supervillain history.

Batman No. 1 Introduced in Detective Comics, Batman became a hit and got his own comic book featuring inaugural cover art by Robinson.

Batman No. 10 Writer Bill Finger believed that a boy who served as Batman's sidekick would broaden the comic's appeal for younger readers. Mercury, the Roman god who served as a messenger for other gods, was seriously considered as a name. Robinson, inspired by N.C. Wyeth's Illustrated Classics retelling of the Robin Hood legend, outfitted the Robin character in medieval-style tights, shorts, belt, jacket and shoes.

Batman No. 58 Ink Drawing The artful composition evident in this ink drawing by Robinson is all the more remarkable given that the artist was almost entirely self-taught. He took night classes for less than a week at age 19, then quit.

Batman No. 71 Influenced by Edgar Allen Poe and German Expressionist films, Robinson realized that "a villain with a sense of humor would be the kind of contradiction that would make this character memorable," according to Ambassador of Comics. In the wake of the Joker, copycat bad guys like The Jester and The Clown soon followed. Robinson and his colleagues meanwhile hatched a series of new villains including Clayface, Two-Face, Penguin and The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari-influenced Scarecrow.

Detective Comics No. 67 Robinson's black-and-white cover art for Detective Comics featuring the Penguin was drawn in 1942.

Detective Comics No. 69 The Joker, rarely shown wielding guns, looms over Batman and Robin in this black-and-white cover drawing for 1942 cover story "The Harlequin's Hoax."

Batman and Robin sketch Robinson worked on Batman for seven years, then moved on in 1946. "The most interesting part about comics is the initial concept, the initial creative force," he says in Ambassador of Comics. "After that, it's a craftsman's job to keep the trip gong at a top level. You can create new characters, new situations, but I really think you're working on the fringes of the central core of the idea."