1St App Jester onathan Powers was born in Hoboken, New Jersey. He was a struggling actor of huge ego who finally got his lead break as the leading character in an off-Broadway revival of Cyrano de Bergerac. Panned by critics, jeered by the audience, and disdained by his fellow performers, Powers was fired after one performance. Obsessively, he continued to study the various arts and crafts that he thought would earn him roles, things like gymnastics and body building. He turned down suggestions that he take actual acting classes, insisting that he already had more raw acting talent than anyone who'd ever lived. Still, Powers was only able to find employment as a stooge in a children's television show taped in New York.[1]
Finally getting fed up with having pies thrown in his face, Powers vents his anger with society by turning his gymnastics and fencing training to a life of crime. Contracting the criminal weapons-maker the Tinkerer to make him a number of gimmicks, Powers fashions himself a harlequin-like disguise and calls himself the Jester. After gaining some notoriety as a professional thief, the Jester is hired by Richard Raleigh to get Foggy Nelson to resign his campaign for district attorney. This brings the Jester into conflict with Daredevil, who continues trying to apprehend him even after they find Raleigh dead. Angered by Daredevil's persistence, he vows revenge.[1]
Nobody Laughs At...The Jester! There's a new criminal in town known as the Jester, who is robbing banks with his play-time themed gimmicks. Meanwhile, at the law office of Nelson and Murdock, those present mourn the loss of Daredevil (all believing that Daredevil was Mike Murdock, the brother of Matt, who was really Matt himself posing in a third identity) Back at the Jester's lair, he boasts to himself about his achievements as a criminal. Reflecting on his past, it turns out the Jester is a failed actor, who couldn't act at all and his "big break" was being the brunt of the jokes in a comedy routine. Taking on the Jester guise and beginning a career in costumed crime is his way at getting revenge on those who laughed and mocked him. Meanwhile, crooked mayoral candidate Richard Raleigh decides that he doesn't want a D.A. that he can't control and so hires the Jester to attack Nelson so that he is eliminated from the electoral race for the District Attorney position. Attacking Foggy while he's out with Karen and Matt, Matt allows himself to get captured so that the others go for help, explaining that his "brother" Mike trained a new Daredevil. Getting away, Matt changes into DD and battles the Jester, however the crook uses his many gimmicks to put Daredevil off balance and manage to escape.
