Hamilton Hill (comics)

Hamilton Hill
Publication information
Publisher	DC Comics
First appearance	Detective Comics #503 (1981)
Created by	Gerry Conway Don Newton
In-story information
Full name	Hamilton Hill

Hamilton Hill is a DC Comics character. He is a mayor of Gotham City and an adversary of Batman.

History

Hamilton Hill is a corrupt politician who ran against Arthur Reeves in Gotham City's mayoral election. Hill defeats Reeves when Reeves’ "Batman identity" photos turn out to be faked. Unbeknownst to the citizens, Hill is in league with crime lord Rupert Thorne, who helps him become Mayor. During his early time in office, he assists Thorne's attempts to identify and defeat Batman.

Hill hires an assassin to take out Harvey Bullock. When Bullock confronts Hill, Hill shoots him, but he survives.

Hill fires Police Commissioner James Gordon and replaces him with one of Thorne's cronies, Pater Pauling. After Thorne is defeated and Pauling killed, Hill re-instates Gordon but spends the rest of his time in office trying to shift the blame for Gotham's problems onto Gordon's shoulders.

Hill tries to get rid of Batman by accusing him of a crime that was actually committed by the Night Slayer. When Batman defeats Night Slayer and exposes Hill's plot, Hill is removed from office.

In other media

Television

• Mayor Hamilton Hill appears in Batman: The Animated Series voiced by Lloyd Bochner. While originally hostile to the Batman and somewhat comical at times, this version of Hill showed absolutely no trace of the corruption that the comics version demonstrated. He first appeared in the episode "On Leather Wings" where he allows Detective Bullock to pursue Batman (along with his own task force), who is framed for the robberies of pharmacies throughout Gotham City. In "Be a Clown", his son Jordan is kidnapped by the Joker after he runs away because he thinks his dad does not care about him. Batman later saves the boy and returns him to Hill, who then grows to trust Batman, unlike before. Throughout the show, he gradually begins to respect Batman after needing his help in dire situations like when he is kidnapped by an ex-Arkham Asylum employee in the episode "Lock-Up", when he is kidnapped by the Joker in "Harlequinade". or almost replaced with a robotic duplicate in "Heart of Steel" Pt. 2. Batman has also saved his life twice from Temple Fugate, the Clock King, who had a grudge against Hill because he believed that he made him late for a court date on purpose (Fugate was appealing against a $20 million judgement against his company, and subsequently lost). Hill had been a lawyer at the time, which also caused Fugate to believe Hill did it on purpose because the lawyers who had worked on the case were represented by Hill's law firm.
• Lloyd Bochner reprises his role of Mayor Hamilton Hill in The New Batman Adventures episodes "Cold Comfort" and "Over the Edge." In "Over the Edge," he appears at Gotham City Police Station where he tells Commissioner Gordon to stop hunting down Batman (who they now know is Bruce Wayne) out of gratitude to the Dark Knight for saving his life many times and that of his son. Gordon refuses to follow Hill's orders as he blames Batman for his daughter Barbara's death at the hands of the Scarecrow. Hill reluctantly fires Gordon after Barbara's funeral. It turns out that the events of this episode are just part of Barbara's dream after she was exposed to Scarecrow's fear gas.
• In Batman Beyond, the high school Terry McGinnis attends is named Hamilton Hill High School (or "Hill High"), presumably after the now-deceased Hamilton Hill.
• In The Batman episode "The Batman/Superman Story" Pt. 1, Hamilton Hill (voiced by an uncredited Lex Lang) is identified as the newly elected mayor of Gotham in the season premiere and is portrayed as African-American. He is elected after Marion Grange resigns from office.
• Mayor Hamilton Hill is seen in the Young Justice episode "Alpha Male" voiced by Corey Burton. He is involved in a tiger poaching ring that is attacked by Monsieur Mallah. The Justice League and Captain Marvel come to his aid.

Film

• In the movie Batman: Under the Red Hood, a newspaper clip revealed that Jason Todd (during his time as Robin) saved Mayor Hill's life.

Video games

• Mayor Hamilton Hill appeared in the video game Batman Vengeance, voiced again by Lloyd Bochner. He was blackmailed by Poison Ivy along with other politicians and wealthy socialites.
• In Batman: Arkham Origins, there is a sign that reads "Hamilton Hill." During the credits for the story-based campaign expansion "A Cold, Cold Heart", a report can be heard saying that Hill was mayor, but was resigning following protests caused by the events of the game which saw Commissioner Gillian B. Loeb exposed as a corrupt officer working for Black Mask.

Web series

• In Gotham Girls, Poison Ivy gives him a toxin that makes him grow a root out of his forehead. This makes him resign from office.
• In Episode 1 of the web series Nightwing, Hamilton Hill is assassinated by Deathstroke.

Miscellaneous

• In The Batman Adventures, a comic book spinoff of Batman: The Animated Series, the Penguin replaces Hamilton Hill is replaced as mayor thanks to Temple Fugate rigging the votes. Batman foils Fugate and Penguin's plan and Hill is reinstated.
• Mayor Hamilton Hill appears in an issue of The Batman Strikes. He is taken hostage at one of Bruce Wayne's parties by Black Mask.

External links

• Hamilton Hill at DC Comics Wiki