The Penguin (Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot) is a DC Comics supervillain and an enemy of Batman. He was introduced by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, he first appeared in Detective Comics #58 (December 1941).
The Penguin, one of Batman's oldest foes, is an eccentric criminal mastermind, known as much for his love of ornithology and trick umbrellas as for his already shady business dealings. Gotham City's popular Iceberg Lounge serves as Penguin's front for a number of illegal financial stature; the Penguin is a wily foe whose umbrellas conceal a variety of deadly weapons and gadgets.
In most incarnations, the Penguin is a short, chubby (though he wasn't really fat in the original Batman series) man who wears a tuxedo, top hat, monocle, white gloves (black in Batman Returns), and spats. A mobster-type criminal, he fancies himself a "gentleman of crime". Unlike most Batman villains, he doesn't theme his crimes around a psychotic obsession; his intelligence and aristocratic personality starkly contrast against demented Batman villains, such as the Joker. However, he recently became a mobster and nightclub owner who engages in more quiet criminal activity whom Batman tolerates as a source of criminal underworld information.
The Penguin does, however, possess a few eccentricities. He is known for his love of birds and his high-tech umbrellas that serve some specialized function, such as hang-gliding and weaponry. He also keeps beautiful women around him, perhaps to remind others of his monetary power or to compensate for his own grotesqueness.
Although a second-string villain for many years, Burgess Meredith popularized the Penguin in the 1960s Batman TV show, partially because of his signature squawking laughter. Danny DeVito played a much darker and older version of the Penguin in Batman Returns. This version was not just an unattractive criminal, but a physically deformed, sadistic, megalomaniacal monster. Subsequent Batman animated series have alternately featured the deformed Penguin and a more traditional version.
The deformed version of the character has also appeared in comics, most notably in the miniseries Batman: The Long Halloween and its sequel Dark Victory. He only appears for a minor cameo at the end of the Long Halloween, and has no lines. He plays a slightly more notable role in Dark Victory, when Batman goes to him for information. This incarnation also added elements of the 1966 TV series character, as he shouted the well-known "Waugh waugh" while talking.
Origin - Born Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot, the Penguin was teased very much in his childhood due to his short stature, obesity, and bird-like nose. These traits made him an outcast in his rich, debutante family. Their rejection drove him to become evil. These are contrasted against the more aggressive and specific wealth gathering origins of the Batman graphic novel Batman: Penguin Triumphant, which specifically states that Oswald Cobblepot neither is nor ever was insane and merely used his astute mind and scientific skills in developing weapons to intimidate and control others, and the largely attributed Earth-One incarnation origin of the Penguin in Batman #287 (1977).
The Penguin's weapons of choice are the trick-umbrellas he uses to execute his crooked schemes. Several versions of the Penguin's origins say that he was forced as a child to always carry an umbrella around by his over-protective mother due to the fact that his father died of pneumonia after being drenched in a downpour. In keeping with his pretensions of being a refined gentleman, he also prefers to wear formal wear, such as a top hat, tuxedo, and spats during his jobs. The Penguin received his alter-ego from a childhood taunt, bestowed by his peers, who teased him because of his grotesque appearance and love of birds (some re-tellings of his origin suggest he also suffered from some sort of hip ailment, which caused him to waddle when he walked; the Penguin shows no signs of suffering from this affliction today). Some comics suggest that he tried to abandon the title (which he hates), but it has been permanently brought into popularity by Batman.
