10 Things You Probably Didn’t Know About Commissioner Gordon
5. Smoking Nearly Killed Him
Smoking has long been a character trait of Commissioner James Gordon. Since his introduction in Detective Comics #27, Gordon has smoked either cigarettes or a pipe in many of his appearances.
Nicotine is an addictive drug and it can have long-term and detrimental effects on its users, and in Batman #459, that fact hits home hard for Jim Gordon. Sarah Essen had returned to Gotham and, after a particularly good date at the movies, Jim had a celebratory cigarette. Just as he took the first puff, he suffered a massive heart attack.
DC Comics made a big deal out of Gordon’s heart attack. Partnering with the American Heart Association, they made a public service announcement of the Commissioner in his hospital bed hooked up to several machines. The text made the point that Jim’s smoking was one of the contributing factors to his heart attack, and that readers should avoid that. This health scare ran for several months through DC Comics titles.
Gordon would eventually recover from his heart attack and give up smoking, although he would relapse several times. His relationship with Essen would continue, and when they found themselves on a sinking ship, Jim forced a corrupt judge to marry them. Unfortunately, Sarah was eventually killed by the Joker while trying to save a room filled with babies during No Man's Land.