Edward Burke was a wealthy oil baron, and an old associate of Harleen Quinzel, who gave him the idea of founding an amusement park when his daughter had fallen ill with an incurable illness.
Biography[]
At some point, Edward Burke married and had a daughter, Katie. Edward had a close bond with Katie, who had an active imagination. 5 years after her birth, she had fallen ill with an incurable illness, forcing Edward to put his own work aside, and check her into Gotham General Hospital and spend time with her, later giving up work altogether.
Eventually, Harley Quinn, using her birth name as a cover, contacted him, and suggested that he build an amusement park in his daughter’s honor. Voicing this to Katie, she eagerly drew what she envisioned as an amusement park on paper, which he would present to Harley, who would look upon her as being talented, and remark that he was fortunate to be her father. Harley would present the amusement park drawings to a close associate of hers, Jack White, who would give Edward some unique ideas for the park.
When the news came that nothing more could be done for Katie, Jack referred her to Dr. Penelope Young. Who used a special treatment to take care of her, though she seemingly withheld from Edward what the treatment was. Reacting to Jack’s purple suit, he offered him a new wardrobe as a token of gratitude, to which he disapprovingly declined the offer.
Edward would then build what would later be the Seagate Amusement Park atop one of his old oil rigs, which he had some difficulty in doing, to such a point that inspectors sent by the Gotham City Council nearly shut the project down, to which Jack White “changed their minds” (it is implied that he had them killed). As a token of gratitude, he bought Jack a new suit imported from Italy, to which he remarked that it was violet and that he preferred purple due to the color keeping him grounded. He wanted to buy something for Jack to thank him for what he did, but it is unknown if he was successful.
One week later, Katie died before she could see the park. Jack blamed Edward for the outcome and said that he should never have taken her to Gotham General Hospital in the first place. Jack was revealed to have instructed Dr. Young to triple the dosage of her treatment for Katie which seemingly exacerbated her condition. With no further use for him, Jack told Harley to exaggerate the bad news to drive him to suicide, to which Harley advised him that his situation will not improve and that there is no point in going on. He signed away all of his rights to the park to Jack, who later gave him pills that supposedly ensure a painless suicide. Unfortunately, the pills were enlaced with Smilex, which made him laugh maniacally before he died, and thus Edward Burke died a broken man.
Recordings[]
#1.[]
"You should know that all this you see around comes from our talks in the hospital. Daddy was paying attention, and he used your drawings for inspiration. When I showed them to my friend Dr. Quinzel, she said you were very talented little girl and that I was a very lucky father. Don't I know it!"
#2.[]
"You may not understand this... but what happened to us... what happened to you... changed my life for the better. Even Dr. Quinzel says I'm much more alive and present since I gave up work to take care of you. Actually... come to think of it... she was the one who suggested I build this place for us. To inspire me, she introduced me to a strange man in a purple suit who gave me a lot of unique ideas for the park. He calls himself Jack White. He's got a great laugh and sense of humor. I think you'd really like him."
#3.[]
"The scariest day was when the doctors told me there was nothing more, they could do for you and that you were going to die. We can be grateful to Jack for referring us to Dr. Penelope Young who did for you what traditional medicine couldn't. It's because of her special treatment that you are here today. I thanked Jack endlessly for referring us and even offered him a new wardrobe... but he told me he was quite satisfied with his wardrobe and didn't seem too pleased about the suggestion. I really hope I didn't offend him after all he's done for us."
#4.[]
"You know it wasn't easy getting this place up and running. Some inspectors nearly shut us down, but Jack somehow convinced them to change their minds. As a thank you gesture, I bought him a new purple suit imported from Italy, but he said it was violet and that he only wore purple on account that purple keeps him grounded. I guess your daddy doesn't know the difference between purple and violet. In any case, I have to get Jack something meaningful to thank him for all his help throughout this ordeal."
#5. All other four recordings must be obtained before unlocking the door to this recording[]
"Katie died before she could see the park. Jack blamed me and said I should have never taken her to Gotham General in the first place... but how was I to know... he told Dr. Young to triple the amount of her alternative meds but that only seemed to make things worse. She died last week and the pain is unbearable... Dr. Quinzel says it won't get better... she says the pain will just get worse and there is no point in going on... she's right... she always is... I signed the park over to Jack and my only hope is that he does something inspiring with it. As for me... I'll be with Katie soon... these pills Jack gave me will make sure of that. Supposed to be painless. *pained grunt, followed by tittering, which slowly turns into maniacal laughter, followed by a brief death rattle which ends with a giggle*"
Trivia[]
- In the mainstream DC Comics, Edward Burke is the civilian identity of Planet Master, who is an enemy of Batman. It is unknown if he ever assumed this identity in the Arkhamverse.