Was Heath Ledger's Joker Inspired By Tom Waits?

That's what a lot of folks are saying.  And, if you watch any interview with Tom Waits filmed between 1976 and 1981, you would understand why.

Here is just one clip from YouTube (there are dozens of them).  It's of Waits as a guest on the Don Lane Show in 1981.  It only takes a few seconds before your mind is blown.



It really bothers me how everyone was laughing at him.  I guess people tend to mock what they don't understand.