Cunningly Childish Clownish Criminals

James Jesse of Earth-One and Chuck Lane of Earth-Two were two of a kind. They each acrobatically adept and inventive geniuses. Both developed unique gadgets transforming toys as effective weapons.

James was originally a circus acrobat, a member of the Flying Jesses, although he had a fear of flying. To cope with this, he developed his flying shoes. Since the old western outlaw Jesse James was his idol, Jesse decided to become a criminal as well. Known as the Trickster, he employed various weird weapons with his various gag gadgets against Central City's law enforcement especially the Flash and Kid Flash, both alongside their Rogues Gallery. 

Chuck Lane was a policeman who adopted an alter ego inspired by his ancestors as the Jester. Born Robert Mason, heir to a fortune, when his father disowned him he briefly turned to crime as the Jester, until an imitator threatened the life of his father. After saving his dad, Mason decided to become a law enforcement officer. As a now heroic Jester, Lane had a brief costumed crusader on his native Earth-Two, and joined the All-Star Squadron. Lane's most famous instrument in his crimefighting arsenal was a round spherical flying object of his own creation known as a Quinopolis, which he would use as a weapon and a larger version of which he would ride upon on occasion

Gradually, Trickster branched out into other cities, and had a tenuous relationship with the Secret Society of Super-Villians, although not one of their more reliable members, clashing with other heroes such as Black Lightning and the World's Finest Team of Superman and Batman.

The Jester journeyed to Earth-X alongside Uncle Sam's Freedom Fighters, although evidence suggests that he returned to Earth-Two a few years later as he was still operating as a masked manhunter late into the 1940s on a world that was no longer enmbroiled in World War II.

Eventually Jesse repented of his criminal past, after the Flash left the 20th century to rejoin his wife Iris in her native 30th century. Would this change of heart last? At first having an adversarial rivalry with professional stuntman Daniel Cassidy in Hollywood, attempting to steal Daniel's Blue Devil suit, Jesse and Cassidy mended their relationship. His fellow Rogue, the Top, would later possesses powers similar to James, counterpart has displayed during Roger's second criminal career.