Back Issue #145 by TwoMorrows Publishing

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Our BARBARA EDEN interview will keep you forever dreaming of Jeannie! Plus: The Invaders, the BILLIE JEAN KING/BOBBY RIGGS tennis battle of the sexes, HANNABARBERA’s Saturday morning super-heroes of the Sixties, THE MONSTER TIMES fanzine, and more fun, fab features! Featuring ERNEST FARINO, ANDY MANGELS, WILL MURRAY, SCOTT SAAVEDRA, SCOTT SHAW!, and MICHAEL EURY.

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MAD’s maddest artist, SERGIO ARAGONÉS, is profiled! Plus: TV’s Route 66 and an interview with star GEORGE MAHARIS, MOE HOWARD’s final years, singer B. J. THOMAS in one of his final interviews, LONE RANGER cartoons, G.I. JOE, and more! Featuring columns by ANDY MANGELS, WILL MURRAY, SCOTT SAAVEDRA, SCOTT SHAW, and MARK VOGER! Edited by MICHAEL EURY.

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Volume 1, Number 145 August 2023

Comics’ Bronze Age and Beyond!

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Michael Eury PUBLISHER John Morrow DESIGNER Rich Fowlks COVER ARTIST Dusty Abell COVER DESIGNER Michael Kronenberg PROOFREADER David Baldy SPECIAL THANKS Jarrod Buttery ComicOnlineFree.com Billy Connors Gerry Conway Tom DeFalco J. M. DeMatteis Kerry Gammill Rob Harris Heritage Auctions Terry Kavanagh John Kirk James Heath Lantz Ed Lute Ralph Macchio Franck Martini Marvel Comics David Michelinie Allen Milgrom Dan Mishkin Joe Norton Luigi Novi John Schwirian Roy Thomas Steven Thompson

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BACKSEAT DRIVER: Editorial by Michael Eury . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 FLASHBACK: Doctor Octopus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 It’s not business, it’s personal between Spidey and his eight-armed arch-foe WHAT THE--?!: Spider-Rogues Only a Mother Could Love . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Kangaroo, Grizzly, White Rabbit, and other bargain-basement bad guys FLASHBACK: The Lizard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Spidey’s scaliest, scariest foe—who’s also his friend and mentor ROUGH STUFF: Pencil Art Showcase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 BRING ON THE BAD GUYS: The Jackal and Carrion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 The convoluted saga of clone-crazy Professor Miles Warren BRING ON THE BAD GUYS: The Tarantula . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 This would-be super-soldier gets his kicks from battling Spidey FLASHBACK: The Kingpin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 The complex life of the Spider-Rogue-turned-Daredevil foe FLASHBACK: The Gangs of New York . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 Our joke-a-minute hero isn’t the only “wise guy” of the Bronze Age BRING ON THE BAD GUYS: Puma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72 The ‘Native-American Tony Stark’ that scratched his way into Spidey-dom BACK TALK: Reader Reactions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 BACK ISSUE™ issue 145, August 2023 (ISSN 1932-6904) is published monthly (except Jan., March, May, and Nov.) by TwoMorrows Publishing, 10407 Bedfordtown Drive, Raleigh, NC 27614, USA. Phone: (919) 449-0344. Periodicals postage paid at Raleigh, NC. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Back Issue, c/o TwoMorrows, 10407 Bedfordtown Drive, Raleigh, NC 27614. Michael Eury, Editor-in-Chief. John Morrow, Publisher. Editorial Office: BACK ISSUE, c/o Michael Eury, Editor-in-Chief, 112 Fairmount Way, New Bern, NC 28562. Email: euryman@gmail.com. Eight-issue subscriptions: $97 Economy US, $147 International, $39 Digital. Please send subscription orders and funds to TwoMorrows, NOT to the editorial office. Cover artwork by Dusty Abell. Spider-Man and all related characters TM & © Marvel. All Rights Reserved. All editorial matter © 2023 TwoMorrows and Michael Eury. Printed in China. FIRST PRINTING

Spider-Rogues Issue • BACK ISSUE • 1

This issue’s theme comes to us by way of its cover artist, Dusty Abell. In November 2021, Dusty shared with me what I call his “SpiderMan and His Amazing Foes” art, which he had produced for Marvel for a Spider-Man 60th Anniversary jigsaw puzzle and a limited edition print, as a possible cover for BACK ISSUE. It’s an amazing illustration featuring a multitude of menaces—and their enemy, the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, front and center. How could I say no? I had previously considered a “Spider-Rogues” issue but never got around to it—and then Dusty’s dynamite illo inspired me to dust off that cobwebbed theme. After a quick confab with our publisher (no, not that Webheadhating blowhard J. Jonah Jameson, but instead our own Jumpin’ John Morrow), we decided to wait until 2023 before repurposing the art as a BACK ISSUE cover, so as not to directly compete with its commercial uses in 2022. That time has come, True Believer! In the pages that follow, the intrepid reporters of our Eisner Award–winning comics history mag present the stories behind some of the supervillains (and a few not-so-super ones as well) that have pestered, prodded, and pummeled our wall-crawling hero. Some major Spider-Rogues that debuted in the Silver Age are included. But as you would expect from our Bronze Age purview, several villains that premiered in the 1970s and 1980s get the spotlight, including the mobster Hammerhead, shown on this page in combat with Spidey in a specialty illustration by artists Mark Bagley and Al Vey. As I often do when discussing BI’s themes, I get a little defensive— maybe it’s my editorial spider-sense. I am sometimes pelted by email queries and online posts about characters or comic series “missing” from an issue’s theme. At times I receive criticisms as rabid as one of ol’ JJJ’s anti-Spidey rants. So please allow me to restate the rationale behind our themes. 2 • BACK ISSUE • Spider-Rogues Issue

ichael Eury

BACK ISSUE’s themes provide editorial structure and a creative launching point for a single issue. BI is a magazine of 80 pages (several of them ads), not a book with an expanded page count. There simply is not enough space in a single issue to explore the entirety of its selected theme—especially in the case of a broad subject like this issue’s. Just look at how many characters Dusty crammed onto our cover… if each of them had an article in this issue, we’d be stuck with one-paragraph dossiers. Instead, we’re offering a select number of villain histories, with the behind-the-scenes storytelling you’d expect from a BI article. There are other Spider-Rogues waiting in the wings for a BI spotlight. If response to this issue is strong, perhaps we’ll revisit the subject in the future. In the meantime, I’ll direct you to our back issues, where we previously covered the following Spider-Man Rogues’ Gallery members: • • • • • • • • • • •

Black Cat (BI #40) Doctor Octopus’ marriage to Aunt May (BI #123) Green Goblin (BI #18, 126) Hobgoblin (BI #35) Hypno-Hustler (BI #101) J. Jonah Jameson (BI #91) Kraven the Hunter (“Kraven’s Last Hunt”) (BI #35) Man-Wolf (BI #60) Morbius the Living Vampire (BI #36, 116) The Punisher (BI #4, 88) Stegron the Dinosaur Man (BI #140)

Spider-Man vs. Hammerhead by Mark Bagley and Al Vey. Courtesy of Heritage. TM & © Marvel.

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The Doctor Will See You Now Pity the poor lab assistant interviewing with this guy! The menacing Dr. Otto Octavius—Doctor Octopus—in an undated painting by Gray Morrow. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions (www.ha.com). TM & © Marvel.

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ranck Martini Spider-Rogues Issue • BACK ISSUE • 3

TM & © Marvel.

Several of the earliest foes of Spider-Man are based on a totem animal, like the Wall-Crawler himself, and can be split into two main categories: the robbers (the Scorpion, Electro, the Vulture) and the scientists gone wrong (the Lizard, the Green Goblin—even if he started more as a crook before his unmasking— and Doctor Octopus). Spider-Man co-creator Stan Lee explained this totemic aspect during a convention in 2017: “I’m always looking for some animal or fish or bird that would make a good villain. (…) And Doc Ock, it occurred to me that an octopus with a lot of tentacles, that would be pretty scary. So that was all. It was as simple as that.” Peter Parker is a scientist himself like Curt Connors (the Lizard), Otto Octavius (Doctor Octopus), and Norman Osborn (Green Goblin). His link with this type of villain has always been more direct, with higher stakes, because of those villains’ connections with Peter while they were antagonizing Spider-Man. Fights against the Lizard have always had a special edge because Connors’ family was very often part of the story. As for the Green Goblin, each appearance post– The Amazing Spider-Man #39 (Aug. 1966) has had a dramatic impact for Spider-Man and his loved ones. When it comes to Doctor Octopus and SpiderMan, though, their enmity has almost always been personal because the majority of their Silver and Bronze Age confrontations involved someone close to the Web-Spinner. After the Bronze Age, and especially in recent years, things would become personal at a “superior” level.

Through the history of both characters, it would frequently feel like Parker and Octavius could very well be two sides of a coin, as one-time ASM writer/editor Marv Wolfman explained in Spider-Man Chronicle: Celebrating 50 Years of Web-Slinging: “Doctor Octopus shared many traits with Peter Parker. They were both shy, both interested in science, and both had trouble relating to women. … Otto Octavius even looked like a grownup Peter Parker. Lee and Ditko intended Otto to be the man Peter might have become if he hadn’t been raised with a sense of responsibility.” One could also view that their origin stories are similar: a lab accident gone wrong, with positive consequences on one side and negative ones on the other.

PERSONAL, RIGHT FROM THE START

Doctor Octopus’ first appearance (ASM #3, July 1963; see inset at left) is an origin story concluding with a Spidey victory. The initial defeat Webhead suffers from his first encounter with Ock started the “Is this the end of Spider-Man?” trope. In Doc Ock’s second appearance (ASM #11, Apr. 1964), Doctor Octopus is connected to the murder of Bennett Brant, brother of Betty Brant, the girlfriend of Peter Parker at the time. This would be the first case of Ock’s actions creating a rift between Peter and one of his girlfriends. The pattern would reemerge in the future. The following issue (ASM #12, May 1964) has Doctor Octopus abducting Betty once more—and more importantly, Octopus unmasking Spidey. Peter was weakened by a virus during this fight, so nobody “bought” that this weakling teenager could be Spider-Man—a close call for our hero. Later on, Doc Ock once again kidnaps Betty, along with Peter’s Aunt May, during the first gathering of the Sinister Six (ASM Annual #1, Oct. 1964). This story sets up the first connection between Doctor Octopus and Aunt May, who finds Octopus “charming.” In the classic Master Planner three-parter, Doctor Octopus is the villain to beat to save a dying Aunt May (ASM #31–33, Dec. 1964–Feb. 1966). This storyline is viewed by many as one of the greatest Spidey stories of all times: “The ‘Master Planner’ trilogy hits on every level,” explained Marv Wolfman in Comic Creators on Spider-Man (Titan Books, 2004). “Peter is trying to save Aunt May, and is trapped beneath this mountain of debris. It is an internal story that really

When Otto Met May (top left) The Amazing Spider-Man #54 (Nov. 1967) furthers Aunt May’s attraction to Doc Ock. Cover by John Romita, Sr. (top right) Spidey’s up in arms when his beloved aunt walks down the aisle with his diabolical foe in ASM #131 (Apr. 1974). Cover by Gil Kane and Frank Giacoia. (bottom) The Ock/May relationship occasionally made the syndicated Amazing Spider-Man comic strip, like this Lee/Lieber daily from February 14, 1981. Original art courtesy of Heritage. TM & © Marvel.

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makes you care about the characters. Superhero comics are not about sophisticated ideas, they’re about emotional responses.” In Roy Thomas’ 75 Years of Marvel (Taschen, 2015), Robert Greenberger gave it an even broader view as he described the classic “Spidey under tons of debris” opening sequence of ASM #33: “These first five pages are a modern-day equivalent to Shakespeare, as Parker’s soliloquy sets the stage for his next action. And with dramatic pacing and storytelling, Ditko delivers one of the great sequences in all comics.”

A DRAMATIC TURN IN THE SILVER AGE

After Ditko’s departure as the artist of The Amazing Spider-Man, Octopus continues to pop up regularly. He moves into Aunt May’s boarding house during the “Tentacles and the Trap” arc (ASM #53–56, Oct. 1967–Jan. 1968), a story that paves the way for the strange relationship Otto Octavius and May Parker have to this day. Stan Lee wrote those stories with very goofy dialogues, presenting May as either a very gullible or naïve person. But this relationship created a very tense situation in the book with a bigger feeling of danger. The fight taking place in May’s house in ASM #54 is a typical example of Spider-Man having to deal with two situations at once: fighting against the bad guy and protecting his aunt, a second pattern that will be another Spider-Man classic. Doc Ock temporarily wipes Spider-Man’s memory with a device called the Nullifier, and cleverly tricks Spidey into being his partner in crime for a while. Doctor Octopus would not reappear for the next two and half years, but his return in the early Bronze Age, in ASM #88–90 (Sept.–Nov. 1970), is a dramatic one. During a fight, his mechanical arms shatter a chimney, and its debris are about to crush a young child. Captain George Stacy—Gwen Stacy’s father— valiantly saves the child but gets hit by falling debris

and dies shortly after. Doc Ock’s actions wedge a gap between Peter Parker and his girlfriend as Gwen blames Spidey for her father’s death. This story is a major defeat for Spider-Man since he loses the fight— and more importantly a big supporter and father figure in Captain Stacy.

THE OCTOPUS AND HAMMERHEAD SHOW

Things go into an interesting direction when Gerry Conway becomes the new writer of Amazing SpiderMan starting with issue #111 (Aug. 1972). Doctor Octopus is seen for the first time since the death of Captain Stacy in issues #112–115 (Sept.–Dec. 1972), in a titanic clash between Ock and new villain Hammerhead… with Spidey caught in the middle. This fight remains on the personal side, with Aunt May serving as caretaker of Doc Ock’s house and eventually choosing to stay in Otto’s house after his defeat to “keep it in order.” May quietly thinks her nephew Peter no longer needs her, but “Dr. Octavius… does.” She is also part of the fight between the two antagonists and issue #115, shows the first

May Day (left) After Doc Ock makes his first Bronze Age appearance, (right) he further complicates the Wall-Crawler’s life by becoming involved with Aunt May. Covers to Amazing Spider-Man #89 (Oct. 1970) and 115 (Dec. 1972) by John Romita, Sr. TM & © Marvel.

Spider-Rogues Issue • BACK ISSUE • 5

When Spider-Man first hit the comic-book scene in 1962, creators Stan Lee and Steve Ditko quickly introduced a murderer’s row of some of the greatest villains to ever grace a comics page. However, even though Spidey has arguably the best Rogues’ Gallery in Marvel Comics, he’s also battled some… let’s say, not-quite A-listers. And to be honest, some of them may have a hard time hitting the B-list. Join BACK ISSUE as we look at the could’a-been-a-contender crowd of Spider-Rogues that only a mother could love.

THE KANGAROO

Spider-Man’s list of animal-themed villains could practically fill a zoo. However, not all these villains were created equal. Take, for instance, the Kangaroo, who first bounced on the scene in The Amazing SpiderMan #81 (Feb. 1970). His only powers (if you can even call them that) were that he could jump (really high) and kick really hard. Can you guess where he got these abilities? Wrong, he wasn’t kicked by a radioactive kangaroo. But Australian Frank Oliver was fascinated by the creatures, so he “lived in kangaroo country— eating what they ate—going where they went—working—training.” He basically got his power from hanging out with the kangaroos and doing what they did. He used his newfound abilities in a short-lived boxing career. It was short-lived because in his first match, Oliver kicked his opponent so hard it almost killed him. Oliver went on the lam and ended up in New York City. Kangaroo held up an armored car, but instead of money, he found a vial of deadly experimental bacteria. Not wanting to leave empty-handed, Oliver took the vial. Spider-Man was able to locate Kangaroo and save the vial before it could be broken. Oliver managed to escape his encounter with Spidey. This wouldn’t be their last meeting, as they fought again in ASM #126 (Nov. 1973), written by Gerry Conway with pencils by Ross Andru. Oliver had enlisted the services of Jonas Harrow to enhance his abilities. In return, Oliver was tasked with stealing a radioactive isotope. Spider-Man attempted to spoil the theft, but was overwhelmed by the now more-powerful Kangaroo. Even though he overpowered Spider-Man, Oliver perished because he didn’t properly protect himself from the radiation. Conway tells BI why he brought the Kangaroo back: “I loved the silliness of that character. Stan had these kind of one-power characters that seemed useless in the larger sense. The Kangaroo’s basic skill set was that he could jump. That to me was pretty funny. I’ve always liked what I consider the groundlevel villains. Characters like the Kangaroo who are menacing, they’re not without danger, but they are definitely a low-key threat to the city at large. Basically, villains that have an impact on the hero that don’t really threaten large-scale problems.” Oliver wasn’t the only person to take on the Kangaroo identity. Brian Hibbs, created by Marc McLaurin and Scott Benefiel, first appeared in Cage #13 (Apr. 1993) before writer J. M. DeMatteis and artist Luke Ross had him take on the mantle of the Kangaroo in Spectacular Spider-Man #242 (Jan. 1997). Hibbs was inspired to become a costumed criminal by Oliver, so it was only natural for him to take on the role of the Kangaroo. However, like Oliver before him, Hibbs was easily defeated by the Webbed Wonder. Why did DeMatteis decide to bring back the Kangaroo? “I chose him because he was so odd. One of Spidey’s silliest antagonists.”

THE GIBBON

Stan Lee and John Romita, Sr. premiered another not-so-spectacular Spider-Rogue in ASM #110 (July 1972). This was the first appearance of Martin Blank/the Gibbon, a mutant who had an ape-like appearance. He joined the circus and took on a furry costume to enhance his already simian features. While in the circus, he honed his acrobatic skills. “The origin of that character was that Stan had been at a zoo in New York, either the Bronx Zoo or the Central Park Zoo, and saw a 16 • BACK ISSUE • Spider-Rogues Issue

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Lute

He’ll ‘Roo’ the Day (inset) John Romita, Sr.’s cover for Amazing Spider-Man #81 (Feb. 1970), premiering the hopping-mad Kangaroo. (above) Courtesy of Heritage Auctions (www.ha.com), original art to an alternate version of the cover. Note how Romita changed Spidey’s posture to a front-view, in-action pose in the published version. TM & © Marvel.

gibbon. He thought it would make for an interesting villain. A guy would get the strength and agility of a gibbon,” reveals Conway. Blank originally wanted to join Spider-Man on his superheroic adventures because he felt a kinship with the Wall-Crawler due to their similar acrobatic skills. However, the ever-sensitive superhero laughed at Blank’s suggestion. Of course, this angered him, so instead of working for good, Blank took on the moniker of the Gibbon and became an adversary instead of an ally. Blank eventually teamed up with Kraven the Hunter, who saw Blank as someone that he could manipulate to his own ends. Kraven even provided the Gibbon with an herbal potion that enhanced his strength. He was actually able to defeat Spider-Man, but snapped out of his drug-induced stupor before he killed him. Lee and Romita may have created the Gibbon, but Conway completed the three-part story that introduced him. He states, “I inherited that story and most of it was plotted by John Romita since he had initiated the story with Stan, so I was basically following their lead on that one. The Gibbon didn’t seem to offer many possibilities to me as a writer, but bringing Kraven into it helped to raise the stakes in the story. Kraven is a much more deadly villain.”

THE MINDWORM

Lest readers think that only Stan the Man and Jazzy Johnny were involved with creating Spidey’s B- and C-listers, along came Conway and artist Ross Andru with the Mindworm, who debuted in ASM #138 (Aug. 1974). William Turner was a mutant who needed to feed off of the psionic energies of others. In an orphanage, he was given the name of Mindworm for his enlarged cranium and abilities. Due to his looks, Turner became a loner as an adult. He was a neighbor to Flash Thompson, which brought him into contact with Peter Parker. However, due to his enhanced abilities, Spider-Man was able to fight off the Mindworm’s psionic touch, enabling him to knock out Turner. Conway relates, “The intention was it was a oneissue story with a recluse. He was kind of based a little bit on Boo Radley from To Kill a Mockingbird.” While the Mindworm might not have been one of Spider-Man’s most memorable antagonists, the house

he resided in was. “That was a story that had disastrous consequences for Marvel,” Conway reveals to BACK ISSUE. “Ross Andru drew the house based on an actual house that he had seen in Far Rockaway, [Queens,] New York. The problem was that house was easily identifiable, and people started going up to the house asking if the Mindworm lived there. The owners of the house became so upset that they threatened to sue Marvel. We had to make an announcement in the letters page that there was no resemblance to the house or something like that. At that point Ross got ordered to be very careful in the future not to use specific identifiable locations. He had to change things sufficiently so that they couldn’t be identifiable. “Ross loved to take photographs of places and use them as reference,” Conway continues. “He even did that in Manhattan at my apartment. We went up on the roof of my building and he took photos of different rooftops so that Spidey could have specific places to swing over on his web. He did do that a lot. He was so good at capturing that, but in this case it backfired because it was a private location rather than a public one.” The Mindworm finally saw the error of his ways in Spectacular Spider-Man #35 (Oct. 1979) and renounced using his abilities to harm others. Unfortunately, his struggle with mental illness got the better of him and he allowed himself to be killed by thugs in Spectacular Spider-Man vol. 2 #22 (Feb. 2005).

GRIZZLY

Conway is one of the greatest writers to get his hands on the Wall-Crawler, and Andru was a long-running artist on the book, but that doesn’t mean that everything they touched turned to gold. Enter the Grizzly, who first appeared in ASM #139 (Sept. 1974). Maxwell Markham, a former professional wrestler who lost his license to wrestle after his vicious maneuvers were revealed in a Daily Bugle editorial by J. Jonah Jameson, wanted revenge on Jameson and obtained a grizzlybear suit that also augmented his strength. The suit was designed and built by the Jackal. Spider-Man saved JJJ and defeated Markham. Markham teamed up with the Jackal in the following issue, but was again defeated by Spider-Man and this time sent to prison. Conway discusses the creation of the Grizzly: “I think I was just trying to follow in the footsteps of

Things Get Hairy for Spidey (left) The Gibbon flips over the Wall-Crawler on the Romita/Frank Giacoia cover of ASM #110 (July 1972). (middle) A mind-controlled mob under Mindworm’s thrall attacks Webhead on the Gil Kane/ Romita cover to ASM #138 (Nov. 1974). (right) Penciler Ross Andru based Mindworm’s home on an actual house in Queens, New York. TM & © Marvel.

Spider-Rogues Issue • BACK ISSUE • 17

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Welcome to the CAMP AGE, when spies liked their wars cold and their women warm, good guys beat bad guys with a punWelcome and a punch, Batman meanliked cape.their HERO-A-GO-GO celebrates thewarm, camp good craze guys of thebeat Swinging Sixties, to theand CAMP AGE,shook whena spies wars cold and their women bad guys with a when justa about teens aofmean Riverdale, ant and a squirrel, even thethePresident of the States—was pun and punch,everyone—the and Batman shook cape. an HERO-A-GO-GO celebrates camp craze of United the Swinging Sixties,a editor MICHAELofEURY takes you through that super-hero or a secret agent. BACK ISSUE magazineanand Comics when just about everyone—the teens of Riverdale, antformer and a DC squirrel, even the President the United States—was a coolest cultural with this all-new collection nostalgic essays, editor histories, and theme song lyrics classic 1960s MICHAEL EURY takes youofthrough that super-hero or a phenomenon secret agent. BACK ISSUE magazine and of former DC Comics characters like CAPTAIN ACTION, HERBIE THEcollection FAT FURY,ofCAPTAIN ANT, SCOOTER, ACG’s coolest cultural phenomenon with this all-new nostalgic NICE, essays,ATOM histories, and theme song lyricsNEMESIS, of classicDELL’S 1960s SUPER-FRANKENSTEIN DRACULA, theTHE “Split!” CAPTAIN MARVEL, and others! Featuring interviews BILL MUMY characters like CAPTAIN and ACTION, HERBIE FAT FURY, CAPTAIN NICE, ATOM ANT, SCOOTER, ACG’swith NEMESIS, DELL’S (It’s a Bird It’s a Plane … It’sMARVEL, Superman), (The Mighty Heroes, Spider(Lost in Space), BOB HOLIDAY SUPER-FRANKENSTEIN and DRACULA, the…“Split!” CAPTAIN andRALPH others!BAKSHI Featuring interviews with BILL MUMY Man),inDEAN TORRENCE (Jan and Batman), FRADONRALPH (Metamorpho), DICK DeBARTOLO (Captain (It’sDean a BirdMeet … It’s a PlaneRAMONA … It’s Superman), BAKSHI (The Mighty Heroes, Spider(Lost Space), BOB HOLIDAY Klutz), TONYTORRENCE TALLARICO(Jan (Theand Great Society Book), VINCE GARGIULO (Palisades ParkDICK historian), JOE SINNOTT Man), DEAN Dean MeetComic Batman), RAMONA FRADON (Metamorpho), DeBARTOLO (Captain(The Beatles comic TALLARICO book), JOSE (The DELBO (TheSociety Monkees comic book), andGARGIULO many more!(Palisades Park historian), JOE SINNOTT (The Klutz), TONY Great Comic Book), VINCE Beatles comic book), JOSE DELBO (The Monkees comic book), and many more!

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Look At Those Choppers! Spidey vs. the lethal Lizard—who is actually his tormented friend and mentor, Dr. Curt Connors— in a bloodcurdling Copper Age encounter in The Amazing Spider-Man #313 (Mar. 1989). Art by Todd McFarlane. TM & © Marvel.

Spider-Rogues Issue • BACK ISSUE • 23

They Hatched the Lizard (top) Amazing Spider-Man’s Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. © Marvel.

Quick! Who’s that Marvel Comics scientist with an alliterative name? Oh, you know! Usually wears purple pants and if he gets too angry, he sometimes turns green and develops super-strength. In recent years, he’s been in the movies. Oh… come on… wait. What? Who? Bruce? Bruce who? No, no, no, I’m talking about Dr. Curtis “Curt” Connors—the Lizard! For the longest time, the Lizard was arguably the most sympathetic of Spider-Man’s Rogues’ Gallery. He was a good man looking to make a scientific breakthrough who, instead, accidentally cursed himself. If anything, the concept of Dr. Connors and his monster was more Jekyll and Hyde than that of the Incredible Hulk, although the Hulk, too, is a character often mentioned in the context of Robert Louis Stevenson’s famous story. There is, however, an added level of poignancy to the story of the Lizard.

A ‘DONE-IN-ONE’ DROP-IN?

The Lizard debuted in the Silver Age as an early Spidey antagonist in The Amazing Spider-Man #6 (Nov. 1963). Although the credits for that issue read, “Written by Stan Lee,” what we know now of the types of characters artist Steve Ditko tended to create, and the way those early Marvels tended to be done, it seems likely that the Lizard was a Ditko creation, with Lee providing his dialogue, as was the usual way of what came to be known as the Marvel Method. Spider-Man is challenged by J. Jonah Jameson to capture the mysterious human lizard said to be wandering in the Florida Everglades. Jameson decides to go there himself to watch what he secretly hopes will be his nemesis’ defeat, and he takes photographer Peter Parker along to get pics. Peter has heard of a local doctor named Curt Connors who is an expert on lizards, and after his initial encounter with the scaly green monster in the white lab coat, Spidey decides to pay a call at Doc Connors’ secluded home to possibly get some assistance. It’s there where he learns that Connors is, in fact, the Lizard. He had lost his right arm in “the War.” It’s not specified, but we’re led to believe by his apparent age, and when the comic came out, that he was in Korea. He’s a decent man, a renowned research scientist, a husband to Martha and a father to Billy. So how did this saint of a man become the raging, scaly, green Lizard… and with two arms? You see, in the real world, certain species of lizards and salamanders can regenerate lesser versions of their tails should they lose them, and some lizard

See! The Amazing Half-Man Half-Reptile! (middle left) In his inaugural outing in ASM #6 (Nov. 1963), the Lizard, as drawn by Steve Ditko, more resembles a Florida sideshow attraction than the monster he would become in return appearances. (middle right) Different Ditko art from the issue was used on the cover of this 12-page reprint, issued in 2006 via the Los Angeles Times. (bottom) An early example of Spidey calling on his scientific wiz pal Dr. Curt Connors. From ASM #43 (Dec. 1966). Art by John Romita, Sr. TM & © Marvel.

24 • BACK ISSUE • Spider-Rogues Issue

tails are actually designed to be expendable, shed in an effort to confound predators while the lizard makes its escape. An online article by Rob Harris explains the phenomenon better than any other source I’ve seen. Harris writes, “Although scientists don’t completely understand how lizards regenerate their tails, they know lizards are capable of dedifferentiating cells. This means existing cells at the base of the tail, or the base of the break along the tail, revert back to a more primitive cell, similar to a stem cell. These cells can be ‘programmed’ to become the cells necessary to build a new tail, such as a muscle or skin cell. When a break occurs, a cell that might have once been a muscle cell dedifferentiates, waiting for instructions on what kind of cell to become. It then begins to divide into more cells of the necessary type.” Harris goes on to write that the new tails have no new bones and are actually quite different from the originals—a pale imitation, really. And lizards actually cannot regrow limbs in the real world—only the severed or abandoned tails. Now, salamanders are a different type of amphibious species, and they can generally grow actual replacement limbs. But “Spider-Man vs. the Salamander” just didn’t have the same ring to it, I guess. No, instead, as Mrs. Connors tearfully explains to her costumed visitor, Dr. Curt Connors became the Lizard in his attempt at finding a formula that would regrow his missing right arm. In testing it on himself, Connors managed to successfully replace his absent limb, but only at the expense of his humanity. Like Dr. Jekyll and his experiments, the rampaging Lizard was Mr. Hyde—a powerful, but seemingly toothless, Mr. Hyde. At first, he tried to create an antidote to his bioregenerative formula, but his mind was rapidly clouding. As early as the following day, he wrote a goodbye note to Martha and then fled deeper into the swamps. “Flee puny humans! This swamp is mine!” he hissed. His fevered brain formulated a vague plot to create a “savage, super-powerful lizard army.”

Fangs a Lot! (above) Six-armed Spidey tangles with the toothy twosome of the Lizard and Morbius (misspelled as “Moribus” on the cover) on the Gil Kane/Frank Giacoia cover to ASM #102 (Nov. 1971). This is the sole issue of Amazing Spider-Man published during Marvel’s oh-so-brief 1971 flirtation with an expanded page count and price tag in competition with DC Comics; one month later, Marvel abruptly shifted gears, reduced its page count to the normal 32, and undercut DC’s cover price by five cents. (left) On the splash of ASM #44, Lee and Romita quickly recap the Lizard’s plight. TM & © Marvel.

Spider-Rogues Issue • BACK ISSUE • 25

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In the 20 years following the Jackal’s first appearance, the Jackal was seen in a mere nine issues, with Carrion managing ten, yet these two Spider-Rogues left a legacy that continues to affect the Spider-Verse today.

DON’T STAND SO CLOSE TO ME

by J o h n

Schwirian

When Stan Lee and Steve Ditko introduced Peter Parker’s college chemistry teacher in Amazing Spider-Man #31 (Dec. 1965), they never imagined that Professor Miles Warren would develop into one of the more controversial villains in Spider-Man’s history. Do not confuse Miles Warren with Parker’s high school science teacher, Mr. Warren from ASM #8 (Jan. 1964). The two look nothing alike. However, writers Roger Stern and Kurt Busiek retroactively made the two instructors into brothers in 1997’s Untold Tales of Spider-Man #25 in a tale where Mr. Raymond Warren takes his best science student (Peter Parker) on a tour of Empire State University and introduces the boy to Professor Miles Warren. Under Stan Lee, Professor Warren appeared infrequently, usually in a single panel to remind Peter of his slipping grades. The professor’s one shining moment is in ASM #53 (Oct. 1967), when he gives Peter two tickets to a science expo and offers to drive him there. Upon hearing about the tickets, fellow science major Gwen Stacy convinces Peter to take her along and Professor Warren states his admiration for Peter’s choice. Several interesting events occur in this issue, which were most likely intended for humorous effect, but take on a more sinister hue when viewed in terms of what will be revealed a few years later. First, the professor catches Peter changing out of his costume in the gym, but only sees Peter climbing down a rope with his “undershirt” protruding from under his clothes. On the ride to the expo, they discuss the Nullifier (a new type of missile defense) that is the centerpiece of the show. Professor Warren comments that it will be “a practical application of the many seemingly unrelated theories we’ve been discussing in class.” Just what are they talking about in chemistry? Of course, the expo is disrupted by Doctor Octopus. Later, after Spider-Man has restored order, and Peter reunites with Gwen and Warren, the professor wonders, “if only [Spider-Man’s] identity could be exposed. What a subject he’d be—for a psychological study. Imagine learning what motivates such a man— altruism or deep-rooted schizophrenia?” Why the hesitation in thought? Did the professor have something else in mind to study? If Stan Lee was building up the professor for a possible plot development, we’ll never know, as Professor Warren only makes two more brief appearances before disappearing altogether for the rest of Lee’s duration on the book.

Send in the Clone The cackling, conniving Jackal turned up several times during the Bronze Age to give poor Spidey a never-ending headache… and a clone! Cover to Amazing Spider-Man #149 (Oct. 1975) by Gil Kane and Frank Giacoia. TM & © Marvel.

Spider-Rogues Issue • BACK ISSUE • 41

Twisted Triangle Mark Bagley and Larry Mahlstedt’s flip cover to ASM #394 (Oct. 1994) hints at the complex storyline linking Spidey, Peter, Gwen Stacy, and Professor Warren. TM & © Marvel.

is revealed that he is the clone thought to have Warren and the one that died in Shea Stadium was died in the explosion at Shea Stadium. Many a clone. This Jackal does not wear a costume—he has mutated into a green-skinned, superpowered other clones appear, including the mysterious being whose mind has snapped entirely. Kaine! This is the end of Malcolm McBride’s The Jackal takes credit for making many part of the story. The mysterious Judas clones, including Gwen (Joyce Delaney) Traveller appears in Ravencroft, Stacy, the Professor Warren that using his illusion powers to make died at Shea Stadium, the Professor Malcolm believe he has become Warren that became the first Carrion again. However, Traveller Carrion, Ben Reilly, Kaine, and the drops the spell and Malcolm is newly emerged Spidercide. Oh, and cured for good. The Carrion virus let us not forget the mysterious did completely transfer to Shriek, Warren Miles—a Professor Warren only to be removed from her by clone that was happily married to the Jackal. Gwen (Joyce Delaney) Stacy in The Jackal? Isn’t he dead? New Jersey until he died from Ummm, kind of sort of… clone degeneration disease. Yes, the Jackal is back, but this terry kavanagh This Jackal is a master manipis a Jackal we’ve not seen before. Facebook. ulator, using deceit to pit Peter, Emerging after five years in a cloning chamber that genetically restructured his body, Ben, and Kaine against each other just for fun while this Jackal claims that he is the real Professor Miles he seeks the means to control the genetic matrix. “I believe our original intent was to have the Jackal be the non-physical threat to the Spider-Men,” Kavanagh clarifies, “and Kaine would be the physical threat. But, to me at least, the real drama was always going to come from the internal conflicts of Ben and Peter. What inspired the whole storyline, obviously, was the story Gerry Conway had done when he introduced the unnamed clone. What resonates from that story is that neither Spider-Man was a bad guy—they both essentially were steered by Peter Parker’s moral compass—and the ‘two good people in a bad situation’ is a more interesting dynamic to me than good vs. bad.” Eventually, the Jackal falls to his death, leaving everyone in doubt as to who is and who isn’t a clone until finally Ben dies from clone degeneration, revealing the one true Peter Parker to be the guy married to Mary Jane all these years. As an epilogue to the Clone Saga, The Osborn Journals reveals that Norman Osborn did not die when impaled by his glider. Instead, he went into hiding and manipulated events to continue to make Parker miserable. Osborn funded Warren’s research and sent Scrier to aid Warren in his cloning agenda. After the Clone Saga, almost anything goes! Roger Stern created a new Carrion when Dr. William Allen examines the Jackal’s corpse and contracts the virus (Spider-Man: Dead Man’s Hand). Jackal clones appeared frequently while the real Professor Warren stayed hidden behind the scenes in stories like Daredevil vs. Punisher #1–6, the “Spider Island” story arc, Amazing Spider-Man #693, Avenging Spider-Man #16, Superior Spider-Man Team-Up #1–2, Scarlet Spider #20, the “Dead No More: The Clone Conspiracy” event, Marvel Team-Up vol. 4 #1–2, and Ghost Spider #1–3. With clones aplenty to do Professor Warren’s dirty work, the Jackal is now a major villain in the Spider-Verse. “That’s great!” chuckles Gerry Conway. “I love that. That’s an extrapolation of his person and what we know about him that makes complete and perfect sense. It doesn’t contradict the theme of the character. I like that. It’s cool.” By day, JOHN SCHWIRIAN is a mild-mannered college English professor, but by night, he dons the role of comic-book historian.

48 • BACK ISSUE • Spider-Rogues Issue

by J o s e p h

Norton

Don’t Play Footsies with This Guy (left) The Tarantula’s first appearance, in The Amazing Spider-Man #134 (July 1974). Cover art by John Romita, Sr. (right) Ol’ pointy toes helps launch the new Spidey book Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man #1 (July 1976). Cover by Sal Buscema and Romita. TM & © Marvel.

Created by two of Spider-Man’s finest Bronze Age craftsmen, writer Gerry Conway and artist Ross Andru, the Tarantula was perfectly positioned to be a major foil to Peter Parker. His costume’s reverse coloring of Spider-Man’s blue-and-red uniform made a great visual contrast. His athletic fighting style was remarkably similar to the Wall-Crawler’s. His name was a natural fit for an epic nemesis of Spider-Man. Look at the Tarantula’s first few cover appearances and you can feel the energy as he boldly slashes across the page toward our hero. His appearances were also perfectly placed in Spider-Man history to cast him as a major opponent. He showed up in a one of the most memorable early Punisher tales, and was a major player in the Clone Saga. Of all the rogues that Spider-Man had by that time, the Tarantula was picked to be the villain for the premiere of the Bronze Age classic title, Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man. The Tarantula had pedigree, was well placed in the narrative, and had a classic bad guy’s name. Why, then, was he never considered a major opponent? Why was he relegated to second-tier status, even in stories where he was the featured villain? What did the Lizard, Electro, and Doctor Octopus have that the Tarantula did not?

‘CAPTAIN DELVADIA’

In The Amazing Spider-Man #134 (July 1974), we met the villain with the arachnid moniker as he was hijacking a sightseeing cruise for ransom. Peter Parker quickly changed into Spider-Man, but Spidey was undone by the Tarantula’s poison-tipped boots. Stunned, Spider-Man then faced an angry Punisher in a riveting cliffhanger. Next issue, we learned (in a gloriously retro info dump, complete with a film projector) that the Punisher was trailing Anton Miguel Rodriguez, a former leftist guerilla (how very ’70s) that was too cruel for the rebels and wrangled into service of the same oppressive government he rebelled against, later identified as the fictional South American nation of Delvadia. The Tarantula was being positioned as Delvadia’s own costumed superhero. “That was the thought, their [Delvadia’s] very own ‘Captain America,’” the character’s creator, Gerry Conway, tells BACK ISSUE. In the story, the Punisher explained that the Tarantula was now a mercenary, and that Spider-Man and he should team up to stop Rodriguez. Conway explains that the character of the Tarantula was in part “motivated by El Condor,” a swashbuckling character the writer introduced along with Delvadia, in Daredevil #75 (Apr. 1971). Spider-Rogues Issue • BACK ISSUE • 49

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SILVER ISSUE, starring the Silver Surfer in the Bronze Age! Plus: JACK KIRBY’s Silver Star, SCOTT HAMPTON’s Silverheels, Silver Sable, Silver Banshee, DC’s Silver Age Classics, and more! Featuring BUSIEK, BUTLER, BYRNE, ENGLEHART, STAN LEE, LIM, MARZ, MOEBIUS, POLLARD, MARSHALL ROGERS, ALEX ROSS, JIM STARLIN, and more. Cover by RON FRENZ and JOE SINNOTT.

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BRONZE AGE COMICS STRIPS! SpiderMan, Friday Foster, DC’s World’s Greatest Superheroes starring Superman, Howard the Duck, Richie Rich, Star Hawks, Star Trek, MIKE GRELL’s Tarzan, and more! Plus Charlton’s comic strip tie-ins and the MENOMONEE FALLS GAZETTE. With COLAN, GOODWIN, GIL KANE, KREMER, STAN LEE, ROMITA, THOMAS, TUSKA, and more.

1980s PRE-CRISIS DC MINISERIES! Green Arrow, Secrets of the Legion, Tales of the Green Lantern Corps, Krypton Chronicles, America vs. the Justice Society, Legend of Wonder Woman, Conqueror of the Barren Earth, and more! Featuring MIKE W. BARR, KURT BUSIEK, PAUL KUPPERBERG, RON RANDALL, TRINA ROBBINS, JOE STATON, CURT SWAN, ROY THOMAS, and others. VON EEDEN and GIORDANO cover.

CLASSIC HEROES IN THE BRONZE AGE! The Lone Ranger and Tonto, Flash Gordon, Popeye, Zorro and Lady Rawhide, Son of Tomahawk, Jungle Twins, and more! Featuring the work of DAN JURGENS, JOE R. LANSDALE, DON McGREGOR, FRANK THORNE, TIM TRUMAN, GEORGE WILDMAN, THOMAS YEATES, and other creators. With a classic 1979 fully painted Gold Key cover of Flash Gordon.

NOT-READY-FOR-PRIMETIME MARVEL HEROES! Mighty Marvel’s Bronze Age second bananas: Doc Samson, Jack of Hearts, Thundra, Nighthawk, Starfox, Modred the Mystic, Woodgod, the Shroud, Thunderbird and Warpath, Stingray, Wundaar, and others! Featuring the work of BUSIEK, DAVID, ENGLEHART, GERBER, GIFFEN, GRANT, MANTLO, MICHELINIE, STERN, THOMAS, and other A-list talent!

DINOSAUR COMICS! Interviews with Xenozoic®’s MARK SCHULTZ and dinoartist extraordinaire WILLIAM STOUT! Plus: Godzilla at Dark Horse, Sauron villain history, Dinosaurs Attack!, Dinosaurs for Hire, Dinosaur Rex, Dino Riders, Lord Dinosaur, and Jurassic Park! Featuring ARTHUR ADAMS, BISSETTE, CLAREMONT, COCKRUM, GERANI, STRADLEY, ROY THOMAS, and more. SCHULTZ cover.

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SPIES AND P.I.s! Nick Fury from Howling Commando to Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., Ms. Tree’s MAX ALLAN COLLINS and TERRY BEATTY in a Pro2Pro interview, MARK EVANIER on his Crossfire series, a Hydra villain history, WILL EISNER’s John Law, Checkmate, and Tim Trench and Mike Mauser. With ENGLEHART, ERWIN, HALL, ISABELLA, KUPPERBERG, STATON, THOMAS, and cover by DAVE JOHNSON!

SUPER ISSUE! Superboy’s Bronze Age A special tribute issue to NEAL ADAMS BRONZE AGE SAVAGE LANDS, starring adventures, and interviews with GERARD (1941–2022), celebrating his Bronze Ka-Zar in the 1970s! Plus: Turok—Dinosaur CHRISTOPHER and STACY HAIDUK of the Age DC Comics contributions! In-depth Hunter, DON GLUT’s Dagar and Tragg, Superboy live-action TV series. Plus: Super Batman and Superman interviews, ‘Green Annihilus and the Negative Zone, Planet Goof, Super Richie (Rich), Super-Dagwood, Lantern/Green Arrow’—Fifty Years Later, of Vampires, Pat Mills’s Flesh (from Super Mario Bros., Frank Thorne’s Far Out Neal Adams—Under the Radar, Continuity 2000AD), and WALTER SIMONSON and Green Super Cool, NICK MEGLIN and JACK Associates, a ‘Rough Stuff’ pencil art gallery, MIKE MIGNOLA’s Wolverine: The Jungle DAVIS’ Superfan, and more! Featuring Power Records, and more! Re-presenting Adventure. With CONWAY, GULACY, a Superboy and Krypto cover by DAVE Adams’ iconic cover art to BATMAN #227. HAMA, NICIEZA, SEARS, THOMAS, and COCKRUM! Edited by MICHAEL EURY. (Plus: See ALTER EGO #181!) more! JOHN BUSCEMA cover!

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by J o

hn K. Kirk

Wilson Fisk, the Kingpin of Crime, has had a long and illustrious career of thwarting Spider-Man and other heroes since his first appearance in 1967. For over 55 years, this character has undergone a number of transitions, growing from a crime boss with limited, two-dimensional motivations into a complicated adversary whose political and corporate corruptions are as sophisticated as the ambitions he demonstrates. While the stories the Kingpin is featured in became more sophisticated as time progressed, it’s fair to say that the character himself has become more sophisticated in kind. Long-time readers have witnessed his transformation into a powerful supervillain, the revelation of his marital status and his parenthood, and eventually his rejection of his life of crime. In later comics, he becomes a philanthropist and a politician who grows to believe he cares about the community he once terrorized, albeit it in his own blind, eventually self-serving way. In short, the Kingpin has evolved over the years, becoming someone whose variations continue to fascinate and entertain generations of comic-book fans. But at his heart, he is still just the simple thug whose inability to see beyond himself twists and destroys everything he believes he loves… even his own illusions. The Kingpin is doomed to failure because he is unable to see beyond his own petty needs, despite how much wealth, power, and refinement he accrues.

HUMBLE ORIGINS: KINGPIN, THE CRIMINAL BOSS

Looking at the first appearance of the Kingpin in Amazing Spider-Man #50 and 51 (June and July 1967), we see a crime boss who uses his massive size and strong-arm tactics to intimidate mobsters into obeying his orders. But it’s also clear that the Kingpin has a strategic side to his personality that other criminals don’t have. It’s this vision that almost legitimizes his methods to other members of the underworld; while they fear him, they also respect him. This is the Kingpin’s earliest inception, and without a lot of depth we learn the scope of his character, created by Stan Lee and John Romita, Sr. The Kingpin is brutish and egotistic, and his plans are fairly basic. While he has superior strength and fighting skill, he also has a laser blaster in his cane. But his main ability is his influence and ability to organize henchmen and underlings for criminal purposes. It’s a simple character template: the Kingpin is a bully—a clever one, but a bully nonetheless. His plans are simple in scope. Like this one: in ASM #51, he aims to consolidate his hold on the crime gangs of New York after being elected to be

Have a Seat, Spidey This original cover art for The Amazing Spider-Man #197 (Oct. 1979) was not found underneath the sofa but instead comes to us courtesy of Heritage Auctions (www.ha.com). Pencils by Keith Pollard, inks by Frank Giacoia. (inset) The published version. TM & © Marvel.

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john romita, sr. Brandonbaker01/Spider-Man Animated Wiki.

‘Can he swing?’ Behold, Jazzy Johnny Romita’s jolting original cover art to ASM #60 (May 1968). Courtesy of Heritage. TM & © Marvel.

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in charge and launches a crime wave like the city has never seen before. However, with J. Jonah Jameson constantly spouting Daily Bugle editorials about rumors of an underworld takeover, it’s clear to the Kingpin that JJJ has to be quieted. He orders his underlings to kidnap Jameson to either keep him quiet or put him on ice—for good. Every story has a beginning and every character has a starting point. This is the Kingpin’s. Marvel purportedly based the character’s physical appearance on a combination of actors Robert Middleton and Sydney Greenstreet. They were also simplistic in their performances of the villains they portrayed, but like Lee and Romita’s work, it was a product of the times and the accepted level of storytelling back then. But, as in most things, simplicity is best. We understand this character and his motivations for future writers to build and develop upon in later stories and roles that the Kingpin plays. For now, this is the Kingpin that is at the heart of every one of the different faces he portrays in other stories, with SpiderMan or other villains who are to come afterwards. Comic writer Paul Jenkins has this to say about the Kingpin: “At his root, he will always be a simple thug. He’s a narcissist—a criminal. It doesn’t matter what hat he puts on; he will always be the bad guy. He’s a crook, plain and simple, and everything he does—whether it’s as a dad, husband, or a politician (and we’ve seen enough of these in this day and age, right?), the Kingpin is a psychotic villain and everything he does will be ruined by that. Even his own plans because, ultimately, they’re selfish and, very easily put, about him.” Interactions between the Kingpin and Spider-Man are very similar, with the Kingpin and the Web-Slinger mixing it up in hand-to-hand combat. In a later story, the Kingpin tries to procure an antique clay tablet that holds the key to eternal youth. It’s a very simple pattern, but in ASM #83 (Apr. 1970), the Kingpin faces a challenge to his fledgling underworld domain in the form of the Schemer. This is when we see one criminal boss go up against another in a battle of wits. The Kingpin is forced to rely upon his own planning abilities to offset those of another planner and cleverly shows his street-smarts by staying out of the conflict, allowing Spider-Man and the Schemer to fight each other, waiting to see which one of his enemies emerges victorious. It’s also of note that in this issue we first see his wife, Vanessa Fisk, and the influence she holds over him. We also get a sense of the type of parent and husband he is, refusing to believe that his son could have perished in an accident and that he wanted to protect his wife from the truth of his death. This is the first time that we see the Kingpin as a family man. We’ll look at this aspect of the character in more detail later on. In the meantime, the battle between the Schemer and the Kingpin continues, with both waiting to see who will emerge from the shadows first to lay claim to the underworld. When they eventually do meet and face each other, it is the Kingpin’s wife who manages to allay the conflict out of an awareness that the reader doesn’t understand until the end of issue #85, when we learn that the Schemer is none other than the Kingpin’s own son, who faked his death to come back and wrest his father’s criminal enterprises for his own. This leaves the Kingpin in a state of defenseless shock, and the city of New York doesn’t hear from him for a while. As a result, the Kingpin’s criminal machinery crumbles and degrades.

Tender Mercies Early Kingpin History: (top) A stern “dressing down.” From ASM #69. (center) Romita’s wizardry at drawing statuesque beauties, partially forged in the fires of romance comics, made him the perfect artist for the icy but fetching Vanessa Fisk. From ASM #83. (bottom) A catatonic Kingpin. From ASM #85. TM & © Marvel.

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