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Amazing-Man (Centaur Publications)
Encyclopedia
Amazing-Man is a fictional
, American comic book
superhero
whose adventures were published by Centaur Publications
during the 1930s to 1940s period fans and historians call the Golden Age of Comic Books
. Historians credit his creation variously to writer-artist Bill Everett
or to Everett together with Centaur art director
Lloyd Jacquet
. Amazing-Man first appeared in Amazing-Man Comics #5 (Sept. 1939)
The character influenced the creation and origin of Charlton Comics
' 1960s superhero Peter Cannon, Thunderbolt
, as well as Marvel Comics
' Iron Fist character in the 1970s. Also, the DC Comics
character Amazing Man, whose real name was Will Everett, was a tribute to this character.
In 2008, Marvel Comics reintroduced the character under the name Prince of Orphans.
, Centaur Publications
produced Amazing-Man's eponymous series, Amazing-Man Comics, which ran from issues #5-26 (Sept. 1939 - Feb. 1942).
In the 1990s, Malibu Comics
made use of the Centaur properties, which had fallen into the public domain, and used these characters, including Amazing-Man, as the roster of its own superhero team, the Protectors
. Aside from the costume, the Malibu version was essentially identical to the original.
Amazing-Man was introduced into the Marvel Comics
universe
, with the character Prince of Orphans revealing his identity as John Aman at the end of Immortal Iron Fist #12 (Feb. 2008). Earlier in the issue, Prince of Orphans is seen turning into a green mist while battling Davos
.
Additionally, under his original name, Amazing-Man is one of many public domain
superheroes to appear in issue #0 of Project Superpowers
, a miniseries from Dynamite Entertainment
; a sketch of him is included in issue #2.
In 2012 they came out with their final publication of the Amazing-Men who's names are Andrew and Eric
, chosen for his "superb physical structure" to be raised by benevolent monks in Tibet
for the first 25 years of his life. Each member of The Council of Seven, as the monks are known, trained him to a superhuman
degree of physical and mental ability, while also giving him the ability via a chemical solution to disappear into a cloud of green mist, earning him the secondary title of the Green Mist. After receiving his final tests, he is sent into the world to use his skills and abilities to do good. Opposing Aman, as he was often known, is his nemesis the Great Question, a disgruntled member of the Council of Seven.
The character later appeared in Secret Avengers #6-12, as the Prince of Orphans, to assist the Secret Avengers
against the Shadow Council. During this, it is revealed he met Captain America (Steve Rogers) during World War II.
During the Fear Itself
storyline, Prince of Orphans appears in Washington D.C, during Blitzkrieg U.S.A, helping with the rescue efforts, alongside War Machine
, Beast
and Ant-Man
. He tells War Machine that the "Eighth City" has been opened.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
, American comic book
American comic book
An American comic book is a small magazine originating in the United States and containing a narrative in the form of comics. Since 1975 the dimensions have standardized at 6 5/8" x 10 ¼" , down from 6 ¾" x 10 ¼" in the Silver Age, although larger formats appeared in the past...
superhero
Superhero
A superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
whose adventures were published by Centaur Publications
Centaur Publications
Centaur Publications was one of the earliest American comic book publishers. During their short existence, they created several colorful characters, including Bill Everett's Amazing Man....
during the 1930s to 1940s period fans and historians call the Golden Age of Comic Books
Golden Age of Comic Books
The Golden Age of Comic Books was a period in the history of American comic books, generally thought of as lasting from the late 1930s until the late 1940s or early 1950s...
. Historians credit his creation variously to writer-artist Bill Everett
Bill Everett
William Blake "Bill" Everett, also known as William Blake and Everett Blake was a comic book writer-artist best known for creating Namor the Sub-Mariner and co-creating Daredevil for Marvel Comics...
or to Everett together with Centaur art director
Art director
The art director is a person who supervise the creative process of a design.The term 'art director' is a blanket title for a variety of similar job functions in advertising, publishing, film and television, the Internet, and video games....
Lloyd Jacquet
Lloyd Jacquet
Lloyd Victor Jacquet was the founder of Funnies, Inc., one of the first and most prominent of a handful of comic book "packagers" established in the late 1930s that created comics on demand for publishers testing the waters of the emerging medium. Among its other achievements, Funnies, Inc...
. Amazing-Man first appeared in Amazing-Man Comics #5 (Sept. 1939)
The character influenced the creation and origin of Charlton Comics
Charlton Comics
Charlton Comics was an American comic book publishing company that existed from 1946 to 1985, having begun under a different name in 1944. It was based in Derby, Connecticut...
' 1960s superhero Peter Cannon, Thunderbolt
Peter Cannon, Thunderbolt
Peter Cannon, Thunderbolt is a fictional superhero character originally owned by Charlton Comics, notable for containing some of the earliest respectful invocations of Eastern mysticism in American pop culture. The character has been owned by the estate of its creator, writer-artist Pete Morisi,...
, as well as Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
' Iron Fist character in the 1970s. Also, the DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
character Amazing Man, whose real name was Will Everett, was a tribute to this character.
In 2008, Marvel Comics reintroduced the character under the name Prince of Orphans.
Publication history
During the 1930s and 1940s period historians and fans call the Golden Age of Comic BooksGolden Age of Comic Books
The Golden Age of Comic Books was a period in the history of American comic books, generally thought of as lasting from the late 1930s until the late 1940s or early 1950s...
, Centaur Publications
Centaur Publications
Centaur Publications was one of the earliest American comic book publishers. During their short existence, they created several colorful characters, including Bill Everett's Amazing Man....
produced Amazing-Man's eponymous series, Amazing-Man Comics, which ran from issues #5-26 (Sept. 1939 - Feb. 1942).
In the 1990s, Malibu Comics
Malibu Comics
Malibu Comics was an American comic book publisher active in the late 1980s and early 1990s, best known for its Ultraverse line of superhero titles. The company's headquarters was in Calabasas, California. Malibu imprints included Aircel Comics and Eternity Comics...
made use of the Centaur properties, which had fallen into the public domain, and used these characters, including Amazing-Man, as the roster of its own superhero team, the Protectors
Protectors
The Protectors was a 20-issue comic book series published by Malibu Comics from 1992 until 1994. Originally meant to be a six-issue series, response was positive enough that Malibu decided to make the series ongoing...
. Aside from the costume, the Malibu version was essentially identical to the original.
Amazing-Man was introduced into the Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
universe
Marvel Universe
The Marvel Universe is the shared fictional universe where most comic book titles and other media published by Marvel Entertainment take place, including those featuring Marvel's most familiar characters, such as Spider-Man, the Hulk, the X-Men, and the Avengers.The Marvel Universe is further...
, with the character Prince of Orphans revealing his identity as John Aman at the end of Immortal Iron Fist #12 (Feb. 2008). Earlier in the issue, Prince of Orphans is seen turning into a green mist while battling Davos
Steel Serpent
Steel Serpent is a fictional character, a supervillain in the Marvel Universe and an enemy of Iron Fist.-Fictional character biography:The Steel Serpent is an exiled native of K'un-L'un, and son of Lei Kung the Thunderer named Davos...
.
Additionally, under his original name, Amazing-Man is one of many public domain
Public domain
Works are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...
superheroes to appear in issue #0 of Project Superpowers
Project Superpowers
Project Superpowers is a comic book limited series published by Dynamite Entertainment beginning January 2008. It was co-plotted by Jim Krueger and Alex Ross, with scripts by Jim Krueger, covers by Alex Ross, and interior art by Doug Klauba and Stephen Sadowski for issue #0, and Carlos Paul for the...
, a miniseries from Dynamite Entertainment
Dynamite Entertainment
Dynamite Entertainment is an American comic book company that primarily publishes licensed franchises of adaptations of other media. These include adaptations of film properties such as Army of Darkness, Terminator and RoboCop, literary properties such as Zorro, Dracula, Sherlock Holmes, Alice in...
; a sketch of him is included in issue #2.
In 2012 they came out with their final publication of the Amazing-Men who's names are Andrew and Eric
Fictional character biography
John Aman is an orphan from the WestWestern world
The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
, chosen for his "superb physical structure" to be raised by benevolent monks in Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
for the first 25 years of his life. Each member of The Council of Seven, as the monks are known, trained him to a superhuman
Superhuman
Superhuman can mean an improved human, for example, by genetic modification, cybernetic implants, or as what humans might evolve into, in the near or distant future...
degree of physical and mental ability, while also giving him the ability via a chemical solution to disappear into a cloud of green mist, earning him the secondary title of the Green Mist. After receiving his final tests, he is sent into the world to use his skills and abilities to do good. Opposing Aman, as he was often known, is his nemesis the Great Question, a disgruntled member of the Council of Seven.
Marvel Comics version
Aman had been sent by the Seven Cities of Heaven to assassinate Orson Randall—the Iron Fist before the present-day Danny Rand took on that mantle—in order to kill another "immortal weapon" like himself. Chasing Randall around the world, Aman would come close to killing his foe, only to yield honorably when Randall's allies would be injured. Eventually, Randall hinted that the masters of the Seven Cities had lied to Aman concerning the Tournament of the Seven Cities, in which every decade the victorious city is allowed to merge with the Earthly plane. Feeling betrayed after discovering the cities' masters had developed gateways to Earth without the knowledge of the cities' populace, Aman dropped his quest against Randall and vowed to make the city masters pay. Randall told Aman to assist the next Iron Fist in a revolution against the Seven Cities.The character later appeared in Secret Avengers #6-12, as the Prince of Orphans, to assist the Secret Avengers
Secret Avengers
Secret Avengers is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics featuring a fictional black ops superhero team of the same name. Written by Ed Brubaker, the series depicts a new version of Marvel's premiere super hero team, the Avengers, which operates under the guidance and leadership...
against the Shadow Council. During this, it is revealed he met Captain America (Steve Rogers) during World War II.
During the Fear Itself
Fear Itself (comics)
"Fear Itself" is a 2011 crossover comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics, consisting of a seven-issue, eponymous miniseries written by Matt Fraction and illustrated by Stuart Immonen, Wade Von Grawbadger, and Laura Martin, a prologue book by writer Ed Brubaker and artist Scott Eaton, and...
storyline, Prince of Orphans appears in Washington D.C, during Blitzkrieg U.S.A, helping with the rescue efforts, alongside War Machine
War Machine
War Machine is a fictional character, a comic book superhero appearing in comic books set in the Marvel Comics universe. The character of James Rhodes first appeared in Iron Man #118 by David Michelinie, John Byrne and Bob Layton...
, Beast
Beast (comics)
Beast , Dr. Henry Philip "Hank" McCoy, is a comic book character, a Marvel Comics superhero and a member of the mutant team of superheroes known as the X-Men...
and Ant-Man
Ant-Man (Eric O'Grady)
Ant-Man is a fictional character, a superhero in the . He is the third character to use the name Ant-Man. He first appears in The Irredeemable Ant-Man #1 and was created by Robert Kirkman and Phil Hester....
. He tells War Machine that the "Eighth City" has been opened.