Fighting American
Encyclopedia
Fighting American is a patriotic comic book
character created in 1954 by writer Joe Simon
and artist Jack Kirby
, published by Crestwood Publication / Prize Comics
and, against normal industry practices of the time, creator-owned
. It was later published by Harvey Comics
, with Marvel Comics
in 1989 publishing a hardcover collection of all his stories.
, deliberately overdoing Fighting American's attitudes; despite this change, the title was cancelled after seven issues.
The character was similar to war-era Captain America
(aside from his jingoisticly
patriotic attitude), wore a similar flag-inspired costume, and worked with a youthful sidekick
, Speedboy, but didn't use a shield. Nelson Flagg was the timid younger brother of star athlete and war hero, Johnny Flagg. After suffering a crippling injury during the war, Johnny later becomes a popular news commentator and stumbles upon a Communist plot to "overthrow the government." He is struck down before he can reveal it to the world, and Nelson makes a deathbed promise to hunt down his brother's murderers. Due to super technology provided by the U.S. military under the code name "Project Fighting American," Johnny's corpse is strengthened and revitalized. Nelson agrees to switch bodies by having his mind transferred via "life force probers." Following the operation, Nelson assumes both his brother's identity of Johnny Flagg and the dual persona of the Fighting American. Soon afterward, Dan Sprite, a blond-haired teenager working as a page at Flagg's news network assists the hero on one of his early adventures. The youth also discovers Flagg's true identity in the process. As a result, the teenager is given his own costume and the name "Speedboy." In case of emergencies, both heroes wore their costumes under a suit and tie and page uniform respectively. Villains were mostly Communists with physical deformities and colorful names, such as Round Robin and Poison Ivan.
Simon told a panel audience at the 1974 New York
Comic Art Convention
that the character was not so much inspired by Captain America as it was simply a product of the times.
, where the character was turned into a former radio host bent on avenging his brother's death, and later in 1997 by Awesome Entertainment, based loosely on the Simon/Kirby stories, as a retired hero coping with the death of his partner. However, since the new series creator was Rob Liefeld
, who months before had been working on the "Heroes Reborn
" version of Captain America for Marvel Comics
(and had indeed plans for a patriotic hero of his own named Agent America), he was accused of plagiarising
Captain America, as Agent American possessed a round shield with a star in the center, he was to face villains such as the Cyber Skull (who looked a lot like a recoloured version of Cap's main foe, the Red Skull
) and a youthful female sidekick (actually a cyborg
named S.P.I.C.E.) virtually identical to the Heroes Reborn Bucky
. Marvel Comics sued. Liefeld then bought the rights to do Fighting American, and then combined Agent America's look with this pre-established character, giving Fighting American the Cap-like shield, Cap-like colour scheme on his costume, and female sidekick. The case was settled and one of the unique clauses allowed Fighting American to have a shield, but he must never throw it, like Captain America does.
In later comics published by Awesome Entertainment, Fighting American was John Flagg, a former soldier who gained powers through an unspecified experiment "never to be duplicated." The character lasted for three miniseries; a self-titled one, Rules of the Game, which reintroduced classic Kirby/Simon era villains, and Dogs of War. Jeph Loeb
wrote the first two of the mini-series with Liefeld and Platt providing art for the first, Liefeld the modern-era parts and Platt the yester-year, followed by Ed McGuinness
pencils in the second [Rules of the Game]. The third series was written by Jim Starlin
and had artwork by Stephen Platt.
This Fighting American is reluctant to fight again, and is pained by the loss of his sidekick Speedboy, whose death is never elaborated upon. He is also very stern, and willing to kill if necessary, as when during a skirmish with Russian soldiers
in World War II
, or driven to extreme anger, as when his farm home is destroyed by two Russian Mafia
hitmen, but believes in honoring the dead. Despite this, he becomes angry when one of his suspects is shot in the knee during interrogation.
In 2009, Dynamite Entertainment
announced they would publish the character with Alex Ross
covers, although Joe Simon commented that he never gave his approval for this. In fact, he told Newsarama that "there are some penciled covers of Fighting American by Mr. Ross that are printed in the story without copyright notice. I find that damaging, as is the whole fake story."
tipped with tranquilizers.
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
character created in 1954 by writer Joe Simon
Joe Simon
Joseph Henry "Joe" Simon is an American comic book writer, artist, editor, and publisher. Simon created or co-created many important characters in the 1930s-1940s Golden Age of Comic Books and served as the first editor of Timely Comics, the company that would evolve into Marvel Comics.With his...
and artist Jack Kirby
Jack Kirby
Jack Kirby , born Jacob Kurtzberg, was an American comic book artist, writer and editor regarded by historians and fans as one of the major innovators and most influential creators in the comic book medium....
, published by Crestwood Publication / Prize Comics
Crestwood Publications
Crestwood Publications, also known as Feature Publications, was a magazine publisher that also published comic books from the 1940s through the 1960s. Its title Prize Comics contained what is considered the first ongoing horror comic-book feature, Dick Briefer's "Frankenstein"...
and, against normal industry practices of the time, creator-owned
Creator ownership
Creator ownership is an arrangement in which the creator or creators of a work of fiction retain full ownership of the material, regardless of whether it is self-published or by a corporate publisher. In some fields of publishing, such as fiction writing, creator ownership is a standard arrangement...
. It was later published by Harvey Comics
Harvey Comics
Harvey Comics was an American comic book publisher, founded in New York City by Alfred Harvey in 1941, after buying out the small publisher Brookwood Publications. His brothers Robert B...
, with 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...
in 1989 publishing a hardcover collection of all his stories.
Original version
The original Fighting American has been called "the Doctor Strangelove of comic books". It began as a serious attempt at a "Commie-smasher" comic, but after disappointing initial sales, Simon and Kirby turned the magazine into a pastichePastiche
A pastiche is a literary or other artistic genre or technique that is a "hodge-podge" or imitation. The word is also a linguistic term used to describe an early stage in the development of a pidgin language.-Hodge-podge:...
, deliberately overdoing Fighting American's attitudes; despite this change, the title was cancelled after seven issues.
The character was similar to war-era Captain America
Captain America
Captain America is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Captain America Comics #1 , from Marvel Comics' 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics, and was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby...
(aside from his jingoisticly
Jingoism
Jingoism is defined in the Oxford English Dictionary as extreme patriotism in the form of aggressive foreign policy. In practice, it is a country's advocation of the use of threats or actual force against other countries in order to safeguard what it perceives as its national interests...
patriotic attitude), wore a similar flag-inspired costume, and worked with a youthful sidekick
Sidekick
A sidekick is a close companion who is generally regarded as subordinate to the one he accompanies. Some well-known fictional sidekicks are Don Quixote's Sancho Panza, Sherlock Holmes' Doctor Watson, The Lone Ranger's Tonto, The Green Hornet's Kato and Batman's Robin.-Origins:The origin of the...
, Speedboy, but didn't use a shield. Nelson Flagg was the timid younger brother of star athlete and war hero, Johnny Flagg. After suffering a crippling injury during the war, Johnny later becomes a popular news commentator and stumbles upon a Communist plot to "overthrow the government." He is struck down before he can reveal it to the world, and Nelson makes a deathbed promise to hunt down his brother's murderers. Due to super technology provided by the U.S. military under the code name "Project Fighting American," Johnny's corpse is strengthened and revitalized. Nelson agrees to switch bodies by having his mind transferred via "life force probers." Following the operation, Nelson assumes both his brother's identity of Johnny Flagg and the dual persona of the Fighting American. Soon afterward, Dan Sprite, a blond-haired teenager working as a page at Flagg's news network assists the hero on one of his early adventures. The youth also discovers Flagg's true identity in the process. As a result, the teenager is given his own costume and the name "Speedboy." In case of emergencies, both heroes wore their costumes under a suit and tie and page uniform respectively. Villains were mostly Communists with physical deformities and colorful names, such as Round Robin and Poison Ivan.
Simon told a panel audience at the 1974 New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
Comic Art Convention
Comic Art Convention
The Comic Art Convention was an American comic-book fan convention held annually New York City, New York, over Independence Day weekend from 1968 through 1983, except for 1977, when it was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and 1978 to 1979, when it was held concurrently in New York and Philadelphia...
that the character was not so much inspired by Captain America as it was simply a product of the times.
Modern versions
Fighting American was brought back in 1994 in a six-issue mini-series, published by DC ComicsDC 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...
, where the character was turned into a former radio host bent on avenging his brother's death, and later in 1997 by Awesome Entertainment, based loosely on the Simon/Kirby stories, as a retired hero coping with the death of his partner. However, since the new series creator was Rob Liefeld
Rob Liefeld
Rob Liefeld is an American comic book writer, illustrator, and publisher. A prominent artist in the 1990s, he has since become a controversial figure in the medium....
, who months before had been working on the "Heroes Reborn
Heroes Reborn
"Heroes Reborn" was a 1996-1997 crossover story arc among comic-book series published by the American company Marvel Comics. During this one-year, multi-title story arc, Marvel temporarily outsourced the production of several of its most famous comic books to the studios of its popular former...
" version of Captain America for 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...
(and had indeed plans for a patriotic hero of his own named Agent America), he was accused of plagiarising
Plagiarism
Plagiarism is defined in dictionaries as the "wrongful appropriation," "close imitation," or "purloining and publication" of another author's "language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions," and the representation of them as one's own original work, but the notion remains problematic with nebulous...
Captain America, as Agent American possessed a round shield with a star in the center, he was to face villains such as the Cyber Skull (who looked a lot like a recoloured version of Cap's main foe, the Red Skull
Red Skull
The Red Skull is a name shared by several fictional characters, all supervillains from the Marvel Comics universe. All incarnations of the character are enemies of Captain America, other superheroes, and the United States in general....
) and a youthful female sidekick (actually a cyborg
Cyborg
A cyborg is a being with both biological and artificial parts. The term was coined in 1960 when Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline used it in an article about the advantages of self-regulating human-machine systems in outer space. D. S...
named S.P.I.C.E.) virtually identical to the Heroes Reborn Bucky
Bucky
Bucky is the name of several fictional characters, masked superheroes in the Marvel Comics universe. The original, James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby as a sidekick character in Captain America Comics #1 , published by Marvel's 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics...
. Marvel Comics sued. Liefeld then bought the rights to do Fighting American, and then combined Agent America's look with this pre-established character, giving Fighting American the Cap-like shield, Cap-like colour scheme on his costume, and female sidekick. The case was settled and one of the unique clauses allowed Fighting American to have a shield, but he must never throw it, like Captain America does.
In later comics published by Awesome Entertainment, Fighting American was John Flagg, a former soldier who gained powers through an unspecified experiment "never to be duplicated." The character lasted for three miniseries; a self-titled one, Rules of the Game, which reintroduced classic Kirby/Simon era villains, and Dogs of War. Jeph Loeb
Jeph Loeb
Joseph "Jeph" Loeb III is an American film and television writer, producer and award-winning comic book writer. Loeb was a producer/writer on the TV series Smallville and Lost, writer for the films Commando and Teen Wolf and was a writer and Co-Executive Producer on the NBC TV show Heroes from its...
wrote the first two of the mini-series with Liefeld and Platt providing art for the first, Liefeld the modern-era parts and Platt the yester-year, followed by Ed McGuinness
Ed McGuinness
Edward "Ed" McGuinness is an American comic book artist and penciller, best known for his work on books such as Superman, Superman/Batman, Deadpool, and Hulk...
pencils in the second [Rules of the Game]. The third series was written by Jim Starlin
Jim Starlin
James P. "Jim" Starlin is an American comic book writer and artist. With a career dating back to the early 1970s, he is best known for "cosmic" tales and space opera; for revamping the Marvel Comics characters Captain Marvel and Adam Warlock; and for creating or co-creating the Marvel characters...
and had artwork by Stephen Platt.
This Fighting American is reluctant to fight again, and is pained by the loss of his sidekick Speedboy, whose death is never elaborated upon. He is also very stern, and willing to kill if necessary, as when during a skirmish with Russian soldiers
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, or driven to extreme anger, as when his farm home is destroyed by two Russian Mafia
Russian Mafia
The Russian Mafia is a name applied to organized crime syndicates in Russia and Ukraine. The mafia in various countries take the name of the country, as for example the Ukrainian mafia....
hitmen, but believes in honoring the dead. Despite this, he becomes angry when one of his suspects is shot in the knee during interrogation.
In 2009, 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...
announced they would publish the character with Alex Ross
Alex Ross
Nelson Alexander "Alex" Ross is an American comic book painter, illustrator, and plotter. He is praised for his realistic, human depictions of classic comic book characters. Since the 1990s he has done work for Marvel Comics and DC Comics Nelson Alexander "Alex" Ross (born January 22, 1970) is an...
covers, although Joe Simon commented that he never gave his approval for this. In fact, he told Newsarama that "there are some penciled covers of Fighting American by Mr. Ross that are printed in the story without copyright notice. I find that damaging, as is the whole fake story."
Powers and abilities
Though not specified, FA's powers are shown to be increased strength, agility and speed. His aging was also slowed to the point where a fellow WWII vet notes he hasn't "aged a day."Weapons
Originally, none (he was a "two-fisted hero"). The Awesome version of FA's main weapon is his silver shield with a blue eagle emblazoned on the front. The durability of the shield is never stated, but withstood all attacks, including missiles and lasers. While Awesome was legally prohibited from having him throw the shield, Rules and Dogs showed several additional weapons are built into it, including multiple spike projectiles, a gatling gun and a mini-missile. This FA has also used throwing starsShuriken
A shuriken is a traditional Japanese concealed weapon that was generally used for throwing, and sometimes stabbing or slashing...
tipped with tranquilizers.