Valentina Allegra de Fontaine
Encyclopedia
La Contessa Valentina Allegra de la Fontaine is a fictional
, comic book
espionage
agent in the Marvel Comics
universe
. Created by writer
-artist
Jim Steranko
, she first appeared in the "Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.
" feature in Strange Tales
#159 (Aug 1967).
's run of the Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. feature that ran through Strange Tales #168 (May 1968) and in the same-name comic-book series that began the following month.
An agent who literally threw S.H.I.E.L.D. chief Nick Fury
for a loop upon their initial meeting, she quickly became his love interest, and was featured in a silent, one-page seduction sequence in Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. #2 that famously had two panels changed, at the behest of the Comics Code Authority
. In the third-to-last panel, de facto Marvel art director
John Romita Sr. redrew a telephone that had been taken off the hook for privacy, placing the receiver back in the cradle; in the last panel, an image was removed and replaced with a closeup of an item from earlier in the page — a phallic long-barreled gun in a holster:
The story was reprinted as published in Nick Fury Special Edition #1 (Dec. 1983). When reprinted again, in Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Who Is Scorpio? (Marvel Enterprises, 2001; ISBN 978-0-7851-0766-8), however, Steranko's original final panel was reinserted. In a black-and-white long shot with screentone
shading, the couple is beginning to embrace, with Fury standing and the Contessa on one knee, getting up.
and a citizen of Italy
. After both her parents were killed for aiding some unspecified resistance movement, the Contessa found her life meaningless. Desiring to carry on in their places so their deaths would not be in vain, she eventually was contacted by the international espionage agency S.H.I.E.L.D. and entered a training program to become an agent.
She first encountered its executive director, Nick Fury, aboard S.H.I.E.L.D.'s airborne headquarters, the Helicarrier
, toward the end of her training, impressing Fury by tossing him head-over-heels with a judo
throw after his uttering an untoward remark about female agents. The two eventually became lovers, and their relationship continued for many years.
As a result of the Contessa's remarkable talents and skills in many areas, she quickly became a leading member of S.H.I.E.L.D. She was also at one point appointed as the leader of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Femme Force.
, a Skrull
agent posed as Contessa de la Fontaine in order to spy on Nick Fury
and learn as many secrets as possible. However, Fury grew suspicious and killed the agent, who then reverted to her true shape, thus revealing the Invasion
to Fury.
After the death of Captain America
, a second impostor posing as the Contessa approached Dum Dum Dugan
with the intent of learning the location of Fury, whom the Skrulls are seeking. After he reveals he doesn't know, the impostor stabs Dugan with claws resembling those of the X-Man
, Wolverine
. After Dugan's body is thrown into the ocean, the impostor takes his place.
In the premiere of the new 'Secret Warriors' series, where Nick Fury is fighting back against Norman Osborn's 'H.A.M.M.E.R.' it is shown Hydra has always controlled SHIELD, right from the start. Fontaine is later seen wearing the robes of the new Madame Hydra, and flashbacks reveal the Contessa had been a Russian mole before she was recruited into S.H.I.E.L.D. She is seemingly working for the Russian espionage group called 'Leviathan'. This betrayal is known to Fury, who is working on bringing down HYDRA and Levithan. Fontaine also kills the current Madame Viper, who is then brought back in another form. In the final issue of the series, Nick Fury is seen trying to rescue Contessa from jail.
) made her debut in Strange Tales #159 (Aug. 1967) by flooring Nick Fury during a training session, proving that she could take care of herself! She looked like a character who had just stepped out of a James Bond
poster".
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...
, comic book
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...
espionage
Espionage
Espionage or spying involves an individual obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, lest the legitimate holder of the information change plans or take other countermeasures once it...
agent in 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...
. Created by writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
-artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
Jim Steranko
Jim Steranko
James F. Steranko is an American graphic artist, comic book writer-artist-historian, magician, publisher and film production illustrator....
, she first appeared in the "Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Nick Fury
Colonel Nicholas Joseph "Nick" Fury is a fictional World War II army hero and present-day super-spy in the Marvel Comics universe. Created by artist Jack Kirby and writer Stan Lee, Fury first appeared in Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos #1 , a World War II combat series that portrayed the...
" feature in Strange Tales
Strange Tales
Strange Tales is the name of several comic book anthology series published by Marvel Comics. It introduced the features "Doctor Strange" and "Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.", and was a showcase for the science fiction/suspense stories of artists Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, and for the...
#159 (Aug 1967).
Publication history
The Contessa appeared prominently throughout creator Jim SterankoJim Steranko
James F. Steranko is an American graphic artist, comic book writer-artist-historian, magician, publisher and film production illustrator....
's run of the Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. feature that ran through Strange Tales #168 (May 1968) and in the same-name comic-book series that began the following month.
An agent who literally threw S.H.I.E.L.D. chief Nick Fury
Nick Fury
Colonel Nicholas Joseph "Nick" Fury is a fictional World War II army hero and present-day super-spy in the Marvel Comics universe. Created by artist Jack Kirby and writer Stan Lee, Fury first appeared in Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos #1 , a World War II combat series that portrayed the...
for a loop upon their initial meeting, she quickly became his love interest, and was featured in a silent, one-page seduction sequence in Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. #2 that famously had two panels changed, at the behest of the Comics Code Authority
Comics Code Authority
The Comics Code Authority was a body created as part of the Comics Magazine Association of America, as a tool for the comics-publishing industry to self-regulate the content of comic books in the United States. Member publishers submitted comic books to the CCA, which screened them for adherence to...
. In the third-to-last panel, de facto Marvel 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....
John Romita Sr. redrew a telephone that had been taken off the hook for privacy, placing the receiver back in the cradle; in the last panel, an image was removed and replaced with a closeup of an item from earlier in the page — a phallic long-barreled gun in a holster:
The story was reprinted as published in Nick Fury Special Edition #1 (Dec. 1983). When reprinted again, in Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Who Is Scorpio? (Marvel Enterprises, 2001; ISBN 978-0-7851-0766-8), however, Steranko's original final panel was reinserted. In a black-and-white long shot with screentone
Screentone
Screentone is a technique for applying textures and shades to drawings, used as an alternative to hatching. In the conventional process, patterns are transferred to paper from preprinted sheets, but the technique is also simulated in computer graphics...
shading, the couple is beginning to embrace, with Fury standing and the Contessa on one knee, getting up.
Fictional character biography
Contessa Valentina Allegra de la Fontaine was a member of the European jet setJet set
"Jet set" is a journalistic term that was used to describe an international social group of wealthy people, organizing and participating all around the world in social activities that are unreachable to ordinary people...
and a citizen of Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. After both her parents were killed for aiding some unspecified resistance movement, the Contessa found her life meaningless. Desiring to carry on in their places so their deaths would not be in vain, she eventually was contacted by the international espionage agency S.H.I.E.L.D. and entered a training program to become an agent.
She first encountered its executive director, Nick Fury, aboard S.H.I.E.L.D.'s airborne headquarters, the Helicarrier
Helicarrier
The Helicarrier is a fictional flying aircraft carrier specifically designed to be capable of independent powered flight in addition to the conventional functions of aircraft carriers...
, toward the end of her training, impressing Fury by tossing him head-over-heels with a judo
Judo
is a modern martial art and combat sport created in Japan in 1882 by Jigoro Kano. Its most prominent feature is its competitive element, where the object is to either throw or takedown one's opponent to the ground, immobilize or otherwise subdue one's opponent with a grappling maneuver, or force an...
throw after his uttering an untoward remark about female agents. The two eventually became lovers, and their relationship continued for many years.
As a result of the Contessa's remarkable talents and skills in many areas, she quickly became a leading member of S.H.I.E.L.D. She was also at one point appointed as the leader of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Femme Force.
Secret Invasion
It is revealed that shortly after the Secret WarSecret War (comics)
Secret War is a five-issue comic book limited series published by Marvel Comics. The series is written by Brian Michael Bendis and painted by Gabriele Dell'Otto...
, a Skrull
Skrull
The Skrulls are a fictional race of extraterrestrial shapeshifters that appear in publications by Marvel Comics.-Publication history:The Skrulls first appeared in Fantastic Four #2 and were created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby....
agent posed as Contessa de la Fontaine in order to spy on Nick Fury
Nick Fury
Colonel Nicholas Joseph "Nick" Fury is a fictional World War II army hero and present-day super-spy in the Marvel Comics universe. Created by artist Jack Kirby and writer Stan Lee, Fury first appeared in Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos #1 , a World War II combat series that portrayed the...
and learn as many secrets as possible. However, Fury grew suspicious and killed the agent, who then reverted to her true shape, thus revealing the Invasion
Secret Invasion
"Secret Invasion" is a comic book crossover storyline that ran through a self-titled eight issue limited series and several tie-in books published by Marvel Comics from April through December 2008....
to Fury.
After the death of 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...
, a second impostor posing as the Contessa approached Dum Dum Dugan
Dum Dum Dugan
Timothy Aloysius Cadwallader "Dum Dum" Dugan is a fictional character in the . He is an officer of S.H.I.E.L.D. and is one of the most experienced members of Nick Fury's team, known for his marksmanship with rifles and for his impressive physique...
with the intent of learning the location of Fury, whom the Skrulls are seeking. After he reveals he doesn't know, the impostor stabs Dugan with claws resembling those of the X-Man
X-Men
The X-Men are a superhero team in the . They were created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, and first appeared in The X-Men #1...
, Wolverine
Wolverine (comics)
Wolverine is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Born as James Howlett and commonly known as Logan, Wolverine is a mutant, possessing animal-keen senses, enhanced physical capabilities, three retracting bone claws on each hand and a healing...
. After Dugan's body is thrown into the ocean, the impostor takes his place.
Secret Warriors
Both Dugan and the Contessa are later shown alive and healthy. They are freed from captivity along with the other humans kidnapped and replaced by Skrulls.In the premiere of the new 'Secret Warriors' series, where Nick Fury is fighting back against Norman Osborn's 'H.A.M.M.E.R.' it is shown Hydra has always controlled SHIELD, right from the start. Fontaine is later seen wearing the robes of the new Madame Hydra, and flashbacks reveal the Contessa had been a Russian mole before she was recruited into S.H.I.E.L.D. She is seemingly working for the Russian espionage group called 'Leviathan'. This betrayal is known to Fury, who is working on bringing down HYDRA and Levithan. Fontaine also kills the current Madame Viper, who is then brought back in another form. In the final issue of the series, Nick Fury is seen trying to rescue Contessa from jail.
MC2
- In the alternate universeParallel universe (fiction)A parallel universe or alternative reality is a hypothetical self-contained separate reality coexisting with one's own. A specific group of parallel universes is called a "multiverse", although this term can also be used to describe the possible parallel universes that constitute reality...
MC2 imprintImprintIn the publishing industry, an imprint can mean several different things:* As a piece of bibliographic information about a book, it refers to the name and address of the book's publisher and its date of publication as given at the foot or on the verso of its title page.* It can mean a trade name...
, the Contessa is a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent who encounters Spider-GirlSpider-GirlSpider-Girl is a superheroine in Marvel Comics' MC2 universe. The character was created by Tom DeFalco and Ron Frenz as the teenage daughter of Spider-Man and Mary Jane Watson, and first appeared in What If #105...
.
Film
- Lisa RinnaLisa RinnaLisa Deanna Rinna is an American television host and actress. She is known for her roles as Billie Reed on Days of our Lives, Taylor McBride on Melrose Place, and most recently as the host of SoapNet's Soap Talk.-Acting:...
played Valentina in the 1998 TV-movie Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D..
Quotes
Steven Ringgenberg: "Steeped in cinematic techniques picked up from that medium's masters, Jim [Steranko] synthesized a style he christened 'Zap Art' — an approach different from anything being done in mainstream comics, though it did include one standard attraction: lots of females in skintight, sexy costumes. Countess Valentina (Val) Allegro De Fontaine (sicSic
Sic—generally inside square brackets, [sic], and occasionally parentheses, —when added just after a quote or reprinted text, indicates the passage appears exactly as in the original source...
) made her debut in Strange Tales #159 (Aug. 1967) by flooring Nick Fury during a training session, proving that she could take care of herself! She looked like a character who had just stepped out of a James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
poster".