Not every title could be a Marvel Mystery Comics,and not every hero could be a Human Torch or a Sub-Mariner.
Case in point: Al Gabriele’s creation, the Black Marvel, who made the first of his handful of appearances in Mystic Comics 5 (March 1941).
“The anthology titles Daring Mystery Comics and Mystic Comics (were) plagued from their inceptions by low sales, irregular publication and a paucity of standout characters,” observed Kurt F. Mitchell in American Comic Book Chronicles. “Mystic eked out three issues (8-10) before it was cancelled.”
“Marvel Comics had been doing superheroes since November 1939, when the simultaneous introductions of the Human Torch, the Sub-Mariner and the Angel thrust them squarely in that market,” noted comic historian Don Markstein. “It was only a year later that they introduced their first with the word ‘Marvel’ in his name (Marvel Boy, not the same Marvel Boy who came 10 years later), and since then there’s been an unending stream of them. Marvel Girl, Captain Marvel, Ms. Marvel and more have all flowed from that company in the decades since. The Black Marvel was a very early one, coming along years before ‘Marvel’ was even used to identify the company itself.”
“Dan Lyons’ father had his life saved by Man-to of the ‘Black Feet’ tribe,” wrote Jess Nevins. “Dan, looking for some way to make up for this, shows up while the Black Feet are holding auditions for the role of the ‘Black Marvel,’ the foremost warrior of the tribe.”
“Candidates are put through grueling tests: racing a deer in a show of speed, swimming upriver faster than a salmon, shooting arrows with uncanny accuracy, catching arrows from the air and wrestling a huge bear,” wrote Jeff Rovin. “Each brave fails — and then along comes Lyons. Hoping to repay the chief for saving his father’s life, he partakes in the tests. Passing, he is made chief of the Black Feet and given a black costume as a sign of his achievement. His job, according to the dying chief, is to ‘right wrongs wherever you may find them.’”
For the record, that meant Lyons could run at least 35 to 40 miles per hour, swim upstream at more than seven miles per hour and successfully grapple with something that’s five times stronger than a human being.
Impressive.
His origin — which would likely invite a firestorm of criticism later on — is a closer-to-home variation on the theme of Caucasian heroes gaining super powers from some “exotic” culture of the Other. We saw it frequently in the mental and magical powers that characters like Dr. Strange, Thunderbolt, Chandu, the Shadow and the Green Lama acquired in Tibet.
Oddly enough, “Daniel Lyons” was also the secret identity of Bill Everett’s creation, the Captain America-like hero the Conqueror (at least in his text origin — he’s called “David Lyons” elsewhere).
Publishers had so many superheroes in the early 1940s that they were apparently running out of names.
A truly obscure superhero, the Black Marvel did manage to make it to television in the late 1990s as one of the Six Forgotten Warriors in Spider-Man: The Animated Series (the others being the Destroyer, the Thunderer, the Whizzer, Miss America and Captain America).
The character also made it into prose in All-Winners Comics 1 (Summer 1941): “Then the Black Marvel looked at the Angel and Captain America. “Fellows, it’s our turn now!”
“The three crimefighters leapt into action! The Angel caught the rope upon which he had swung into the apartment and, with one powerful leap, sailed out of the window on it and to the roof above!
“’O.K., guys, come and get me!’ he shouted from the roof.
“’Here we come!’ answered the Black Marvel and the gallant Captain America! With one mighty blow of his iron fist, the Black Marvel broke down the door of Johnny’s apartment and raced up the steps toward the roof while Captain America leaped out of the window catching on to a fire escape across the alley! Then a tremendous leap carried him to the roof, from where he easily jumped onto Johnny’s roof!
“He reached the top of the house at the same time as the Black Marvel and they both rushed at the Angel! The three started to struggle over the edge of the roof when suddenly the Angel lost his footing and plunged down, carrying the Marvel and Captain America with him!
“’Look out!’ cried the frightened Johnny. ‘You’ll be killed!…”
Luckily, it all turned out to be only the dream of the young comic book fan Johnny, as recorded by an 18-year-old Stan Lee.
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