Mister America
Created by
+ History
Tex Thompson was originally called Mister America, but in June 1942, he assumed the name Americommando and was assigned to undercover duty in Nazi territory. (Action #52, Young All-Stars #27, Secret Origins #29) He began his mission overseas with direct orders from President Roosevelt and took the cover identity of Hauptmann Riker of the German army. (Action #54-55)
In February, 1945, the Americommando was supposedly killed in an explosion while working undercover in Dresden. The Flash and Mr. Terrific witnessed this blast. (National Comics v.2 #1) Recently, it has come to light that Thompson took a teenage partner for at least one mission. He was called the All-American Boy. (JSofA v.3 #29)
Coordinated Obscurity?
In recent years, however, there has been suspicion that Thompson had survived and was working as the Coordinator — the mysterious ex-hero who runs the Hero Hotline organization. A robot duplicate of the Americommando was delivered in a block of ice to Hero Hotline. (Hero Hotline #4) In response, the Coordinator stated emphatically "… it's not the real Americommando… trust me on this, okay?" This led many to believe that the Coordinator was Tex Thompson.
Creator Bob Rozakis cleared everything up in his May 2001 column:
He IS Harry “Tex” Thompson. Always had been, always will be… even if it is never acknowledged in a comic book. So, to answer T5’s question above: No, Mister America did not die… at least not in the BobRo corner of the DCU.
Because of DC's editorial policies at the time, Rozakis was forbidden to use the Americommando because Roy Thomas had control over the character in All-Star Squadron.
Strangely, many clues pointed to the Coordinator being Harold Jordan, Air Wave II. The Coordinator was said to have been a former hero with ties to Batman and Green Lantern. He has a fondness for Golden Age heroes, but is never said to have been active in the Golden Age. In Hotline #5, a photo shown on the Coordinator's wall suggests that Johnny Quick was his godfather. Further, he is called "Harry" by the Hotline staff and by the Calculator, who is a verified former foe.
There was also some fan speculation that Thompson was the man inside the armor of Bloodtype. (Aztek #1) This man, however, was allued to as the father of Merrryman of the Inferior Five, a Golden Ager hero called the Patriot.
Legacy
Tex was succeeded by an descendant of undetermined relation Trey Thompson, Mister America II. Trey worked for the FBI until his family were killed by the Fourth Reich. This band of villains sought to eradicate the family lines of all heroes tied to American symbolism. The JSA's Dr. Mid-Nite stated that Fourth Reich had succeeded in terminating Thompson's family line. This was the first confirmation of Tex's own death as well, though the circumstances it are unknown. (Justice Society v.3 #1)
Trey's partner, Jeff Graves has since been inspired to take up the mantle. (#4) Not long after, he adopted a sidekick called All-American Boy (II). This boy's great-uncle served very briefly with the original Mister America and was killed by a Nazi. (JSofA v.3 #29)
The U.S. agency, S.H.A.D.E. also engineered a brutal new Americommando (II); this is a man named David and claims to have powers on par with Superman. (Uncle Sam #5)
The Golden Age (Elseworlds)
Mister America was also a central character in the Elseworlds tale, The Golden Age by James Robinson. In the story, the brain of the Ultra-Humanite was transplanted into Tex's body. He was married to Miss America, Joan Dale. Joan's friends noticed that she was suffering from physical abuse, which led them to uncover Ultra's disguise.
Young All-Stars #27
and Secret Origins #29 (both written by Roy Thomas) both retell
Thompson's origin but the former takes place
in June 1942 and the latter in July.
Tex became the Americommando in Action #52, but the name of the feature didn't change until #54.
Private investigator Bob Daley was a good friend to Tex (who had been thought killed by a Nazi saboteur). When Thompson returned as Mr. America, Daley joined him in crime-fighting as Fatman. His costume, incorporated a curtain and a lampshade, and resembled the Red Tornado's. Fatman first appeared in Action Comics #34 (March 1941).
+ Powers
...
Appearances + References
|
|
 |
|
|
|
