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Public domain superheroes/supervillains?

Posted: Fri May 11, 2018 3:47 pm
by Hoid
Reading through my Alan Moore stuff I’m reminded of the original America’s Best Comics, who’re all public domain characters, now. I have an idea for the Forever Tree, and it involves public domain characters—-characters that are now open to anyone’s fair usage. (Dynamite, for instance, is, I believe, using the very characters Alan Moore appropriated for his version of America’s Best Comics.)

So, I’m compiling a list of such characters, and would love it if others could help out.

Thanks!

Re: Public domain superheroes/supervillains?

Posted: Fri May 11, 2018 4:04 pm
by Ares

Re: Public domain superheroes/supervillains?

Posted: Fri May 11, 2018 4:05 pm
by Batgirl III
There’s an entire wikia dedicated to public domain superheroes.

I’m personally the most fond of the Black Terror and Tim; the Owl and Owl-Girl; and the Red Bee*

* (Yellowjacket has the same gimmick and a better costume, but he has the ability to control bees as a superpower. Red Bee trained his bees! How beautifully Golden Age is that?)

Re: Public domain superheroes/supervillains?

Posted: Fri May 11, 2018 5:01 pm
by Ken
My incomplete list

Ace
-----------------------
Captain Courageous
Flag
Lash Lightning
Lone Warrior & Dicky
Magno the Magnetic Man & Davey
Vulcan

Aviation Press
-------------------
Black Venus

Centaur
-----------
Airman
Amazing Man
Arroe
Fantoman
Man of War
Masked Marvel
the Shark

Columbia
------------
the Face
Skyman

Dell
-----------
Phantasmo

EC
-----------------
Moon Girl & Prince Mengu

Fiction House
-----------------
Super American

Fox Features
------------------
Captain V, the Puppeteer
Eagle & Buddy
Flame & Flame Girl
Green Mask & Domino
Green Mask II
Stardust the Super Wizard
Thor (AKA Grant Farrell)
U.S. Jones
V-Man
Wonder Man (Fred Carson)

Great
-----------------------
Atlas the Mighty

Chesler
-----------------------
Dynamic Man
Major Victory
Mister E
Yankee Girl

Harvey Comics
-----------------------
Black Cat
Captain Freedom
Captain Red Blazer & Spark
Fly-Man
Human Meteor
Pat Parker, War Nurse
Shock Gibson (later version)
the Zebra

Hillman
-----------------------
Airboy
Black Angel

Holyoke
---------------------
Blue Streak (I)
Cat-Man & Kitten
Cyclone
Flagman
the Hood
Shock Gibson (original version)
Strongman

Lev Gleason
-----------------------
Captain Battle & Souvenir
Captain Battle Jr. (who isn't the sidekick)
Crimebuster
Daredevil
Silver Streak & Meteor/Mercury & Whiz (pet falcon)
War Eagle

Nedor/Better
-----------------------
American Crusader
American Eagle
Black Terror & Tim
Captain Future
Doc Strange (no relation)
Fighting Yank
Judy of the Jungle
Liberator
Miss Masque
Princess Pantha
Pyroman
Wonderman, Brad Spencer

Novelty Press
-----------------------
Blue Bolt (the feature that brought Simon & Kirby together)
Sub-Zero Man
Target & the Targeteers

Pelican
-----------------------
the Green Giant

Prize/Crestwood
-----------------------
Airmale & Stampy
Power Nelson
Black Owl II
Black Owl I
Doctor Frost
Green Lama (original)
Yank & Doodle (these last five) even were a superteam briefly to fight...
Frankenstein & his nemesis Bulldog Denny

Regor
-----------------------
Atomic Thunderbolt

Spark
-----------------------
Atoman
Golden Lad
Green Lama (the 'superman' version)

and getting into the 1950s...

Ajax-Farrell
------------------------
Black Cobra
Flame

Magazine Enterprises
-----------------------
the Avenger (NOT the pulp hero)

Metropolitan
-----------------------
Atomaster (recycled Spark Atoman stories)
Green Jet (recycled Spark Green Lama stories)

Prize
-----------------------
Fighting American & Speedboy (probably NOT public domain)

Sterling
-----------------------
Captain Flash & Ricky

Re: Public domain superheroes/supervillains?

Posted: Fri May 11, 2018 5:08 pm
by Ken
And some of the heroes that DC might have some limited rights too, but have been largely ignored

Charlton (1940s)
--------------------------
Yellow Jacket
Diana, the Huntress

Charlton (1950s)
--------------------------
Nature Boy
Mister Muscles & Kid Muscles

Quality
--------------------------
Blue Tracer
Chic Carter, the Sword
Ghost of Flanders
Joe Hercules
Marksman
711
Spider Widow & the Raven
Wild Fire
Wonder Boy

Fawcett
--------------------------
Diamond Jack
Master Man

Fawcett liscened
--------------------------
Captain Midnight

Advertisments produced by C.C. Beck's studio
--------------------------
Captain Tootsie

Re: Public domain superheroes/supervillains?

Posted: Fri May 11, 2018 8:19 pm
by L-Space
Batgirl III wrote: Fri May 11, 2018 4:05 pm There’s an entire wikia dedicated to public domain superheroes.

I’m personally the most fond of the Black Terror and Tim; the Owl and Owl-Girl; and the Red Bee*

* (Yellowjacket has the same gimmick and a better costume, but he has the ability to control bees as a superpower. Red Bee trained his bees! How beautifully Golden Age is that?)
Wouldn't training bees just be a huge time sink? You spend hours training the bees and then as soon as they sting one person they're dead...

Re: Public domain superheroes/supervillains?

Posted: Fri May 11, 2018 8:51 pm
by Hoid
You guys are awesome! Thanks! Off to search through the Intarwebz!

Re: Public domain superheroes/supervillains?

Posted: Fri May 11, 2018 9:15 pm
by Shock
L-Space wrote: Fri May 11, 2018 8:19 pm
Batgirl III wrote: Fri May 11, 2018 4:05 pm There’s an entire wikia dedicated to public domain superheroes.

I’m personally the most fond of the Black Terror and Tim; the Owl and Owl-Girl; and the Red Bee*

* (Yellowjacket has the same gimmick and a better costume, but he has the ability to control bees as a superpower. Red Bee trained his bees! How beautifully Golden Age is that?)
Wouldn't training bees just be a huge time sink? You spend hours training the bees and then as soon as they sting one person they're dead...
Train the queen and let her delegate

Re: Public domain superheroes/supervillains?

Posted: Fri May 11, 2018 9:20 pm
by Batgirl III
L-Space wrote: Fri May 11, 2018 8:19 pm Wouldn't training bees just be a huge time sink? You spend hours training the bees and then as soon as they sting one person they're dead...
They also have a life-span of, like, thirty-odd days. Some of which is spent as a larva... I don't know exactly how much and can't be bothered to google it. But, yeah, it's got to be a massive time-sink to constantly be training these buggers to respond to verbal commands, to wait dormant inside your belt buckle (yes, really), and to kamikaze attack bank robbers...

It's so ludicrously impractical that it loops right back around to become glorious.

Image

Re: Public domain superheroes/supervillains?

Posted: Fri May 11, 2018 10:19 pm
by L-Space
Batgirl III wrote: Fri May 11, 2018 9:20 pm
L-Space wrote: Fri May 11, 2018 8:19 pm Wouldn't training bees just be a huge time sink? You spend hours training the bees and then as soon as they sting one person they're dead...
They also have a life-span of, like, thirty-odd days. Some of which is spent as a larva... I don't know exactly how much and can't be bothered to google it. But, yeah, it's got to be a massive time-sink to constantly be training these buggers to respond to verbal commands, to wait dormant inside your belt buckle (yes, really), and to kamikaze attack bank robbers...

It's so ludicrously impractical that it loops right back around to become glorious.

Image
I just found out he also had a "favorite" bee, named Michael, that he kept in his belt buckle...

Re: Public domain superheroes/supervillains?

Posted: Fri May 11, 2018 10:46 pm
by Hoid
Batgirl III wrote: Fri May 11, 2018 9:20 pm
L-Space wrote: Fri May 11, 2018 8:19 pm Wouldn't training bees just be a huge time sink? You spend hours training the bees and then as soon as they sting one person they're dead...
They also have a life-span of, like, thirty-odd days. Some of which is spent as a larva... I don't know exactly how much and can't be bothered to google it. But, yeah, it's got to be a massive time-sink to constantly be training these buggers to respond to verbal commands, to wait dormant inside your belt buckle (yes, really), and to kamikaze attack bank robbers...

It's so ludicrously impractical that it loops right back around to become glorious.

Image
Earth-U, here we go!