Beverly Switzler
Encyclopedia
Beverly Switzler is a fictional comic book character who exists in the Marvel universe. She is mostly a companion and sometime girlfriend to Howard the Duck
.
, who reveals that he has had a crush on her since college and says that she must marry him otherwise he would kill Howard. She agreed, and they were married by a passing ship captain. Beverly did not enjoy being married to him as he was not interested in her and instead was only interested in the Edgar Allan Poe
poem "The Bells
". During her forced marriage, she used the resources available in Bong's castle to create five infant clones of Bong, called the Bong Quintuplets, and threatened to reveal that he was a negligent father unless he set her free, which he did.
The two later spend Thanksgiving at Charles Xavier's Massachusetts Academy
, where they encounter the mutants Artie Maddicks
, Leech, and Franklin Richards. The kids invite them to their treehouse, where the alien Tana Nile is hiding. They join with the Man-Thing, who assists them from fleeing the murderous Black Tom Cassidy. As a result, the entire group go through many adventures together.
Beverly, who was working as a video store clerk in Cleveland at this time, and gets Howard to play a department store Santa.
s. They go to the shelter and are surprised to be told by its owner, Cain, that they do not have to pay and that fate had made them find the flyer. While staying in the shelter they encounter a journalist who offers to let them be his two new assistants and attempts to get them to guest star on the television series Iprah (a parody of Oprah
). However, this ends with a demon attacking the studio and attempting to kill Howard and Beverly, before Howard manages to kill it with a magic cigar.
created a policy that he does not legally exist, as it saves "time and money". After the civil war, Beverly helped Howard to stop the villain M.O.D.O.T.’s scheme to control the public through mass media.
Beverly appeared recently in a one-panel cameo in New Avengers #7 (cover date Feb. 2011). She was one of the many applicants for nanny to Luke Cage
and Jessica Jones
' daughter, Danielle.
, played by Lea Thompson
, although this version differs from the comic incarnation of the character as she is a singer. While the film is considered a box office bomb, Thompson's performance was mostly praised.
Howard the Duck
Howard the Duck is a comic book character in the Marvel Comics universe created by writer Steve Gerber and artist Val Mayerik. The character first appeared in Adventure into Fear #19 and several subsequent series have chronicled the misadventures of the ill-tempered, anthropomorphic, "funny...
.
Publication history
Switzler first appeared in Howard the Duck #1 (Jan. 1976), before going on to appear alongside Howard in most of his appearances, although she did not make very many appearances in comics throughout the eighties.Fictional character biography
Switzler originally worked as a nude model, until she was hired and subsequently kidnapped by the villain Pro-Rata, and was then rescued by Howard the Duck, prompting her to allow him to live with her. The pair soon embarked on a road trip to New York City, where a series of events lead Howard to suffer a mental breakdown and flee from Beverly in a bus. However, he is later imprisoned in a mental asylum, causing Beverly and her artist friend Paul Same to rescue him and return him to Cleveland. Howard and Beverly later embarked on a cruise ship, where they encounted Beverly’s former college classmate Lester Verde, now super villain Doctor BongDoctor Bong
Doctor Bong is a fictional character, a supervillain appearing in the Marvel Comics universe. He possess an advanced knowledge of genetic engineering, and his bell-shaped helmet can be struck to create a number of effects...
, who reveals that he has had a crush on her since college and says that she must marry him otherwise he would kill Howard. She agreed, and they were married by a passing ship captain. Beverly did not enjoy being married to him as he was not interested in her and instead was only interested in the Edgar Allan Poe
Edgar Allan Poe
Edgar Allan Poe was an American author, poet, editor and literary critic, considered part of the American Romantic Movement. Best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre, Poe was one of the earliest American practitioners of the short story and is considered the inventor of the detective...
poem "The Bells
The Bells
"The Bells" is a heavily onomatopoeic poem by Edgar Allan Poe which was not published until after his death in 1849. It is perhaps best known for the diacopic repetition of the word "bells." The poem has four parts to it; each part becomes darker and darker as the poem progresses from "the jingling...
". During her forced marriage, she used the resources available in Bong's castle to create five infant clones of Bong, called the Bong Quintuplets, and threatened to reveal that he was a negligent father unless he set her free, which he did.
The two later spend Thanksgiving at Charles Xavier's Massachusetts Academy
Massachusetts Academy (comics)
The Massachusetts Academy is a fictional prep school in the Marvel Universe. Created by Chris Claremont and Bob McLeod, it first appeared in Uncanny X-Men #151 .-Fictional history:...
, where they encounter the mutants Artie Maddicks
Artie Maddicks
Arthur "Artie" Maddicks is a fictional comic book character in Marvel Comics' shared universe, the Marvel Universe. He first appeared in X-Factor #2 and was created by Bob Layton and Jackson Guice.-Publication history:...
, Leech, and Franklin Richards. The kids invite them to their treehouse, where the alien Tana Nile is hiding. They join with the Man-Thing, who assists them from fleeing the murderous Black Tom Cassidy. As a result, the entire group go through many adventures together.
Beverly, who was working as a video store clerk in Cleveland at this time, and gets Howard to play a department store Santa.
Out of work
Later Howard and Beverly find themselves unemployed and living in a shack in the middle of a garbage dump. Beverly decides to look for work and is hired by a company called Globally Branded Content to be a supervisor for a boyband singer. She is surprised, however, to learn that her salary will be an unusually high $125,000 a year. She eventually learns that this is because the head of the company is Doctor Bong, who reveals that he still has feelings towards her. Howard also learns that Bong is the head of the company and attempts to rescue Beverly, only for Bong to throw him into a vat of chemicals, with the intention of killing him. Howard survives however, but his DNA is altered causing him to transform into a series of animals. Howard and Beverly then go home, only for Bong to repeatedly phone then and ask Beverly to continue her romantic affair with him. Upon learning that Beverly feels nothing towards him but hate, he tries to have her killed by informing the US Military Howard is an Al Quida terrorist by the name of Osama el-Braka (Braka is Arabic for duck), and that Beverly is his accomplice. The military then destroy their home and were going to kill Howard and Beverly, but since Howard was a rat and not a duck at the time they decide they must have gone to the wrong address. Seeing as they are now homeless, Howard and Beverly and their pet Pit Bull try to search for a hotel to stay in, but are rejected by most because they have no ID, no address, and because the hotels does not allow dogs or rodents. They were then arrested by police officers and Beverly's former classmate, Suzi Pazuzu, for disturbing the peace. When interrogating them she does believe either of their accounts, although they both manage to escape from police custody. Meanwhile, Doctor Bong hires an assassin to kill Howard and Beverly, but the assassin only agrees if Bong will bring him a bracelet which contains the power of the douchblade, which will grant a female wearer superpowers. Although the assassin is male, he states that he is undergoing hormone treatment so that he can become a woman and wield the doucheblade. Bong learns that the doucheblade is in possession of detective Pazuzu, so he and the assassin's son travel there to kill her and steal the doucheblade, although Beverly and Howard also learn this and travel to her home to protect her. A confrontation then ensures which ends with the Bracelet landing in Howard's wrist, causing him to transform into a woman and possess the doucheblades powers. He then kills the assassin's son and was preparing to kill Bong when Beverly intervenes and tells Howard to stop, but tells Bong that if he ever interferes with her life again she will kill him. Bong accepts that the two no longer have feelings for one another and he leaves. Beverly and Doctor Bong have not encountered each other since. Howard and Beverly then leave Pazuzu with the body of the assassin's son in her home, so that she can be framed for killing him, in order to get revenge on her for arresting them.Boarding house
Again homeless, Beverly discovers a flyer advertising a shelter called the Boarding House of Mystery which will accept pit bullPit bull
A Pit bull is any of several breeds of dog in the molosser breed group.Many jurisdictions that restrict pit bulls, including Ontario, Canada,, Miami, Florida, U.S...
s. They go to the shelter and are surprised to be told by its owner, Cain, that they do not have to pay and that fate had made them find the flyer. While staying in the shelter they encounter a journalist who offers to let them be his two new assistants and attempts to get them to guest star on the television series Iprah (a parody of Oprah
The Oprah Winfrey Show
The Oprah Winfrey Show is an American syndicated talk show hosted and produced by its namesake Oprah Winfrey. It ran nationally for 25 seasons beginning in 1986, before concluding in 2011. It is the highest-rated talk show in American television history....
). However, this ends with a demon attacking the studio and attempting to kill Howard and Beverly, before Howard manages to kill it with a magic cigar.
Civil War
During the civil war event, Howard and Beverly attempt to register under the Superhuman Registration Act, with Howard posing as a superhero and Beverly as his sidekick, because Beverly states that they could use the money paid to registered heroes. However, they are unable to register due to Howard's disruptive nature; S.H.I.E.L.D.S.H.I.E.L.D.
S.H.I.E.L.D. is a fictional espionage and a secret military law-enforcement agency in the Marvel Comics Universe. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in Strange Tales #135 , it often deals with superhuman threats....
created a policy that he does not legally exist, as it saves "time and money". After the civil war, Beverly helped Howard to stop the villain M.O.D.O.T.’s scheme to control the public through mass media.
Beverly appeared recently in a one-panel cameo in New Avengers #7 (cover date Feb. 2011). She was one of the many applicants for nanny to Luke Cage
Luke Cage
Luke Cage is a fictional character, a superhero appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Archie Goodwin and artist John Romita, Sr., he first appeared in Luke Cage, Hero for Hire #1...
and Jessica Jones
Jessica Jones
Jessica Campbell Jones Cage is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics universe, created by writer Brian Michael Bendis and artist Michael Gaydos. Jones debuted in the series Alias as an embittered former superheroine who had used the aliases Jewel, Knightress, and currently Power Woman...
' daughter, Danielle.
Powers and abilities
Switzler possesses no superhuman abilities, although Howard does jokingly say that she can turn men into ducks to prevent people flirting with her, and that another of her powers is that she can make her breasts move in opposite directions, although she must be drunk in order to do this.In other media
Switzler appears in the poorly received 1986 film adaptation Howard the DuckHoward the Duck (film)
Howard the Duck is a 1986 American science fiction comedy film directed by Willard Huyck and produced by George Lucas. It is loosely based on the Marvel comic book of the same name, created by Steve Gerber and quoting scripts by Bill Mantlo, the film focuses on Howard, an alien from a planet...
, played by Lea Thompson
Lea Thompson
Lea Katherine Thompson is an American actress and director. She is best known for her 1990s NBC situation comedy Caroline in the City and her portrayal of Lorraine Baines McFly, Marty McFly's mother, in the Back to the Future trilogy...
, although this version differs from the comic incarnation of the character as she is a singer. While the film is considered a box office bomb, Thompson's performance was mostly praised.