Clay Quartermain
Encyclopedia
Clay Quartermain is a fictional character
, a secret agent
in the Marvel Comics
universe
. Created by writer
-artist
Jim Steranko
, he first appeared in Strange Tales
#163 (Dec. 1967).
, beginning in the feature "Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.
" in Marvel Comics' Strange Tales
in 1967, and continuing into the subsequent series Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. in 1968. He became the S.H.I.E.L.D. liaison to General "Thunderbolt" Ross' "Hulkbusters
" military program, and a supporting character in The Incredible Hulk vol. 2, beginning with issue #187 (May 1975). A Life Model Decoy
(LMD) replica of Quartermain was a featured character in the 1988 miniseries
Nick Fury vs. S.H.I.E.L.D.. Quartermain has since had guest appearances in issues of Alias
, Cable
, The Defenders
, Marvel Team-Up
, The Pulse
, Silver Sable and the Wild Pack
, and the miniseries Secret War
; in the "Nick Fury
" feature in the omnibus Marvel Holiday Special (Jan. 1994); and in the "Elite Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." feature in the one-shot Captain America 2000 (Nov. 2000). He also led the S.H.I.E.L.D. Paranormal Containment Unit in the 2005-2006 series Nick Fury's Howling Commandos
.
, a "blond-haired, fast-talking, grinning Burt Lancaster
" sort who first works with that organization's storied executive director, Nick Fury
, during S.H.I.E.L.D.'s first conflict with would-be world tyrant the Yellow Claw
, later revealed to have been a robot
simulacrum of that Chinese
-national Mandarin
. Quartermain later becomes part of the U.S. military's "Hulkbusters" operation, which attempts to capture and contain the Hulk
.
He rebels against S.H.I.E.L.D. and assists the mutant team X-Factor
in saving the Hulk from the U.S. government's plan to kill him. He then becomes a fugitive, traveling with Rick Jones and the Hulk from The Incredible Hulk #337-343 (Nov. 1987 - April 1988). In issue #341, he encounters his brother, a farmer. In the following issue, he testifies in Congress about a mass murder committed by the supervillain
the Leader
, who had detonated a gamma bomb in a town, obliterating it.
Once more at S.H.I.E.L.D., Quartermain, along with many other agents, is seemingly killed by a self-aware, renegade "Deltan" variety of the agency's artificial-human "Life Model Decoy
s", and replaced by one such LMD. The most advanced of the Deltite LMDs, it rebels upon learning it is not human, and after several confrontations, perishes. The real Quartermain is later found alive in cold storage in S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters, brainwashed by a faction of the terrorist organization HYDRA. He is then deprogrammed
.
During the 2005-2006 'Howling Commandos' series, Quartermain takes over the monster/soldier squad and also the 'Area 13' they are based out of.
Retconned as a former romantic interest of Jessica Jones
, Quartermain later becomes leader of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Paranormal Containment Unit
. He is the agent sent to inform Jennifer Walters (She-Hulk
) that she has been pressed into service as a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. He next leads a new incarnation of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s "Hulkbusters" unit, here She-Hulk, Agent Crimson, and Agent Cheesecake
.
Quartermain remains an ally of Jones, using her to bring down a conspiracy against the President of the United States
. Quartermain later leads a S.H.I.E.L.D. unit that rescues Jones from a HYDRA recruitment attempt.
attack. The commanding officer of the crime scene is Clay's old friend Gabe Jones
. It is later revealed, however, that his actual murderer was the now-insane Doc Samson
. Quartermain had inadvertently stumbled upon a plot hatched by Red Hulk and Samson, and threatened to launch a full-scale investigation.
universe as a S.H.I.E.L.D. field agent.
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...
, a secret agent
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...
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....
, he first appeared 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...
#163 (Dec. 1967).
Publication history
Clay Quartermain appears as an agent of the fictional espionage agency 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....
, beginning in the feature "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...
" in Marvel Comics' 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...
in 1967, and continuing into the subsequent series Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. in 1968. He became the S.H.I.E.L.D. liaison to General "Thunderbolt" Ross' "Hulkbusters
Hulkbusters
Hulkbusters is the name of three fictional organizations that have appeared in various comic book series published by Marvel Comics. All three groups exist within Marvel's shared universe, known as the Marvel Universe, and are so-named for their attempts to battle the monstrous Hulk.-The U.S...
" military program, and a supporting character in The Incredible Hulk vol. 2, beginning with issue #187 (May 1975). A Life Model Decoy
Life Model Decoy
A Life Model Decoy is fictional android appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. It is designed to function as an exact body double for VIPs...
(LMD) replica of Quartermain was a featured character in the 1988 miniseries
Miniseries
A miniseries , in a serial storytelling medium, is a television show production which tells a story in a limited number of episodes. The exact number is open to interpretation; however, they are usually limited to fewer than a whole season. The term "miniseries" is generally a North American term...
Nick Fury vs. S.H.I.E.L.D.. Quartermain has since had guest appearances in issues of Alias
Alias (comics)
Alias is a comic book series created by writer Brian Michael Bendis and artist Michael Gaydos. It was published by Marvel Comics under Marvel's MAX imprint for a total of 28 issues from 2001 to 2004....
, Cable
Cable (comics)
Cable is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared as an infant in Uncanny X-Men #201...
, The Defenders
Defenders (comics)
The Defenders is the name of a number of Marvel Comics superhero groups which are usually presented as a "non-team" of individualistic "outsiders," each known for following their own agendas...
, Marvel Team-Up
Marvel Team-Up
Marvel Team-Up is the name of several American comic book series published by Marvel Comics. The series featured two or more Marvel characters in one story...
, The Pulse
The Pulse
- Radio :* The Pulse , a hot AC channel on Sirius XM Radio* The Pulse , The original Sirius incarnation on channel 9 until November 12, 2008* The Pulse of West Yorkshire, a UK radio station originally known as Pennine Radio...
, Silver Sable and the Wild Pack
Silver Sable
Silver Sable is a fictional character from Marvel Comics, a female mercenary, hunter of war criminals, the leader of the Wild Pack, and CEO of Silver Sable International...
, and the miniseries Secret War
Secret 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...
; in the "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...
" feature in the omnibus Marvel Holiday Special (Jan. 1994); and in the "Elite Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." feature in the one-shot Captain America 2000 (Nov. 2000). He also led the S.H.I.E.L.D. Paranormal Containment Unit in the 2005-2006 series Nick Fury's Howling Commandos
Nick Fury's Howling Commandos
Nick Fury's Howling Commandos was an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics. Running six issues before its cancellation and cover-dated December 2005 to May 2006, the series featured a fictional team set in the Marvel Universe, consisting of supernatural characters employed as a unit...
.
Fictional character biography
Clay Quartermain is a high-ranking agent of the fictional espionage agency 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....
, a "blond-haired, fast-talking, grinning Burt Lancaster
Burt Lancaster
Burton Stephen "Burt" Lancaster was an American film actor noted for his athletic physique and distinctive smile...
" sort who first works with that organization's storied executive director, 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...
, during S.H.I.E.L.D.'s first conflict with would-be world tyrant the Yellow Claw
Yellow Claw
The Yellow Claw is a fictional comic book supervillain in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Al Feldstein and artist Joe Maneely, the character first appeared in Yellow Claw #1 , published by Atlas Comics, the 1950s predecessor of Marvel.-Publication history:While the...
, later revealed to have been a robot
Robot
A robot is a mechanical or virtual intelligent agent that can perform tasks automatically or with guidance, typically by remote control. In practice a robot is usually an electro-mechanical machine that is guided by computer and electronic programming. Robots can be autonomous, semi-autonomous or...
simulacrum of that Chinese
Chinese people
The term Chinese people may refer to any of the following:*People with Han Chinese ethnicity ....
-national Mandarin
Mandarin (bureaucrat)
A mandarin was a bureaucrat in imperial China, and also in the monarchist days of Vietnam where the system of Imperial examinations and scholar-bureaucrats was adopted under Chinese influence.-History and use of the term:...
. Quartermain later becomes part of the U.S. military's "Hulkbusters" operation, which attempts to capture and contain the Hulk
Hulk (comics)
The Hulk is a fictional character, a superhero in the . Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in The Incredible Hulk #1 ....
.
He rebels against S.H.I.E.L.D. and assists the mutant team X-Factor
X-Factor (comics)
X-Factor is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics. It is a spin-off of the popular X-Men franchise, featuring characters from X-Men stories. The series has been relaunched several times with different team rosters, most recently as X-Factor Investigations.X-Factor launched in...
in saving the Hulk from the U.S. government's plan to kill him. He then becomes a fugitive, traveling with Rick Jones and the Hulk from The Incredible Hulk #337-343 (Nov. 1987 - April 1988). In issue #341, he encounters his brother, a farmer. In the following issue, he testifies in Congress about a mass murder committed by the supervillain
Supervillain
A supervillain or supervillainess is a variant of the villain character type, commonly found in comic books, action movies and science fiction in various media.They are sometimes used as foils to superheroes and other fictional heroes...
the Leader
Leader (comics)
The Leader is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Tales to Astonish #62, and was created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. In 2009, The Leader was ranked as IGN's 63rd Greatest Comic Book Villain of All Time.Actor Tim Blake...
, who had detonated a gamma bomb in a town, obliterating it.
Once more at S.H.I.E.L.D., Quartermain, along with many other agents, is seemingly killed by a self-aware, renegade "Deltan" variety of the agency's artificial-human "Life Model Decoy
Life Model Decoy
A Life Model Decoy is fictional android appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. It is designed to function as an exact body double for VIPs...
s", and replaced by one such LMD. The most advanced of the Deltite LMDs, it rebels upon learning it is not human, and after several confrontations, perishes. The real Quartermain is later found alive in cold storage in S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters, brainwashed by a faction of the terrorist organization HYDRA. He is then deprogrammed
Deprogramming
Deprogramming refers to actions that attempt to force a person to abandon allegiance to a religious, political, economic, or social group. Methods and practices may involve kidnapping and coercion...
.
During the 2005-2006 'Howling Commandos' series, Quartermain takes over the monster/soldier squad and also the 'Area 13' they are based out of.
Retconned as a former romantic interest of 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...
, Quartermain later becomes leader of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Paranormal Containment Unit
Nick Fury's Howling Commandos
Nick Fury's Howling Commandos was an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics. Running six issues before its cancellation and cover-dated December 2005 to May 2006, the series featured a fictional team set in the Marvel Universe, consisting of supernatural characters employed as a unit...
. He is the agent sent to inform Jennifer Walters (She-Hulk
She-Hulk
She-Hulk is a Marvel Comics superheroine. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist John Buscema, she first appeared in Savage She-Hulk #1 ....
) that she has been pressed into service as a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. He next leads a new incarnation of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s "Hulkbusters" unit, here She-Hulk, Agent Crimson, and Agent Cheesecake
Agent Cheesecake
Agent Cheescake is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. She is a Life Model Decoy and operated under S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Clay Quartermain as part of the Hulkbusters...
.
Quartermain remains an ally of Jones, using her to bring down a conspiracy against the President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
. Quartermain later leads a S.H.I.E.L.D. unit that rescues Jones from a HYDRA recruitment attempt.
Death
At a meatpacking plant, Quartermain is purportedly found dead in a suspected Red HulkThunderbolt Ross
General Thaddeus E. "Thunderbolt" Ross is a fictional character appearing in books published by Marvel Comics, usually as an adversary of the Hulk, sometimes as a supervillain. Ross is a United States military officer, the father of Betty Ross, ex-father in-law of Glenn Talbot and the father in-law...
attack. The commanding officer of the crime scene is Clay's old friend Gabe Jones
Gabe Jones
Gabriel "Gabe" Jones is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist and co-plotter Jack Kirby, he made his first appearance in the World War II war comics series Sgt...
. It is later revealed, however, that his actual murderer was the now-insane Doc Samson
Doc Samson
Doc Samson is a fictional character, a superhero and psychiatrist in the Marvel Comics universe, known as a supporting character in stories featuring the Hulk.-Publication history:...
. Quartermain had inadvertently stumbled upon a plot hatched by Red Hulk and Samson, and threatened to launch a full-scale investigation.
Ultimates
Quartermain appears in the Ultimate MarvelUltimate Marvel
Ultimate Marvel is an imprint of comic books published by Marvel Comics, featuring reimagined and updated versions of the company's superhero characters, including Spider-Man, the X-Men, the Avengers, and the Fantastic Four. The imprint was launched in 2000 with the publication of the series...
universe as a S.H.I.E.L.D. field agent.
Television
- Clay Quartermain appears in The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest HeroesThe Avengers: Earth's Mightiest HeroesThe Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes is an American animated television series by Marvel Animation in cooperation with Film Roman based on the Marvel Comics superhero team the Avengers. The show debuted on Disney XD in Fall 2010 starting with a 20 part micro-series. A second season has been...
episode "The Man in the Ant Hill", voiced by Troy BakerTroy BakerTroy Baker is an American actor and voice actor who works with anime films, television series, as well as video games....
. When he discovers that WhirlwindWhirlwind (comics)Whirlwind is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Tales To Astonish #50 and was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby.-Fictional character biography:...
is a mutant and informs Nick Fury of this, Clay is ordered to increase the power dampener on Whirlwind and to notify the Mutant Response Division in order to give Whirlwind to them. In the two-part episode "The Breakout," Clay is among the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents that help to fight Graviton. After Graviton is defeated by Wasp, Clay informs Nick Fury that he reviewed security footage from the Raft showing that Graviton was still asleep at the time the breakouts of the four prisons was occurring. Clay's discovery caused Nick Fury to suspect that someone else had orchestrated the prison breakouts.
Film
- Quartermain appeared in the 1998 TV-movie Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. portrayed by Adrian Hughes.