Julia Kapatelis
Encyclopedia
Julia Deneiros Kapatelis is a DC Comics
fictional character
created by writer/artist George Pérez
for the Wonder Woman
comic book series.
, Greece
to Greek Orthodox
parents Agostos and Maria Deneiros in the 1930s. In June 1937, while still a toddler, Julia went sailing with her parents on the Ionian Sea
but fell overboard due to a sudden storm. She was rescued from drowning by the goddess Thetis
. Thetis would rescue mortal female children she deemed "special" and safely transport them to the shores of Themyscira
's Island of Healing. (Male children were taken someplace else.) Once on the island the Amazon
's chief physician Epione would discover them and tend to their care. After this the child would be taken to the royal palace where one Amazon is selected as the child's "Guardian of Inspiraton". The silver haired Amazon Pythia volunteered to bless baby Julia, granting her great wisdom and strength of spirit. According to Pythia, Julia was the last of hundreds of babies to experience this. This "blessing" in actuality was a subliminal suggestion for the child to teach peace and equality throughout their lives. This blessing can extend to descendants as well. This custom is called "Send Forth". Once this is done the child is considered an Amazon and spiritual daughter to the Amazon who blessed them. After a few days of recouperation and blessings the child is taken to the island shores again where she is taken back into the ocean and returned, again by Thetis who magically travels back in time to return the child to the exact point in time when the child first left her homeland. Because of this, Julia's parents believed baby Julia had disappeared under the stormy waters for only a few seconds before being pulled back into the boat.
when she was still very young.
Later, Julia met David Kapatelis while attending Athens University
. Julia was studying for her Geology Major
while David was studying for his Archaeology
Major, which Julia took on as her Minor study subject herself. They traveled the world together exploring various cultures and histories. At each site they would visit Julia would write down her findings and have them published in various academic journal
s. Eventually Julia married David in Greece. An independent thinker, Julia wanted to keep her maiden name as her family had no one else to carry it on. This upset David's traditional Greek family so she relented and took David's family name of Kapatelis.
Julia became pregnant while she and David were exploring Scotland. As a joke David wanted to name their unborn child "Nessie" after the local Scottish creature the Loch Ness Monster
. Though humored, Julia didn't agree but settled on Vanessa as a close substitute. Julia remained married to David until his death 22 years into their marriage when Vanessa was 5 years old. He died while exploring ruins in Egypt. Deciding to make a fresh start Julia took Vanessa to live in the U.S. where she eventually became the Dean
for the Department of History and Geology at Harvard University
. They currently live in the Beacon Hill section of Boston, Massachusetts.
While at Harvard Julia worked alongside a promising student named Helena Sandsmark. Julia mentored Helena over the years and eventually helped Helena become a Professor and Curator
at the Gateway City Museum of Cultural Antiquities. Helena would later have a daughter named Cassandra Sandsmark.
. Julia was the first non-Amazon woman Diana aka Wonder Woman ever met. At that time Diana was non-familiar with the English language and only spoke her native Themyscirian language. As it was a close derivative of Greek, Julia was able to understand Diana to an extent. Julia took Diana into her home and family and taught her not only English but modern history as well.
After Vanessa was attacked by Decay
, Julia made Diana's fight her own and helped her battle the war god Ares
.
Still unaware of her own Amazonian ties, Julia eventually touched Harmonia
's talisman
during her first meeting with Diana, which resulted with several flashes of memories from Julia's Send Forth period. This confused Julia until she later was invited to Diana's homeland of Themyscira. On her visit she met Pythia and the two felt a strange connection to each other. When Julia and Pythia touched hands, Julia's previous history on Themysciria ran through both Julia's and Pythia's mind, unlocking her forgotten past. Reunited, Julia and Pythia formed a close bond. Similar to Julia's mother-like role to Diana, Pythia developed a protective relationship to Julia. When the witch Circe
kidnapped Julia during the War of the Gods
storyline, Pythia took it upon herself to rescue Julia, calling Julia her daughter.
When Diana became Ambassador
of Themyscira, Julia knew Diana would need help adjusting to a world of men and became a sort of foster mother to Diana. During these events Julia managed to keep her personal and academic life pretty full. On trips to Greece Julia reconnected with Stavros Christadoulodou, a noted Epigraphist
and a close family friend for many years. Though both interested, their relationship remained only as close and respected friends. A similar situation occurred between Julia and one of Vanessa's high school geometry teachers named Horace Westlake. The two dated for a few months until he was killed by Doctor Psycho
. At one point Julia was presented with a grant
by the National Geographic Society
to locate the original city of Themyscira in the country of Turkey
. Unfortunately Julia had to cancel the excavation mid-way through the project once one of Vanessa's friends committed suicide.
Julia's and Diana's friendship endured over many trials, mostly due to Diana's enemies attacking Julia's daughter. It wasn't until Vanessa was brainwashed and transformed into the villainous Silver Swan
though that Julia's and Diana's friendship was temporarily put on hold. Julia resented Diana for not protecting Vanessa from Diana's enemies. After some time Julia came to a resolution with Diana. She agreed to have Diana help in her daughter's rehabilitation. They have since fully reconciled and was last seen at Vanessa's college graduation along with Diana.
befriended Wonder Woman during a six-issue story arc set in space. Both women were prisoners of the Sangtee Empire. Sangtee enforcers ripped out her eyes when she proved to be too difficult to control. Wonder Woman provided her with one cybernetic eye (the other covered with an eye patch) and named the Daxamite Julia in honor of her close friend Julia Kapatelis. Julia later makes a cameo appearance during the company-wide "Our Worlds at War
" crossover.
. In a distorted reality where Wonder Woman appears to have been erased from existence, Julia meets a pregnant woman named Desiree, who has been drawing sketches of and related to Wonder Woman. Julia compliments her drawing talent and gives her a business card, stating she is the 'Director of Restoration' for the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. Julia tells the woman she has a daughter, who is in college now. It seems Julia has the blessing from being 'Sent Forth', leading to her survival and successful career, but never met Diana; therefore her daughter was never brainwashed into becoming the Silver Swan.
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
fictional character
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...
created by writer/artist George Pérez
George Pérez
George Pérez is a Puerto Rican-American writer and illustrator of comic books, known for his work on various titles, including Avengers, Teen Titans and Wonder Woman.-Biography:...
for the Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman is a DC Comics superheroine created by William Moulton Marston. She first appeared in All Star Comics #8 . The Wonder Woman title has been published by DC Comics almost continuously except for a brief hiatus in 1986....
comic book series.
Childhood
Julia was born in CefaloniaKefalonia
The island of Cephalonia, also known as Kefalonia, Cephallenia, Cephallonia, Kefallinia, or Kefallonia , is the largest of the Ionian Islands in western Greece, with an area of . It is also a separate regional unit of the Ionian Islands region, and the only municipality of the regional unit...
, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
to Greek Orthodox
Greek Orthodox Church
The Greek Orthodox Church is the body of several churches within the larger communion of Eastern Orthodox Christianity sharing a common cultural tradition whose liturgy is also traditionally conducted in Koine Greek, the original language of the New Testament...
parents Agostos and Maria Deneiros in the 1930s. In June 1937, while still a toddler, Julia went sailing with her parents on the Ionian Sea
Ionian Sea
The Ionian Sea , is an arm of the Mediterranean Sea, south of the Adriatic Sea. It is bounded by southern Italy including Calabria, Sicily and the Salento peninsula to the west, southern Albania to the north, and a large number of Greek islands, including Corfu, Zante, Kephalonia, Ithaka, and...
but fell overboard due to a sudden storm. She was rescued from drowning by the goddess Thetis
Thetis
Silver-footed Thetis , disposer or "placer" , is encountered in Greek mythology mostly as a sea nymph or known as the goddess of water, one of the fifty Nereids, daughters of the ancient one of the seas with shape-shifting abilities who survives in the historical vestiges of most later Greek myths...
. Thetis would rescue mortal female children she deemed "special" and safely transport them to the shores of Themyscira
Themyscira
Themyscira is a fictional island nation in the DC Comics universe that is the place of origin of Wonder Woman and her sister Amazons. Known as Paradise Island since Wonder Woman and the island's first appearance in All Star Comics #8 , it was renamed "Themyscira" with the character's February...
's Island of Healing. (Male children were taken someplace else.) Once on the island the Amazon
Amazons (comics)
The Amazons of DC Comics are a fictional all-female society of superhumans, based on the Amazons of Greek mythology. There have been three major incarnations of these Amazons, one before the Crisis, and two after. What two of these groups have in common is that they are the race which produced...
's chief physician Epione would discover them and tend to their care. After this the child would be taken to the royal palace where one Amazon is selected as the child's "Guardian of Inspiraton". The silver haired Amazon Pythia volunteered to bless baby Julia, granting her great wisdom and strength of spirit. According to Pythia, Julia was the last of hundreds of babies to experience this. This "blessing" in actuality was a subliminal suggestion for the child to teach peace and equality throughout their lives. This blessing can extend to descendants as well. This custom is called "Send Forth". Once this is done the child is considered an Amazon and spiritual daughter to the Amazon who blessed them. After a few days of recouperation and blessings the child is taken to the island shores again where she is taken back into the ocean and returned, again by Thetis who magically travels back in time to return the child to the exact point in time when the child first left her homeland. Because of this, Julia's parents believed baby Julia had disappeared under the stormy waters for only a few seconds before being pulled back into the boat.
Family
As with countless other female babies blessed by the Amazons before her, Julia thrived in her newfound spiritual blessing, excelling at every task she undertook. Despite her accomplishments Julia lost her brother, Peter Deneiros, during the war in 1944 as part of the Greek UndergroundGreek Resistance
The Greek Resistance is the blanket term for a number of armed and unarmed groups from across the political spectrum that resisted the Axis Occupation of Greece in the period 1941–1944, during World War II.-Origins:...
when she was still very young.
Later, Julia met David Kapatelis while attending Athens University
National and Kapodistrian University of Athens
The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens , usually referred to simply as the University of Athens, is the oldest university in Southeast Europe and has been in continuous operation since its establishment in 1837. Today, it is the second-largest institution of higher learning in Greece,...
. Julia was studying for her Geology Major
National and Kapodistrian University of Athens - Faculty of Geology and Geoenvironment
The Faculty of Geology is part of the School of Sciences in National and Kapodistrian University of Athens.- Early history :The history of the Geological Sciences at Athens University until the year 1982 and the institutional change of the law 1268, is identified with the history of the Chairs and...
while David was studying for his Archaeology
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
Major, which Julia took on as her Minor study subject herself. They traveled the world together exploring various cultures and histories. At each site they would visit Julia would write down her findings and have them published in various academic journal
Academic journal
An academic journal is a peer-reviewed periodical in which scholarship relating to a particular academic discipline is published. Academic journals serve as forums for the introduction and presentation for scrutiny of new research, and the critique of existing research...
s. Eventually Julia married David in Greece. An independent thinker, Julia wanted to keep her maiden name as her family had no one else to carry it on. This upset David's traditional Greek family so she relented and took David's family name of Kapatelis.
Julia became pregnant while she and David were exploring Scotland. As a joke David wanted to name their unborn child "Nessie" after the local Scottish creature the Loch Ness Monster
Loch Ness Monster
The Loch Ness Monster is a cryptid that is reputed to inhabit Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands. It is similar to other supposed lake monsters in Scotland and elsewhere, though its description varies from one account to the next....
. Though humored, Julia didn't agree but settled on Vanessa as a close substitute. Julia remained married to David until his death 22 years into their marriage when Vanessa was 5 years old. He died while exploring ruins in Egypt. Deciding to make a fresh start Julia took Vanessa to live in the U.S. where she eventually became the Dean
Dean (education)
In academic administration, a dean is a person with significant authority over a specific academic unit, or over a specific area of concern, or both...
for the Department of History and Geology at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
. They currently live in the Beacon Hill section of Boston, Massachusetts.
While at Harvard Julia worked alongside a promising student named Helena Sandsmark. Julia mentored Helena over the years and eventually helped Helena become a Professor and Curator
Curator
A curator is a manager or overseer. Traditionally, a curator or keeper of a cultural heritage institution is a content specialist responsible for an institution's collections and involved with the interpretation of heritage material...
at the Gateway City Museum of Cultural Antiquities. Helena would later have a daughter named Cassandra Sandsmark.
Diana
During her time at Harvard Julia also met Wonder WomanWonder Woman
Wonder Woman is a DC Comics superheroine created by William Moulton Marston. She first appeared in All Star Comics #8 . The Wonder Woman title has been published by DC Comics almost continuously except for a brief hiatus in 1986....
. Julia was the first non-Amazon woman Diana aka Wonder Woman ever met. At that time Diana was non-familiar with the English language and only spoke her native Themyscirian language. As it was a close derivative of Greek, Julia was able to understand Diana to an extent. Julia took Diana into her home and family and taught her not only English but modern history as well.
After Vanessa was attacked by Decay
Decay (DC Comics)
Decay is a fictional character owned by DC Comics. She appears as a villain in the Wonder Woman comic book series.-Fictional character biography:...
, Julia made Diana's fight her own and helped her battle the war god Ares
Ares (DC Comics)
Ares is a fictional character, a supervillainous God appearing in DC Comics publications and related media. Based upon the Greek mythological figure of the same name, he is the god of War and one of the major adversaries of Wonder Woman. He first appeared in Wonder Woman #1, volume 1, published in...
.
Harmonia (mythology)
In Greek mythology, Harmonia is the immortal goddess of harmony and concord. Her Roman counterpart is Concordia, and her Greek opposite is Eris, whose Roman counterpart is Discordia.-Origins:...
's talisman
Necklace of Harmonia
The Necklace of Harmonia was a fabled object in Greek mythology that, according to legend, brought great misfortune to all of its wearers or owners, who were primarily queens and princesses of the ill-fated House of Thebes...
during her first meeting with Diana, which resulted with several flashes of memories from Julia's Send Forth period. This confused Julia until she later was invited to Diana's homeland of Themyscira. On her visit she met Pythia and the two felt a strange connection to each other. When Julia and Pythia touched hands, Julia's previous history on Themysciria ran through both Julia's and Pythia's mind, unlocking her forgotten past. Reunited, Julia and Pythia formed a close bond. Similar to Julia's mother-like role to Diana, Pythia developed a protective relationship to Julia. When the witch Circe
Circe (comics)
Circe is a fictional character, a villainous sorceress and a major adversary of Wonder Woman appearing in DC Comics publications and related media. Based upon the Greek mythological character of the same name who imprisoned Odysseus in Homer's Odyssey, the comic book incarnation of Circe first...
kidnapped Julia during the War of the Gods
War of the Gods (comics)
War of the Gods was an American four-issue comic book mini-series published by DC Comics in 1991.Primarily centered on the character Wonder Woman, this storyline was intended to celebrate the character's 50th anniversary. It was written and drawn by George Pérez, who would leave the Wonder Woman...
storyline, Pythia took it upon herself to rescue Julia, calling Julia her daughter.
When Diana became Ambassador
Ambassador
An ambassador is the highest ranking diplomat who represents a nation and is usually accredited to a foreign sovereign or government, or to an international organization....
of Themyscira, Julia knew Diana would need help adjusting to a world of men and became a sort of foster mother to Diana. During these events Julia managed to keep her personal and academic life pretty full. On trips to Greece Julia reconnected with Stavros Christadoulodou, a noted Epigraphist
Epigraphy
Epigraphy Epigraphy Epigraphy (from the , literally "on-writing", is the study of inscriptions or epigraphs as writing; that is, the science of identifying the graphemes and of classifying their use as to cultural context and date, elucidating their meaning and assessing what conclusions can be...
and a close family friend for many years. Though both interested, their relationship remained only as close and respected friends. A similar situation occurred between Julia and one of Vanessa's high school geometry teachers named Horace Westlake. The two dated for a few months until he was killed by Doctor Psycho
Doctor Psycho
Doctor Psycho is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. A villainous telepathic dwarf, Doctor Psycho has traditionally been presented as an adversary for Wonder Woman...
. At one point Julia was presented with a grant
Grant (money)
Grants are funds disbursed by one party , often a Government Department, Corporation, Foundation or Trust, to a recipient, often a nonprofit entity, educational institution, business or an individual. In order to receive a grant, some form of "Grant Writing" often referred to as either a proposal...
by the National Geographic Society
National Geographic Society
The National Geographic Society , headquartered in Washington, D.C. in the United States, is one of the largest non-profit scientific and educational institutions in the world. Its interests include geography, archaeology and natural science, the promotion of environmental and historical...
to locate the original city of Themyscira in the country of Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
. Unfortunately Julia had to cancel the excavation mid-way through the project once one of Vanessa's friends committed suicide.
Julia's and Diana's friendship endured over many trials, mostly due to Diana's enemies attacking Julia's daughter. It wasn't until Vanessa was brainwashed and transformed into the villainous Silver Swan
Silver Swan (comics)
The Silver Swan are three fictional characters in the Wonder Woman stories. The first Silver Swan first appeared in Wonder Woman vol. 1 #288. The second Silver Swan first appeared in Wonder Woman vol. 2 #15. The third Silver Swan first appeared in Wonder Woman vol...
though that Julia's and Diana's friendship was temporarily put on hold. Julia resented Diana for not protecting Vanessa from Diana's enemies. After some time Julia came to a resolution with Diana. She agreed to have Diana help in her daughter's rehabilitation. They have since fully reconciled and was last seen at Vanessa's college graduation along with Diana.
Julia of Daxam
A blind female warrior from the planet DaxamDaxam
Daxam is a planet within the DC Universe. It is home to a race called the Daxamites, who are descended from Kryptonian colonists.-History:Daxamites were originally Kryptonians who left their homeworld in order to explore the Universe. They are an intensely xenophobic race, and are fearful of alien...
befriended Wonder Woman during a six-issue story arc set in space. Both women were prisoners of the Sangtee Empire. Sangtee enforcers ripped out her eyes when she proved to be too difficult to control. Wonder Woman provided her with one cybernetic eye (the other covered with an eye patch) and named the Daxamite Julia in honor of her close friend Julia Kapatelis. Julia later makes a cameo appearance during the company-wide "Our Worlds at War
Our Worlds at War
"Our Worlds at War" was a comic book crossover, published by DC Comics during the summer of 2001. OWAW was written by Jeph Loeb, Joe Casey, Mark Schultz, Joe Kelly, Phil Jimenez, and Peter David...
" crossover.
Alternative versions
An alternate reality Julia is seen in TrinityTrinity (comic book)
Trinity is the title of an American weekly comic book limited series published by DC Comics that debuted during the first week of June, 2008. It ran for 52 issues.-Conception and production:...
. In a distorted reality where Wonder Woman appears to have been erased from existence, Julia meets a pregnant woman named Desiree, who has been drawing sketches of and related to Wonder Woman. Julia compliments her drawing talent and gives her a business card, stating she is the 'Director of Restoration' for the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. Julia tells the woman she has a daughter, who is in college now. It seems Julia has the blessing from being 'Sent Forth', leading to her survival and successful career, but never met Diana; therefore her daughter was never brainwashed into becoming the Silver Swan.