King Standish
Encyclopedia
King Standish is a fictional character
in the DC Comics
Universe
. King Standish first appeared in Flash Comics
(vol. 1) #3 (March 1940), and was created by Gardner Fox
and William Smith.
with an opera cape, a top hat
and a domino mask
, whenever making an appearance not in disguise.
His most frequent adversary was the Witch, who rivaled in ability for disguise. He never turned her over to the police, since there was a mutual attraction. Although being on opposite sides, they both developed strong feelings towards each other, despite the fact they never saw the actual face of the other. King attempted many times to bring her over to the side of the law and be a crime fighter, but failed.
During World War II, he was contacted by Control and became a member of the Office of Strategic Services
. The King remained a member of the OSS until the war was over. Later, he helped the Justice Society of America
when Jacob Tolzmann became a supernatural threat. With Sandman and the Star Spangled Kid
knocked out, King teamed up with their sidekicks', Sandy and Stripesy. The King disguised himself as Tolzmann's father to distract him, allowing the sidekicks to defeat him.
In Justice Society of America #29 (vol. 3), a new recruit to the team, King Chimera
, reveals a little bit about himself, saying his father was "King" Standish and that he met with a member of a secret order on a distant island to perfect the art of illusion, training himself to be a master illusionist. King Chimera mentioned his mother had a thing for older men, hinting The King and King Chimera's mother had an age difference, with The King being much older.
King Standish's current activities and whereabouts have not been recorded, last appearing in Starman
#66 (June 2000).
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...
in the DC Comics
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...
Universe
DC Universe
The DC Universe is the shared universe where most of the comic stories published by DC Comics take place. The fictional characters Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman are well-known superheroes from this universe. Note that in context, "DC Universe" is usually used to refer to the main DC continuity...
. King Standish first appeared in Flash Comics
Flash Comics
Flash Comics was an anthology comic book published by All-American Publications and later National Periodicals . The title ran for 104 issues between January 1940 to February 1949. Although the name of the comic book was Flash Comics, the Flash was only one of many different series featured in the...
(vol. 1) #3 (March 1940), and was created by Gardner Fox
Gardner Fox
Gardner Francis Cooper Fox was an American writer best known for creating numerous comic book characters for DC Comics. Comic-book historians estimate that he wrote over 4,000 comics stories....
and William Smith.
Fictional character biography
King Standish was young, rich master of disguise who vowed to stop crime. He was considered a criminal by the police and the underworld, while he was truly a crimefighter. Through time this bad reputation died, but not fully. Being such a skillful master of disguise, King could even fool his friends, however, he remained in disguise, allowing no one to know what he looked like. His actual face, nor his full name, is never revealed throughout his appearances. He sported a tuxedoTuxedo
A tuxedo is a type of semi-formal dress for men.Tuxedo may also refer to:-Places:Canada* Tuxedo, Winnipeg, Manitoba, a city neighborhood** Tuxedo , a provincial electoral district in Manitoba...
with an opera cape, a top hat
Top hat
A top hat, beaver hat, high hat silk hat, cylinder hat, chimney pot hat or stove pipe hat is a tall, flat-crowned, broad-brimmed hat, predominantly worn from the latter part of the 18th to the middle of the 20th century...
and a domino mask
Domino mask
A domino mask is a small, rounded mask covering only the eyes and the space between them. Since the 18th century, the domino mask is worn during carnival. Venetian Carnival masks were known as domini because they resembled French priests' winter hoods, being black on the outside and white on the...
, whenever making an appearance not in disguise.
His most frequent adversary was the Witch, who rivaled in ability for disguise. He never turned her over to the police, since there was a mutual attraction. Although being on opposite sides, they both developed strong feelings towards each other, despite the fact they never saw the actual face of the other. King attempted many times to bring her over to the side of the law and be a crime fighter, but failed.
During World War II, he was contacted by Control and became a member of the Office of Strategic Services
Office of Strategic Services
The Office of Strategic Services was a United States intelligence agency formed during World War II. It was the wartime intelligence agency, and it was a predecessor of the Central Intelligence Agency...
. The King remained a member of the OSS until the war was over. Later, he helped the Justice Society of America
Justice Society of America
The Justice Society of America, or JSA, is a DC Comics superhero group, the first team of superheroes in comic book history. Conceived by editor Sheldon Mayer and writer Gardner Fox, the JSA first appeared in All Star Comics #3 ....
when Jacob Tolzmann became a supernatural threat. With Sandman and the Star Spangled Kid
Sylvester Pemberton
Sylvester Pemberton, alternately known as The Star-Spangled Kid and Skyman, is a fictional superhero in the DC Comics universe. Sylvester first appeared in Action Comics #40 and was created by Jerry Siegel and Hal Sherman....
knocked out, King teamed up with their sidekicks', Sandy and Stripesy. The King disguised himself as Tolzmann's father to distract him, allowing the sidekicks to defeat him.
In Justice Society of America #29 (vol. 3), a new recruit to the team, King Chimera
King Chimera
King Chimera is a fictional superhero in the DC Comics Universe, a member of the superhero team the Justice Society of America. King Chimera first appeared in Justice Society of America King Chimera is a fictional superhero in the DC Comics Universe, a member of the superhero team the Justice...
, reveals a little bit about himself, saying his father was "King" Standish and that he met with a member of a secret order on a distant island to perfect the art of illusion, training himself to be a master illusionist. King Chimera mentioned his mother had a thing for older men, hinting The King and King Chimera's mother had an age difference, with The King being much older.
King Standish's current activities and whereabouts have not been recorded, last appearing in Starman
Starman (comics)
Starman is a name used by several different fictional DC Comics superheroes, most prominently Ted Knight and his sons David and Jack.Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Jack Burnley, the original Starman, Ted Knight, first appeared in Adventure Comics #61...
#66 (June 2000).