Circus of Crime
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| Circus of Crime | |
 If this infobox is not supposed to have an image, please add "|noimage=yes". |
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| Publication information | |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| First appearance | Incredible Hulk #3 |
| Created by | Stan Lee Steve Ditko |
| In story information | |
| Base(s) | New York |
| Member(s) | Ringmaster The Clown Bruto The Strongman The Human Cannonball The Great Gambonnos Princess Python Live Wire |
The Circus of Crime is a fictional villainous organization in the Marvel Comics universe.
Contents |
[edit] Fictional team biography
[edit] Modern day
Originally a spy organization employed by the Nazis during World War II, Tiboldt's Circus was a traveling circus led by Maynard Tiboldt, the Ringmaster, and he and his performers would use their special skills and talents to rob their audiences.
The Circus first came to the authorities' attention when they carried out a series of robberies of small towns using the Ringmaster's skill in hypnotism to mesmerize entire towns. Regrettably for the Circus, Rick Jones was one of the victims of their capers, and his involvement led to the involvement of the Hulk, and the Circus' arrest[1]. After a brief stretch in prison, the Circus visited New York, where they battled both Spider-Man and Daredevil, with predictably poor results. Even briefly reinventing themselves as the Masters of Menace did not help the Circus in their next attempt at petty thievery. The Circus of Crime had established themselves as comic foils. They briefly recruited Hawkeye, Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch into their ranks, hypnotized Thor into assisting with one of their schemes, attempted to sabotage the Wasp and Yellowjacket's wedding, battled against Daredevil and Power Man, and were even defeated by Howard the Duck. The Circus slid somewhat down the credibility scale. Despite devising an enhanced hypno-ray, dubbed the "psionic eye", the Ringmaster and his flunkies were soundly beaten by the Thing and Iceman. They were subsequently used as punching bags by the She-Hulk, Power Pack and Generation X. By this time, the Ringmaster was seriously contemplating giving up his life of crime and, on at least one occasion, was usurped by the Clown, who proved no more competent a leader than the Ringmaster.
[edit] Old West
Oddly, there were two organizations in the Old West who dubbed themselves the Circus of Crime. Both teams fought against Kid Colt.
Maynard Tiboldt's father, Fritz, ran a travelling circus and was also a Nazi agent. Sent to America to murder US Government officials, under cover of his circus activities, Tiboldt and his gang fell afoul of Captain America and were deported back to Germany, where Fritz Tiboldt and his wife were subsequently murdered by their former employers.
[edit] Members
[edit] Modern Day
- Ringmaster (Maynard Tiboldt)[2] - hypnotist and leader
- The Clown (Eliot "Crafty" Franklin)[3] - occasional leader, also works as a solo assassin; has a son, Corky Franklin.
- Bruto the Strong Man (Bruce Olafson)[4] - Strongman from Sweden.
- Teena the Fat Lady (Mary Stensen)[5] - a sideshow performer; she left the circus in an effort to raise a family but eventually returned.
- Human Cannonball (Jack Pulver)[6]
- The The Great Gambonnos (Ernesto & Luigi Gambonno)[7] - Italian acrobats.
- Live Wire (Rance Preston)[issue # needed] - former agent of the Psycho-Man.
- Rajah (Kabir Mahadevu)[8] - elephant trainer.
- Fire-Eater (Tomas Ramirez)[9] - led the others to force Clown back into crime when he attempted to retire.
- Iron Jack Baker[issue # needed]
- Antoro[10]
- Tarrax the Tamer[issue # needed]
[edit] Former members
- Ringmaster (Fritz Tiboldt)[11] - Austrian, father of Maynard, led Tiboldt’s circus in the 1930s, he was murdered by Nazis
- Princess Python (Zelda DuBois)[issue # needed] - has also been a member of the Masters of Menace, Serpent Squad, Serpent Society and Femizons.
- Incredible Hulk (Bruce Banner)
- Thor (Sigurd Jarlson)[issue # needed]
- Ulik[issue # needed]
- Dragon Man[issue # needed]
- Devil Dinosaur[issue # needed] - hypnotized
- Moon-Boy[issue # needed] - hypnotized
- Blackwing (Joseph Manfredi)[issue # needed] - also has been a member of HYDRA, the Skeleton Crew and the Masters of Evil; he is the son of Silvermane
- Professor[12] - built Rayon Gun, killed by Samson when he stole the gun[13]
[edit] 19th Century
This team briefly forced Kid Colt to assist them until he exposed them.
- Sawyer[14] - owner; strongman
- Blade Benson[15] - swordsman
- Captain Corbett[16] - animal trainer
- Mr. Marvel[17] - high-wire artiste
- The Tumbling Turners[18] - acrobats
[edit] Old West (1870s)
- Iron Mask[19] - armored shootist; former blacksmith who organized Circus of Crime and another band of costumed criminals
- Bennington Brown[20] - hypnotist
- Fat Man[21] - boomerang-thrower
- Doctor Danger[22] - ventriloquist; used magnetic weaponry; also was a member of the Chain Gang.
- The Living Totem[23] - extra-terrestrial giant
- Hurricane (Harry Kane)[24] - superspeed; marksmanship; former agent of the Iron Mask; he stole a magic potion from a witch doctor and drank it after the potion was struck by lightning
- The Rattler[25] - acrobat; horseman; marksman
- Red Raven[26] - winged shootist; he was given magic wings by an elderly Navajo prisoner.
[edit] References
- ^ Incredible Hulk #3
- ^ Incredible Hulk #3
- ^ Incredible Hulk #3
- ^ Incredible Hulk #3
- ^ Incredible Hulk #3
- ^ Incredible Hulk #3
- ^ Amazing Spider-Man #16
- ^ Super-Villain Team-Up #8
- ^ Marvel Two-In-One #76
- ^ Amazing Spider-Man '98
- ^ Captain America Comics #5
- ^ Human Torch Comics #1
- ^ Human Torch Comics #1
- ^ Kid Colt, Outlaw #106
- ^ Kid Colt, Outlaw #106
- ^ Kid Colt, Outlaw #106
- ^ Kid Colt, Outlaw #106
- ^ Kid Colt, Outlaw #106
- ^ Kid Colt #110
- ^ Kid Colt #112
- ^ Kid Colt #117
- ^ Kid Colt #116
- ^ Rawhide Kid #22
- ^ Two Gun Kid #70
- ^ Rawhide Kid #37
- ^ Rawhide Kid #38
The Circus of Crime appears in the Marvel Superheroes Show (1966)
