Fox Universe

The Mystery Man (February 1935)

First appearance - Mystery Men Comics 5, December 1939

Alter ego - Richard Alden

Group affiliation - Mystery Men of America (posthumous honor)

Character note: Although The Mystery Man only appeared once in a two page text story (with one picture - which I used to inform his look, above) in December 1939, it was obvious from the tone and detailing of the story that he was already an established hero. Given that and his pulp style look, I backdated him to be the first masked and publicly known hero of Earth-F's 20th century

PULP ORIGINS

Richard Alden was born in New York City around about the year 1908 - his father was a wealthy and prominent politician and his mother a formerly famous actress and socialite.

Wanting for nothing, young Richard grew up in a Long Island mansion, reading about the derring do's and thrilling escapades of pulp heroes of the west such as The Phantom Ranger and the Waco Kid. He devoured books on myths and legends of The Golden Knight, Robin Hood, King Arthur and others - and he dreamed of being a hero.

His aspirations were further spurred in 1922 when his mother was kidnapped and held for ransom, but later rescued by the detective, Dr Fung and his burly assistant, Dan Barrister Senior, who had been hired by his father.

By the early 1930's, Richard was contemplating a career, but taking his time. Armed with his father's money he had traveled around the world and developed his body and mind. He was only lacking a vocation.

Then in 1934, the papers became full of stories about a flamboyant serial killer calling himself Mr Death. Richard followed the news closely, expecting to hear that the police had caught the madman.

But the year ended and the death count continued to rise. It was then that Richard decided to take matters into his own hands. He designed a look based on the Phantom Ranger's darker attire - but instead of black his suit was blue, and where the Ranger wore a stetson and mask, Richard decided to wear a top hat.

He took to the streets and began foiling low level criminals, around February of 1935. The papers took to calling him the "Mystery Man" and Richard played into this by printing up cards with a shadowed figure with a top hat and the words Mystery Man underneath.

Later in 1935 he was approached by a caped man in a tuxedo and a turban, and a second man in elegant evening dress, wearing a red fez. He recognized them as two stage magicians called Yarko and Zanzibar, and expressed surprise they knew each other.

The newcomers revealed to him that their magic was real, and in 1933 and 1934 respectively they had returned from their mystic studies abroad to battle a coming great evil. While they kept a low profile they had also established themselves as detectives consulting with the police in New York (where Zanzibar was based) and Boston (home base of Yarko).

Richard was told that an age of heroes was approaching and that he would be the first - a harbinger of an era of light that would fight against the coming dark.

They also offered their assistance in locating Mr Death. Richard accepted but asked that his new friends not interfere with the coming fight.

And so in October of 1935, The Mystery Man and Mr Death began an enmity that would last for years.

AGE OF HEROES

Richard was thrilled that others would arise, though it wasn't until the start of 1939 he began to see signs of the predicted new age. In New York alone, Wonderman, Green Mask and The Flame rose up - elsewhere Samson began using his super strength to fight crime, and in Chicago, the Blue Beetle. The Mystery Man eventually crossed all their paths, and was delighted to hear that his example had spurred at least a few to put on a costume and mask and become what were soon to be known as "Science Heroes".

Late in 1939, Richard slipped up in front of his crush, reporter Gail Blanch. She disdained the lazy and feckless Richard Alden but admired the noble Mystery Man. She particularly found Richard's habit of eating shelled peanuts to be annoying, but when Mr Death snatched her to use as a hostage, she was rescued by The Mystery Man and hugged him in gratitude, feeling a bag of shelled peanuts inside his overcoat pocket.

This made Gail suspicious and she followed him secretly, seeing him munch on the nuts and flick off the shells in exactly the same manner as Richard!

Gail compiled a dossier of evidence and finally caught Richard changing to his masked and top hatted guise. She did however promise to keep his secret and the two started dating.

***

In May of 1941, the forces of evil that the magicians had warned against sent an invasion force from their dimension (known as "The Fourth Dimension") to invade New York. Richard found himself fighting alongside Wonderman, Green Mask, Marga, Samson and The Flame to assist the alien Stardust in repelling invaders in Time's Square.

Scientist adventurer, Dr Phillip "Flip" Falcon had also arrived along with Yarko, Zanzibar and others - they had tracked the opening of an inter-dimensional portal to their team (The Syndicate of the Weird)'s foe, the renegade Flame City lama, Chang. And now Flip prepared to sacrifice himself by hurling his body into the eye of the portal where he could shut down and implode the tear in space/time.

The Mystery Man had overheard Flip talk with an injured and exhausted Yarko, and realizing the importance of preserving Flip's scientific genius in the interests of earth, begged the magician to rescue the scientist.

But with his powers and concentration at a low ebb, all Yarko could do was teleport Flip back, therefore losing the chance to close the portal, which would disgorge more extra-dimensional monsters.

And so Richard persuaded Yarko to teleport him to the portal, exchanging him for Flip.

The Mystery Man died to save the world!

LEGACY

Wonderman and others mourned the loss of the Mystery Man and proposed that a team be formed to defend the earth from like threats in the future. It would be named in honor of Richard Alden so he would never be forgotten.

They would be called ... The Mystery Men!

And almost a year later when the original Mystery Men were absorbed into the wartime expanded grouping called The Mystery Men of America (March 10th 1942 to March 10th 1946) - a group that contained every American hero and some allies, a memorial was set up to the Mystery Man in their new headquarters in two top floors of the Manhattan Biltmore hotel.

And in 1959 when the third and most famous iteration of the Mystery Men was formed and became the definitive team of the Earth-F silver and bronze ages, every base they worked from honored the Mystery Man with plaques, a statue and portraits.

He was never forgotten and his legacy continued to endure to the start of the 21st century and beyond.

The British expatriate hero, the Topper has also cited The Mystery Man as his inspiration for embarking on his own heroic career.

And during the war an unknown female assumed the guise of The Mystery Girl.

Many years later, noted chronicler and former reporter turned author, Milton Woodrow "News" Blake interviewed Gail Blanch about Richard's life and personality.

She answered every question frankly and fully. Every question but one.

When Blake asked her if she had been The Mystery Girl, she merely smiled, and said:

'No comment.'