| Doctor Mid-Nite | |
 Cover to JSA: All-Stars #6. Art by John Cassaday and Mark Lewis. John Cassaday (born 1971 is an American Comic book artist and writer Mark Lewis is the name used by several people including Mark Lewis (football Mark Lewis (baseball Mark Lewis (rugby |
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| Publication information | |
|---|---|
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | (McNider) All-American Comics #25 (April 1941) (Chapel) Infinity Inc. #19 (October 1985) As Doctor Midnight: Infinity Inc. DC Comics is an American comic book and related media company In Comic books and other stories with a long history first appearance refers to the first occurrence to feature a Fictional character. All-American Comics was the flagship title of Comic book Publisher All-American Publications. Infinity Inc is a team of Comic book Superheroes in the DC Comics universe, mostly composed of the children and heirs of the Justice #21 (December 1985) (Cross) Doctor Mid-Nite #1 (1999) |
| Created by | (McNider) Charles Reizenstein Stanley Josephs Aschmeier (Chapel) Roy Thomas Todd McFarlane (Cross) Matt Wagner John K. Snyder |
| In story information | |
| Alter ego | - Charles McNider - Elizabeth Chapel - Pieter Anton Cross |
| Team affiliations | (McNider, Cross) Justice Society of America (McNider) All-Star Squadron (Chapel) Infinity, Inc. Shadow Fighters |
| Notable aliases | (McNider) Starman |
| Abilities | (All) Perfect night vision; can see in light through infrared lenses (Cross) Employs special ultrasonic lenses |
Doctor Mid-Nite is a fictional character, a DC Comics superhero. Roy Thomas (born November 22 1940, Missouri, United States) is a Comic book Writer and editor, and Todd McFarlane (born March 16, 1961) is a Canadian Comic book artist writer toy manufacturer/designer and media Entrepreneur who is best known Matt Wagner (born 1961) is an American Comic book Writer and Artist, best known as the creator of two irregular series John Kenneth Snyder Sr ( August 29, 1922 - January 11, 1993) was a colorful outspoken Democratic mayor of Alexandria Louisiana The Justice Society of America, or JSA, is a DC Comics Superhero group the first team of superheroes in Comic book history The All-Star Squadron is a DC Comics fictional Superhero team that debuted in Justice League of America #193 (August 1981 Infinity Inc is a team of Comic book Superheroes in the DC Comics universe, mostly composed of the children and heirs of the Justice The Shadow Fighters were a group of superpowered and non-superpowered DC Comics characters brought together under the supervision of Amanda Waller, for Starman is a name used by several different fictional DC Comics Superheroes most prominently Ted Knight and his son Jack. DC Comics is an American comic book and related media company A superhero (sometimes rendered super-hero or super hero) is a Fictional character "of unprecedented physical prowess dedicated to acts of derring-do Created by writer Charles Reizenstein and artist Stanley Josephs Aschmeier, the original Doctor Mid-Nite first appeared in All-American Comics #25 (April 1941). All-American Comics was the flagship title of Comic book Publisher All-American Publications. Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar.
In the history of the DC Universe, three different characters have assumed the role of Doctor Mid-Nite. The DC Universe ( DCU) is the fictional Shared universe where most of the comic stories published by DC Comics take place All of them have been close to blind in daylight but able to see clearly in darkness, and have utilized special visors and smoky “blackout” bombs to give them the upper hand against enemies. All three have also been actual medical doctors, two have also had sidekick owls. SideKick was an early Personal Information Manager (PIM Software application by Borland launched in 1983 under Philippe Kahn The Owls are an order of birds of prey. Most are Solitary, and nocturnal, with some exceptions (e
Like many Golden Age heroes, Doctor Mid-Nite was a core member of the Justice Society of America. The Golden Age of Comic Books was a period in the history of American comic books generally thought as lasting from the 1930s until late 1940s during which Comic books The Justice Society of America, or JSA, is a DC Comics Superhero group the first team of superheroes in Comic book history His two successors were also members of the group or joined an offshoot.
Contents |
Fictional character history
Charles McNider
The first Doctor, surgeon Charles McNider, was the earliest blind superhero, predating Marvel Comics' Daredevil by more than two decades. In Medicine, a surgeon is a person who performs Surgery. Surgery is a broad category of invasive Medical treatment that involves the cutting of a Blindness is the condition of lacking Visual perception due to Physiological or Neurological factors Marvel Comics is an American comic book company owned by Marvel Publishing Inc Daredevil is a Fictional character that appears in Comic books published by Marvel Comics. One night, he was called to remove a bullet from a witness who was to testify against the mob. A bullet is a solid Projectile propelled by a Firearm or Air gun and is normally made from metal (usually Lead) The Mafia (also known as Cosa Nostra) is a Sicilian Criminal Secret society which is believed to have first developed in the mid-19th century However, a mobster threw a grenade into the room, killing the witness and blinding McNider. McNider thought his days as a surgeon were over until one day, as he was recovering, an owl crashed through his window (reminiscent of the incident that inspired Batman to dress as a bat). The Owls are an order of birds of prey. Most are Solitary, and nocturnal, with some exceptions (e Batman (originally referred to as the Bat-Man and still referred to at times as the Batman) is a fictional Comic book Superhero co-created Taking off the bandages that were covering his eyes, he found that he could see, but only in perfect darkness. A bandage is a piece of material used either to support a medical device such as a dressing or splint, or on its own to provide support to the body Using his newfound ability, he developed a special visor that let him see in light and "blackout bombs" that block out all light, and used these to fight crime. A visor is a surface that protects the eyes, such as shading them from the sun or other bright light or protecting them from objects He adopted the owl, named him Hooty, and appointed him as his "sidekick". He later joined the Justice Society of America and the All-Star Squadron. The Justice Society of America, or JSA, is a DC Comics Superhero group the first team of superheroes in Comic book history The All-Star Squadron is a DC Comics fictional Superhero team that debuted in Justice League of America #193 (August 1981 In 1951, McNider briefly took over the role of Starman after the JSA had disbanded and Ted Knight, the original Starman, had suffered a nervous breakdown as a result of his participation in the development of the atomic bomb (Starman vol. Starman is a name used by several different fictional DC Comics Superheroes most prominently Ted Knight and his son Jack. 2 #77).
McNider was one of the casualties of Zero Hour, dying alongside the Atom at the hands of Extant. Zero Hour Crisis in Time is a five-issue Comic book Limited series and crossover storyline published by DC Comics in 1994 Hank Hall is a Fictional character in the DC Comics universe who first appeared in Showcase #75 as Hawk of Hawk and Dove.
Charles McNider's legacy apparently does not include any blood heirs. McNider's later marital status is unknown, but he suffered an agonising event when his girlfriend Myra Mason was murdered in 1953 by his foe, The Shadower, who had discovered Mid-Nite's secret identity. Cross has noted that "McNider loved [Myra]. . . more than he was ever willing to admit to her. " McNider apparently never revealed his identity to Myra, presumably (and ironically) to keep her "safe". One other "old friend", Miss Alice King, appeared in All-American Comics #90 (October 1947).
At one point however, in Sogndal, Norway, McNider rescued a pregnant woman from attack and delivered her baby. This child, Pieter Cross, eventually became one of his successors.
Beth Chapel
At the time of his death during Zero Hour McNider had no known living relatives, although he was close to his student and protégé, Dr. Beth Chapel, an African-American. African Americans or Black Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have origins in any of the black populations of Africa Chapel first appeared when Jade of Infinity, Inc. was rushed to the hospital for treatment against Mister Bones' cyanide touch. Jade ( Jennifer-Lynn Hayden) is a Fictional character, a Superhero in the DC Comics DC universe. Infinity Inc is a team of Comic book Superheroes in the DC Comics universe, mostly composed of the children and heirs of the Justice There are other articles with similar names see Bones (disambiguation. Shortly thereafter, her super-hero career kicked into fast and full gear. During the onset of the Crisis on Infinite Earths, Beth was blinded by an oxygen explosion in her hospital. Crisis on Infinite Earths is a twelve-issue American comic book Limited series (identified as a "12-part maxi-series" and crossover She was rescued by Hourman's son Rick Tyler, who took his father's Miraclo drug. Hourman (spelled Hour-Man in his earliest appearances is the name of three different fictional DC Comics Superheroes the first of whom was Like McNider, Beth discovered that she too could see in the dark. She and Rick assumed the mantles of their predecessors as Doctor Midnight (note the different spelling) and Hourman. Along with a new Wildcat, they applied for membership in Infinity, Inc. Yolanda Montez is a fictional Superheroine in DC Comics ' Shared universe, the DC universe. , but were not immediately accepted. Eventually they were admitted, but their careers were short-lived.
Infinity soon disbanded and Doctor Midnight and Wildcat were recruited by the U. S. government for a mission to defeat the supervillain Eclipso. A supervillain or supervillainess is a variant of the Villain character type commonly found in Comic books, Action movies and Eclipso is a Fictional character, a Supervillain in the DC Comics Universe. Both women died on that mission along with the Creeper, Commander Steel, Peacemaker and Major Victory. The Creeper ( Jack Ryder) is a fictional Comic-book Superhero in the DC Comics universe Commander Steel (also Steel or Citizen Steel) is the name of three Fictional characters Superheroes published by DC Comics, all members The Peacemaker is the name of a series of Superheroes originally owned by Charlton Comics and later acquired by DC Comics. The Major Victory name has been used by three Fictional characters in the DC Comics universe (Eclipso #13) Before her death, Beth had begun a romantic relationship with Rick Tyler, but she has no known relatives.
Pieter Cross
The third Doctor Mid-Nite (the second to use the original spelling), and the second male to hold the title, is Pieter Anton Cross, who made his first appearance in the 3-issue prestige format limited series Doctor Mid-Nite (1999). Prestige format is a term coined by DC Comics but now in wider use to refer to a Square-bound Comic book with Cardstock covers A limited series is a term originated by Marvel Comics referring to a Comic book series with a set number of issues Cross is Norwegian-born son of a noted scientist, the late Theodoric Cross. In fact, Pieter was delivered from his mother's womb by the original Doctor Mid-Nite, who had just saved his mother from vagrants. Years later, Pieter was unable to save his mother from Chagas disease, which she caught in Brazil while visiting her son. Chagas disease (doença de Chagas enfermedad de Chagas mal de Chagas in both languages also called American trypanosomiasis) is a tropical Parasitic
Pieter's crime-fighting career began as a doctor who ran a free clinic in Portsmouth City, Oregon, which led him to investigate a new street drug called A39, an accidental derivative of the steroid-like Venom, produced by an evil corporation called Praeda Industries, run by former Batman villains Terrible Trio. Oregon ( is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. A psychoactive drug or psychotropic substance is a Chemical substance that acts primarily upon the Central nervous system where it alters Brain A corporation is a separate legal entity usually used to conduct business Batman (originally referred to as the Bat-Man and still referred to at times as the Batman) is a fictional Comic book Superhero co-created The Terrible Trio is the name of a group of Fictional characters DC Comics supervillains In retaliation, the corporation drugged him and he was involved in a car accident which took the life of a young woman named Katherine Blythe. Like the previous bearers of the name, he found that he could only see in pitch darkness, via infrared vision (his powers can also switch to ultrasonic vision). He, too, donned a costume to fight crime.
The new Doctor Mid-Nite carries high-tech medical equipment in addition to his crimefighting apparatus (including blackout bombs). Some of those whom Cross has helped now aid him in his work as a crime-fighter and community surgeon. These allies include reformed street kids "Nite Lite" and "Ice Sickle", and writer Camilla Marlowe. (Recently, Ice Sickle was killed by the vengeful Spirit King [JSA #60])
He later joined the newest incarnation of the Justice Society of America, (JSA #11) where he had a brief romance with his teammate, Black Canary. The Justice Society of America, or JSA, is a DC Comics Superhero group the first team of superheroes in Comic book history Black Canary is a Fictional character, a DC Comics superheroine.
Doctor Mid-Nite is one of the most prominent physicians in the DCU. Along with his JSA colleague Mr. Terrific, the pair often serve as the metahuman community's "go-to" scientists. Mister Terrific is the name of two different Superheroes in the DC Comics universe. Among Cross' notable achievements as a metahuman physician are the discovery that Alan Scott was composed of the green flame of the Starheart; giving Power Girl her annual checkups as well as testing her powers; emergency surgery on Hourman; removal of the Brainiac virus from Oracle; the autopsy of Sue Dibny during the Identity Crisis storyline; and removing the sniper bullet that wounded Lois Lane in Umec during the Battery story arc in Adventures of Superman. Alan Scott is a Fictional character, a Superhero from the DC Comics universe and the first superhero to bear the name Green Lantern Hourman (Rick Tyler is a Fictional character, a Superhero who was created by Roy Thomas, Dann Thomas and Todd McFarlane Brainiac is a DC Comics Supervillain that appears in the Comic books published by DC Comics. Barbara "Babs" Gordon is a Fictional character appearing in Comic books published by DC Comics and in related media created by Gardner Fox Susan "Sue" Dearbon Dibny is a Fictional character from DC Comics associated with The Elongated Man. Identity Crisis is a seven-issue Comic book Limited series published by DC Comics in 2004, written by Brad Meltzer Lois Lane-Kent is the primary love interest in the DC Comics ’ Superman stories Umec is a fictional Middle Eastern country appearing in DC Universe. Superman (sometimes called Superman (volume 1 and for a time published as Adventures of Superman) is a comic book published by DC Comics
He is also called upon by other medical agencies, such as S.T.A.R. Labs, during unusual cases. This article is about the fictional organization in DC Comics Recently, he was called by S. T. A. R. to investigate the reappearance of Delores Winters, who was the first host for the Ultra-Humanite. The Ultra-Humanite is a Fictional character, a Supervillain appearing in stories published by DC Comics. Apparently Winters had not died; instead her friend, Marten had transferred her brain elsewhere. Winters became addicted to the process and eventually began stealing the body parts of metahumans, calling herself Endless Winter. Doctor Mid-Nite put an end to Winter's organ thievery and helped restore the health of those metas she'd attacked. (JSA: Classified #19-20, 2007)
Cross is usually portrayed as being a physician first and a superhero second. In his mini-series, the scanners in his cowl-lenses identified health risks as well as threats. According to JSA, Cross is a vegetarian and practices yoga. According to Batman, who has done covert research, Cross has not yet realized the full extent of his vision abilities (JSA 31). Batman (originally referred to as the Bat-Man and still referred to at times as the Batman) is a fictional Comic book Superhero co-created Batman has apparently not revealed this information to Cross and its validity has not yet been established.
He has no other known relatives.
Owls
Both Dr. McNider and Dr. Cross had trained owls as sidekicks. SideKick was an early Personal Information Manager (PIM Software application by Borland launched in 1983 under Philippe Kahn McNider trained the same owl which crashed through his window and led to the discovery of his powers; named "Hooty" (sometimes rendered as "Hootie"), he and McNider shared many adventures during the Golden Age. Hooty even took some Miraclo in one adventure, leading to him gaining super-strength and super-speed, albeit temporarily. Hourman (spelled Hour-Man in his earliest appearances is the name of three different fictional DC Comics Superheroes the first of whom was Cross employs an owl named "Charlie", named after the original Mid-Nite. Charlie has a mini-camera around his neck which can feed directly to a display in Dr Mid-Nite's goggles.
Other versions
In 1965, DC Comics had no plans to revive Doctor Mid-Nite, and so DC editor Julius Schwartz gave M.I.T. student and comic book letterhack Rick Norwood permission to publish a Dr. DC Comics is an American comic book and related media company Julius "Julie" Schwartz ( June 19, 1915 – February 8, 2004) was a Jewish Comic book and Pulp magazine Rick Norwood (born August 4 1942 is from Franklin Louisiana. He flunked out of M Midnight story in his fanzine, "Five". The story, written by Norwood and illustrated by Steve Sabo, featured a doctor, Tom Benson, blinded in battle, who discovers that his other senses are super-sensitive and dons the Doctor Midnight costume to fight crime.
In Kingdom Come, Alex Ross portrayed Doctor Mid-Nite (known here as Midnight) as a disembodied cowl and the thick black smoke reminiscent of his "blackout bombs". Nelson Alexander "Alex" Ross (born January 22, 1970) is an American Comic book painter, Illustrator and He was said to be the spirit of Dr. Charles McNider.
Another version of the character was shown in Dan Jolley and Tony Harris' JSA: The Liberty File as a World War II United States intelligence agent code-named the Owl. JSA The Liberty Files is a Comic book published by DC Comics. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including He was primarily unchanged, but shown to be a good-natured womanizer.
In the Tangent: Superman's Reign series, a version of Doctor Mid-Nite, his body completly covered by a black cloak, is briefly seen. Tangent Comics was a DC Comics Imprint created in 1997-1998 developed from ideas created by Dan Jurgens.
Powers, equipment and abilities
McNider possessed the metahuman ability to see perfectly in the dark. Utilizing special infrared lenses, McNider could see in light; later in his life, his lenses became more ineffective as his eyesight continued to deteriorate even further, inhibiting his daylight vision. Infrared ( IR) radiation is Electromagnetic radiation whose Wavelength is longer than that of Visible light, but shorter than that of McNider also employed "blackout bombs", which released pitch-black gas that blinded villains and allowed McNider to see. For a time he used a weapon called a "cryotuber" which could either control the nervous system of an opponent, or fire bursts of heat or cold. As Starman, McNider used various star-themed gadgets, including an airship designed by the Red Torpedo. Red Torpedo is a Fictional character published by DC Comics. He debuted in Crack Comics #1 (May 1940 McNider was also a superb athlete and fighter, as well as a gifted physician and author.
Collected editions
The original Dr. Mid-Nite (Charles McNider) is one of seven JSA-related heroes whose solo appearances are collected in an anthology entry in the DC Archive Editions series:
| Title | Material collected |
|---|---|
| JSA All-Stars Archives Vol. DC Archive Editions, edited by Dale Crain for DC Comics, collect early sometimes rare comic books published by DC and other publishers into a permanent hardcover series 1 HC (2007) | All-American Comics (1939 series) #25-29 |
The introductory mini-series of the modern Dr. Mid-Nite (Pieter Cross) has been collected in a trade paperback.
| Title | Material collected | Writers/Pencillers | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|
| Doctor Mid-Nite TBP (2000) | Doctor Mid-Nite #1-3 | Matt Wagner, John K. Snyder III | ISBN 1-56389-607-9 |
Other media
- Dr. Mid-Nite makes a brief appearance in Justice League Unlimited in the episode "Divided We Fall" as a member of the Justice League, at the end of the episode entitled "Dark Heart", and also at the end of "Destroyer" alongside fellow JSA members Doctor Fate, Hourman, and Wildcat. Justice League Unlimited (or JLU) is the name of an American animated television series that was produced by and aired on Justice League and Justice League Unlimited are American animated series about a team of Superheroes Doctor Fate (also known by the Diminutive, Fate) is the name of a succession of fictional sorcerers who appear within DC Comics ' universe Hourman (spelled Hour-Man in his earliest appearances is the name of three different fictional DC Comics Superheroes the first of whom was Wildcat is the name of several DC Comics Superheroes the first and most famous of which is Ted Grant, a long-time member of the Justice Society
- Dr. Mid-Nite also appears as a member of the Justice Society of America in the animated film Justice League: The New Frontier. The Justice Society of America, or JSA, is a DC Comics Superhero group the first team of superheroes in Comic book history The bouncing ball animation (below consists of these 6 frames Justice League The New Frontier is a Direct-to-video Animated film adaptation of the popular DC comic limited series He can be seen in the opening credits of the film.
External links
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