Human Torch was one of the “big three” heroes of Marvel (then known as Timely) Comics, along with Captain America and the Sub-Mariner—and one of the most popular Marvel superheroes of the 1940s. Like the Sub-Mariner, he was first seen on the newsstands in Marvel Comics #1, in late 1939. Historians believe that the Sub-Mariner came first and that the Torch was created by Carl Burgos as a counterpart to his friend Bill Everett’s aquatic hero. Both artists worked in the Funnies Inc. sweatshop and were among several creators involved in packaging together the first of a new comic line for pulp publisher Martin Goodman. The comic, and particularly the Torch and Sub-Mariner characters, proved a hit, and Timely soon grew to become one of the era’s biggest companies, eventually emerging as the Marvel Comics that readers know today.
As the story in Marvel Comics #1 reveals, the Torch is an android created by Professor Phineas T. Horton that accidentally bursts into flames when exposed to oxygen (due to a design flaw). Disappointed by his failure, Horton buries the poor creature in a glass tomb and sinks it in concrete. But when an explosion accidentally releases the Torch, he rampages through a nearby town, causing chaos wherever he goes. Befriended by a crook called Sardo, the Torch is lured into a life of crime until rescued by Horton, who has his own agenda. Seeing that the Torch can now control his flame, Horton plans to exploit the Torch’s powers for his own gain. Disgusted by the professor’s greed, the Torch heads off on his own, to right injustices wherever he encounters them; and he soon signs up as a member of the police department (adopting the alter ego Jim Hammond, though this temporary device is not well-remembered today), rushing to the scene of any crime or disaster.
In 1939, the superhero was still a very new concept and only nine heroes preceded the Torch and Sub-Mariner, many of them (Wonder Man, the Green Mask, the Masked Marvel) eminently forgettable. So Timely’s pair made a massive impact. The Torch’s regular spot in Marvel Mystery Comics (the new name for Marvel Comics) was soon joined by his own quarterly solo title, and as the United States entered World War II, the Axis-smashing Torch began to pop up elsewhere as well. Between 1939 and 1949, the Torch starred in almost 300 adventures, in such titles as All Winners, Daring, All-Select, Captain America, and Mystic Comics—almost tying Captain America for the greatest number of stories published for a 1940s Marvel hero.
For Human Torch #1, Burgos created a junior sidekick for the hero (possibly inspired by the recent emergence of Robin in Detective Comics), a young counterpart called Toro, the Flaming Kid. Following the death of his parents in a train crash, Toro was adopted by a circus fire-eating act that had discovered that he could control fire and was unharmed by it. When the Torch happened upon him, they teamed up, and Toro eventually moved in with his mentor as his ward. The pair became inseparable for the rest of the strip’s run. Toro later went on to join the Young Allies, who starred in twenty issues of their own comic as well as a lengthy run in Kid Komics.
Credit : Britannica
Picture Credit : Google
