MINERVA BANNISTER
Real Name: Minerva Bannister
Identity/Class: Human
Occupation: Socialite
Group Membership: None
Affiliations: Harry Crun
Enemies: Cutlass, Defenders, Rufus T. Hackstabber, Hellcat, Daimon Hellstrom, Hannibal King, Typhoon, Mr. Van Vliet
Known Relatives: None
Aliases: None
Base of Operations: Her mansion, San Francisco, California
First Appearance: Defenders I#148 (October, 1985)
Powers/Abilities: None.
History: (Defenders I#148 (fb, BTS))- Minerva Bannister was an acquaintence of Hannibal King during the time when he was a vampire. Desperate to obtain immortality, she begged him to transform her into a vampire, but he refused.
After King became human, Minerva became determined to acquire the mystical artifact called the Lesser Grey God, hoping to make him a vampire again. She obtained the artifact from Cutlass and Typhoon, but it proved to be a fake. Beliving that Mr. Van Vliet possessed the genuine artifact, she attempted to have him killed, only to find he did not possess it either.
(Defenders I#148)- Minerva was confronted by Oliver Cutlass, Typhoon, the Defenders, and Daimon and Patsy Hellstrom. They determined that her copy of the Lesser Grey God was a fake ("no more than a thousand years old"), and Cutlass pieced together what had happened, with the arriving Hannibal King providing the final pieces of the puzzle. Her scheme unveiled, Bannister sent her assassins to attack the heroes and detectives and attempted to make a getaway, only to trip over Rufus T. Hackstabber's tennis racket. She was arrested by Harry Crun.
Comments: Created by Peter B. Gillis, sal Buscema and Art Nichols.
A bit of fun trivia is that "Minnie Bannister" and "Henry Crun" were recurring characters in the surreal 1950s BBC radio comedy "The Goon Show", played by Spike Milligan and Peter Sellers. They were an elderly couple who, like most of the characters, did whatever the plot required. Having Min want to become a vampire and Henry as a private detective certainly wouldn't have been too unusual for a Goon Show plot. Further, Mr. Van Vliet was named for musician Don Glen Vliet, aka Captain Beefheart (thank you Peter B. Gillis for drawing this to our attention!).
by
--Daibhid
CLARIFICATIONS: Harry Crun was a private detective hired by Minverva Bannister, who was also hopelessly in love with her. She sent him to collect the Lesser Grey God from Van Vliet, only for him to find that he didn't have it. The assassins she had hired then attacked Crun, thinking he was double-crossing her. His role in Minerva's scheme was pieced together by Oliver Cutlass, and when he realized what Minerva had done, he arrested.
--Defenders I#148 Mr. Van Vliet was a specialist in occult antiques who attempted to purchase the Lesser Grey God, but did not receive it. However, Minerva Bannister believed that he had, and attempted to kill him. He hired Daimon and Paty Hellstrom and Oliver Cutlass and Typhoon to find the Lesser Grey God for him, but was despondent that Minerva, who he loved, was out to get him, and was afraid that she might be a vampire already. He took cyanide to deaden his pain, then stabbed himself in the heart with a dagger made of ice. He left behind a note reading "My dearest Mina," the opening line of Dracula, to point the detectives on the right trail.
--Defenders I#148 Images taken from: Appearances: Last updated: 07/16/11
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
Non-Marvel Copyright info
Minerva Bannister should not be confused with:
Defenders I#148, page 20, panel 3
Defenders I#148, page 20, panel 4
Defenders I#148, page 4, panel 6
Defenders I#148 (October, 1985) - Peter B. Gillis (writer), Sal Buscema (pencils), Art Nichols (inks), Carl Potts (editor)
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