PROFESSOR SLAUGHTER
Real Name: Hargood Wilbur Todd Wickham
Identity/Class: Human, technology user
Occupation: Mercenary/Assassin; former research scientist
Group Membership: None
Affiliations: F. A. Schist; Richard Rory
Enemies: Foolkiller (Ross. G. Everbest), Man-Thing
Known Relatives: wife and son (unnamed)
Aliases: None
Base of Operations: Citrusville,
Florida;
formerly Massachusetts Institute of Technology
First Appearance: Man-Thing I#2 (February, 1974)
Powers/Abilities: Wickham is a skilled inventor. In addition, morals are not his strong suit and he's willing to kill to earn a buck. He was last seen to be confined to a wheelchair.
History: (Man-Thing I#2(fb)-BTS) - Wickham was employed as a researcher at MIT, where he developed the penultimate extermination device--the Slaughter Room. Wickham was infamous among campus students, who dubbed him "Professor Slaughter." He was eventually fired from MIT.
(Man-Thing I#2) - Wickham was hired by F. A. Schist to terminate the Man-Thing, so he could raze the Citrusville swamp and build an airport. Schist's workers rebuilt Wickham's Slaughter Room, and Wickham designed an ultrasonic transmitter which would cause pain to the bog beast and thus draw it into the room. The device drew the Man-Thing into the room, where he was nearly incinerated. However, the swamp creature still had a chain stuck in its body from a previous attack by bikers, and it used the chain to shatter the Room's projectors, allowing it to escape.
(Man-Thing I#3) -Wickham promised to kill the Man-Thing, despite his initial failure. The Man-Thing shambled over to he and Schist, tossed them into the swamp, and then proceeded to completely destroy the Slaughter Room. Wickham witnessed as the Fookiller (Ross G. Everbest) gave Schist 24 hours to live before he would execute him.
(Man-Thing I#4) - Wickham and Schist attempted to flee the swamp to escape the Foolkiller, but the Man-Thing intercepted their jeep and forced them to take a woman (whose husband had just been killed by the Foolkiller) to safety outside of the swamp. The delay slowed them enough that the Foolkiller saw their escape attempt and ran them down in his truck. Everyone inside the jeep survived, but as they attempted to hitch a ride to the nearest town, they again caught the attention of the Foolkiller. This time, the Foolkiller took Schist with him, preparing to carry out his execution personally. However, the Man-Thing arrived in time to distract the Foolkiller, who was killed in the ensuing struggle.
(Man-Thing I#7, 8) - Due to an energy crisis, Schist was forced to terminate his plans to build an airport. Instead, he returned to his lifelong dream--finding the Fountain of Eternal Youth. Wickham joined him on the mission, which led them to the hidden village of la Hacienda. The two entered the village, intending to buy into the potential profit from the Fountain. However, inside the village they again encountered the Man-Thing. Wickham attempted to flee, but instead fell into a deep pit. Schist subsequently died in battle with the Man-Thing.
(Savage She-Hulk#7(fb)) - Wickham survived, but was paralyzed below the waist be the fall. Wickham escaped, but developed a paranoid fear that the Man-Thing would come after him, or that he would be blamed for Schist's death. As a result, he went inot hiding, and began a steady diet of hard liquor.
(Savage She-Hulk#7, 8) - Richard Rory sought to locate the missing Schist, and his search led him to Wickham. In order to collecdt the reward money offered by Rory, Wickham related his adventures, including the fate of Schist.
Comments: Created by Steve Gerber and Val Mayerik.
In Man-Thing#2, he was Hargood Wickham. In She-Hulk#7, he identified himself as Todd Wickham. I'm pretty sure he was referenced somewhere else as Wilbur, but I can't place it. We call this Bruce Banner syndrome, after Robert Bruce (David) Banner.
CLARIFICATIONS:
No none connections to
The Foolkiller, Ross. G. Everbest was the original person to use the title. He was succeeded by and should be distinguished from:
Also known as the Extermination Chamber, it was designed
by Hargood Wickham, Professor Slaughter, at M.I.T., as the
penultimate extermination device for..."enemies of our way
of life." The room contained mirror-like devices
(amplimodes), which take in electricity, cube its amperage, and
then release the current in bright, crackling, lethal blasts. The
rest of the room was covered with reflectors, which reflect the
ultra-high amperage blasts in a crisscross grid. All you need is
a means to draw a victim into the room.
The Slaughter Room was nearly effective against the Man-Thing, but the creature happened to be holding a chain, which it used to shatter the amplimodes before it could be incinerated.
--Man-Thing I#2
Appearances:
Man-Thing I#2 (February, 1974) - Steve Gerber (writer), Val Mayerik (pencils), Sal Trapani (inks), Roy Thomas (editor)
Man-Thing I#3-4 (March-April, 1974) - Steve Gerber (writer), Val Mayerik (pencils), Jack Abel (inks), Roy Thomas (editor)
Man-Thing I#7-8 (July-August, 1974) - Steve Gerber (writer), Mike Ploog (artist), Roy Thomas (editor)
Savage She-Hulk#7-8 (August-September, 1980) - David Anthony Kraft
(writer), Mike Vosburg (pencils), Chic Stone (inks), Mary Jo Duffy
& Al Milgrom (#8) (editor)
First Posted: 02/25/2002
Last updated: 07/06/2014
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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