TAPPING TOMMY
TAPPING TOMMY
Real Name: Timothy von Tapperson (ok, not really)
Identity/Class: Human, technology user
Occupation: Criminal, former stage actor, former doer of odd jobs
Affiliations: Hodges (father figure and ally), Maggia (allies, possible financers)
Enemies: Defenders (Dr. Strange, Hulk, Nighthawk, Valkyrie)
Known Relatives: Parents (unnamed)
Aliases: The Tappinest Tapper that ever did Tap (ok, I made that up, too)
Base of Operations: Currently unknown; formerly a studio in Los Angeles
Appearances: Defenders I#30 (December, 1975)
Powers/Abilities:
Tapping Tommy is one heck of a tap dancer. He can tap dance, and
tap dance, and tap dance, like nobody's business. He's actually
well-balanced, and graceful, enabling him to dodge attacks. He
uses his cane as an extension of his own hand, to strike or trip
others. He was talented enough to use the cane to disarm the
Valkyrie in swordfight fashion. The cane has a blade that can
extend from its tip on command. Tommy kept a handful of high
potency gas grenades in his top hat. This gas was the same one
used in "that awful gorilla movie back in the
thirties."
History: (Defenders I#30 (fb) ) - When
Tommy was five years old, his parents were arrested when the Los
Angeles County Police busted into their distillery during
prohibition. He was taken in by Hodges, who treated him like a
son. The two of them scraped by for years. Tommy thought he'd
made it into the big time when he got a job doing musicals, but
those went bust as well. In recent years, Kyle Richmond's
financer, Pennysworth, bought the studio which was Tommy's
parents former lot, and planned to
turn it into a housing project. Tommy swore he'd get
Richmond! He swore it! He contacted the Maggia
and made plans to kidnap and ransom the wealthy Richmond for
millions. However, Tommy planned to get the money for himself,
kill Richmond anyway, and then escape where no one would ever set
eyes on him again. Tapping Tommy works for no man, you see!
(Defenders I#30) - Kyle Richmond decided to oversee his
investment, the studio of Tommy's, and was captured by the Maggia. Maggia agents confronted Dr. Strange to demand payment. Strange let them into his Sanctum and made mental contact with
Richmond, aka Nighthawk, while Wong served the henchmen drugged
tea, which knocked them out.
Dr. Strange gathered the rest of the Defenders and broke into
Tommy's studio. Hodges sent a robot after them, which the
Hulk...smashed. The other Defenders defeated the Maggia agents
and freed Nighthawk, but they were all taken out by Tommy's gas
grenades.
The Defenders
awakened to find themselves strapped to a large...thing, and
Hodges' dancing robots began to smack them to death with their
canes, all the while singing, "We're in the Money." The Defenders found themselves unable to break their bonds and
were trapped--doomed to die at the hands of the cane-whacking,
dancing, singing robots. Then they each somehow found the
strength to break free. Valkyrie found herself unable to strike
the feminine robots due to her anti-woman-fighting spell/curse (oh, c'mon!), but she
helped against the masculine ones. The fight continued until the
Valkyrie knocked Hodge's Manipulator device from his hands. Dr.
Strange stopped Tommy from escaping (even though Tommy said,
"You'll not get me!"). The Hulk told Tommy he wanted to
be friends, but Tommy needed to know that he was bad, and so the
Hulk head-butted him, knocking him out.
Comments: Unfortunately, Tapping Tommy was created by Bill Mantlo (writer) and Sam Grainger (artist).
If you have a fast internet connection and you want the whole sucky song, click here: "We're In the Money."
Tommy and Hodges either did quite well to be able to afford all of the weaponry, or it was all financed by the Maggia (which doesn't make sense, because the Maggia didn't know Richmond was Nighthawk, and so had no idea that super-heroes would be involved). Or it's just all fiction anyway. Carycomix theorizes on that point: "He probably anticipated Richmond Enterprises hiring Luke Cage to rescue Kyle. Or, maybe even intervention by L. A.'s Champions!".
Carycomix adds, "He [Tapping Tommy] probably anticipated Richmond Enterprises hiring Luke Cage to rescue Kyle. Or, maybe even intervention by L. A.'s Champions! Anything was possible with Marvel, during the Seventies. And, they had shameless fun doing it!!"
5 years old during Prohibition--topical.
Worst character, ever! I can't begin to comment on the story, but it was so goofy that it was, at least, entertaining (and yet annoying at the same time). Get it and read it. Your Defenders collection can't be complete without it.
Profile edited and updated by Kyle Sims
Clarifications: I hope there's no one who can be confused with Tapping Tommy.
Hodges may
have been an old friend of Tommy's parents. He was a special
effects designer for movies of the time. He took Tommy in and
raised him. He was an inventive genius, and created and
controlled a number of sophisticated robots and other weapons
with his trusty remote control, the Maipulator. Without the
control, he was up sh!+'s crick, and promptly surrendered.
Appearances:
Defenders I#30 (December, 1975) - Bill Mantlo (writer), Sam Grainger (penciler), Jack Abel (inker), Marv Wolfman (editor)
Last updated: 05/01/05
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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