BAGMOM
BAGMOM
Classification: Middle Eastern city
Significant Inhabitants: Abdul & Abdul, the caliph, Abu Ho Dadi, prince Hassim, Rashid, Ali Wazoo, Wijid
Significant Features: Underground Railroad, Wijid's magic carpet, magic lamp & genie, coin-operated donkey
First Appearance: Howard the Duck Annual#1 (1977)
History:
(Howard the Duck Annual#1) - While shopping in Cleveland, Howard Same, Beverly
Switzler, and Winda Wester picked up some bargains, including what appeared to
be a genuine Persian rug and an antique oil lamp. When Winda accused Paul and
her other roommate, Howard the Duck, of being too rigid (actually "wigid," given
her speech impediment), she unwittingly spoke the name of the rug's owner,
calling it (and Winda & Beverly who were on it) back to its owner; they flew out
the window, heading towards the Middle East. Seconds later, Abdul & Abdul burst
into the apartment, demanding Wijid's rug and threatening Howard & Paul's lives.
Howard smashed Abdul in the shin with the lamp and Paul Kung Fu-tossed the other
Abdul, and the two underdogs held their own until the noise drew the neighbors,
after which both Abdul's leapt out the window to their deaths to avoid being captured by the
authorities. Seeking to locate their lost roommates, on a hunch Paul picked up
the lamp and rubbed it...the phone rang, Howard answered the trivia question,
"Who's buried in Grant's tomb?," and he won two tickets to Bagmom.
Meanwhile, the rug brought Bev & Winda to the palace of the
caliph of Bagmom, and the caliph assumed to have been brought by divine
providence. As he began to inspect them, Beverly slapped him; while appreciating
her spunk, the caliph summoned Rashid to take them to the harem. Wijid cautioned
about Americans being sensitive to abduction of nationals, but the caliph
assured him it was Allah's will...plus it they assuaged his son's appetite for
things western, all the better.
Howard and Paul soon arrived in Bagmom by parachute, but when
they tried to ask a local for help, they found themselves at the end of a knife
held by an angry man who did not life to be surprised. Rubbing the lamp caused
the language barrier to fade, and Paul tried to explain their situation. The new
acquaintance was the thief Ali Wazoo, and when the authorities came running, he
took Howard & Paul with him, running down into a basement and speaking the magic
words to open the doorway to the Underground Railroad, which took them to the
North Oasis, and to Abu Ho Dadi, leader of the thieves. Wazoo introduced them,
they told their story, and Abu correctly reasoned that the women had arrived at
the caliph's palace. They then overheard prince Hassim secretly meeting with two
representatives of Roxxon (Petrie & "Agger"), promising them exploration rights to Bagmom, even at
the cost of his father's life. After hearing Hassim reference the two newly
arrived women, Howard rushed the three men; but Hassim saw him only as a
curiosity with which his father who be most intrigued, so he grabbed Howard and
the men drove off. Abu held Paul back, telling him things would work out.
Following a feast and some dancing by his harem, the caliph
was enraged by Wijid's next gift, a coin-operated mule ride, but Hassim
confessed that it was his idea. He then tried to banish his father's displeasure
with other gifts, various electronic appliances, the fruits of progress courtesy
of Roxxon. Uninterested in electronics -- and Bagmom lacking in electricity --
the caliph was less than impressed, until Hassim revealed Howard, the talking
duck, one of the West's true wonders. The caliph was definitely pleased with
this gift, but when Hassim asked him about Roxxon he sought diversion, calling
on his two newest dancers. Still, Hassim pushed his father to sign the papers,
and he prepared to do so -- ignoring Howard's warnings that Hassim wished him
harm -- but them Abu Ho Dadi, his thieves, and Paul burst through the floor from
their Underground Railroad. Abu announced Hassim's plans, revealing that he
intended to offer the caliph's subjects as cheap labor, and to make himself the
sole recipient of Bagmom's profits.
Hassim abducted Bev & Winda and took off in a biplane (a US
purchase he had secretly brought to Bagmom). Placing a dinar in the coin-slot
for the mule ride, Wijid caused the mule to sprout wings, and it flew Howard in
pursuit of Hassim. Bev & Winda refused to be hostages, so they climbed out on
their plane's wing and leapt onto the mule's back, but then Hassim turned and
began firing at them. Howard calmly pushed the missile launcher button on the
mule's neck, and a little robot came out from its platform and hurled knives at
Hassim's plane, shattering its propeller and causing him to crash in the
sand...across the border in Israel.
In gratitude, the caliph arranged a Mediterranean cruise to
take the home. En route, Paul rubbed the lamp...making his last wish about Winda,
but the lamp called him a lecherous cur and refused. Winda was flattered...or
fwattered.
Comments: Created by Steve Gerber and Val Mayerik.
One of the Abdul's exclaimed "Pearl of Poogroch!"...whatever that means.
Petrie was given the first name "Huck" in the Roxxon entry in the All-New Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe#9 (September, 2006).
Profile by Snood.
CLARIFICATIONS:
No known connection to:
Bagdad...not a parody or anything...just a strange coincidence
Abdul & Abdul
They swore an oath to recover Wijid's carpet regardless of the risk to themselves. Seconds after Winda unwittingly activated the carpet and was flown away along with Beverly, Abdul & Abdul burst into the apartment, demanding Wijid's rug and threatening Howard & Paul's lives. Howard smashed Abdul in the shin with the lamp and Paul Kung Fu-tossed the other Abdul, and the two underdogs held their own until the noise drew the neighbors, after which both Abdul's leapt out the window to their deaths to avoid being captured by the authorities.
They were presumably sent by the Caliph or by Wijid, though it's not specified.
They were armed with daggers and scimitars.
Abdul is the one on the left
--Howard the Duck Annual#1
The ruler of Bagmom and the father of Prince Hassim, he lived in extreme wealth, valued his country's traditions, and was reluctant to make deals with foreigners. He also had a taste for oddities...like talking ducks. He wished Hassim to be happy and to remain by his side, and he nearly fell victim to Hassim's plot to sell their oil to Roxxon. Grateful to Howard for preventing this, he arranged transport on a cruise ship back to America for him and his friends.
--Howard the Duck Annual#1
Abu Ho Dadi
Prince of Rogues
Leader of Bagmom's thieves, he was also their youngest, handsomest, and most daring of their number. His ears, or their proxies, heard even word spoken in Bagmom, and his lips have brushed those of the city's most exquisite beauties. He would have killed Howard & Paul as intruders, but Ali Wazoo vouched for them. He was sworn enemies with Prince Hassim, whom he viewed as a lying blasphemer and a disgrace to the caliph and to all of Bagmom. He led the thieves via the Underground Railroad into the caliph's palace, and brought the caliph word of Hassim's treachery.
--Howard the Duck Annual#1 (1 (fb) - BTS
prince
Hassim
The son of the caliph of Bagmom. When Hassim departed for America, Wijid gave him a magic carpet and a magic lamp. Hassim sold them both for money, selling the carpet to buy a Brooks Brothers suit. After spending 4 years in college in Cleveland, he returned to Bagmom seeking to earn great wealth. He had no respect for tradition, and he did not believe in magic.
He conspired with Petrie & "Agger" of Roxxon, intending to sell them Bagmom's oil rich land, and to offer the caliph's subjects as cheap labor, and to make himself the sole recipient of Bagmom's profits. He captured Howard and brought him to his father as a gift, and nearly succeeded in tricking the caliph into signing away his land, but he was exposed by Abu Ho Dadi.
He escaped in a biplane, taking Bev & Winda hostage, and he fired on Howard when he pursued, but Howard shot his plane down, and he crashed across the border in Israel.
--Howard the Duck Annual#1 (1 (fb) - BTS, 1
Huck Petrie
& "Agger"
Two agents of Roxxon, they made a secret deal with Prince Hassim, seeking to acquire Bagmom's oil. They were presumably denied after Hassim's treachery was exposed.
Huck Petrie is in the green suit.
--Howard the Duck Annual#1
Underground
Railroad
Beginning as a tunnel from the thieving class's hideout in the mountains to the center of the city, it spread into major lines beneath all major thoroughfares, and even under the palace itself. Its existence was secret to all save the thieves, and it was a highly efficient means of transporting their booty.
Entry to the Underground Railroad could be gained by speaking the special phrase to unlock one of their hidden doors:
"Tu-Ahlbif-Patiz--Speshulzawz-lettuz-chi'iz--peeklzon-yunzon-ahsezme-seet--BUHNN!!"
<If you read it out loud, it's an on old advertisement for McDonald's Big Mac>
--Howard the Duck Annual#1
Ali
Wazoo
A thief under Abu Ho Dadi, he was fleeing from the authorities when he ran into Howard & Paul, and they convinced him that they were as unwelcome as he, so he led them to Abu Ho Dadi for assistance. It was also Ali Wazoo who discovered Hassim's plot.
--Howard the Duck Annual#1
The caliph's court magician, he created the coin-operated flying donkey, and was the owner of the flying carpet, and presumably the magic lamp. He happily loaned his donkey to Howard to help stop Hassim's escape.
--Howard the Duck Annual#1
Wijid's
carpet
Wijid gave it to Hassim when he traveled to the USA for an education, but Hassim -- presumably ignorant of its magical properties -- sold it to other parties who subsequently sold it to Bev. Winda unwittingly spoke Wijid's name, and it carried her and Bev to Wijid in the palace of the caliph of Bagmom.
It could fly, and when its master (Wijid)'s name was spoken it flew back to him.
--Howard the Duck Annual#1
Wijid's
coin-operated donkey
It was created by Wijid as a gift for the caliph based on the recommendations of Hassim, who suggested they display it in the fountain square and, for a price, allow children to sit astride it while their mothers tended to the laundry. The caliph was less than enamored of it (feeling the cashbox mocked him), but Wijid later allowed Howard to use it to stop Hassim from escaping.
It was carved in the image of the humblest and stubbornest beast of burden -- the caliph's favorite -- it was encrusted with emeralds and rubies, its true nobility revealed. When one thin dinar was placed in its receptacle, it sprouted wings and could fly, carrying up to three people (well, at least two women and a humanoid duck) at speeds sufficient to contend against a biplane. It also had a "missile launcher" button on its neck; when this was pressed, a little robot came out from its platform and hurled knives at a selected target.
--Howard the Duck Annual#1
magic
lamp
Presumably a former possession of Wijid, the lamp presumably contained a genie, as it responded to commands and would grant its holder three wishes. It would respond to its command with an answer inside a puff of smoke.
When Paul wished to locate their lost roommates, the lamp said, "Gotcha"...the phone rang, Howard answered the trivia question, "Who's buried in Grant's tomb?," and he won two tickets to Bagmom.
When confronted by the language barrier within Bagmom, Paul rubbed the lamp again. It said, "Nuff said," and Paul & Howard then understood everyone in Bagmom, and vice-versa.
For his last wish, Paul expressed his wishes for Winda, but the lamp said, "Lecherous cur! No!"
--Howard the Duck Annual#1
images: (without ads)
Howard the Duck Annual#1, p6, panel 3 (Beverly seated on rug)
p8, panel 6 (Abdul & Abdul)
p12, panel 3 (lamp)
p13, panel 4 (Bagmom main image)
p15, panel 5 (caliph & Rashid)
p18, panel 3 (Wazoo)
p20, panel 1 (underground railroad)
p21, panel 5 (Ho Dadi face)
p22, panel 1 (Ho Dadi full body)
panel 5
(Petrie & "Agger")
p23, panel 1 (Hassim face)
p24, panel 1 (caliph w/ harem)
p25, panel 1 (coin-operated donkey)
panel 4 (Hassim
body)
p27, panel 5 (Bev & Winda in the
harem)
p30, panel 5 (Wijid)
p31, panel 3 (flying donkey)
Appearances:
Howard the Duck Annual#1 (May, 1977) - Steve Gerber (writer/editor), Val Mayerik (artist)
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
Last Updated: 05/12/12
Non-Marvel Copyright info
All other characters mentioned or pictured are ™ and
© 1941-2099 Marvel Characters, Inc. All Rights Reserved. If you
like this stuff, you should check out the real thing!
Please visit The Marvel Official Site at: http://www.marvel.com
