RICHARD LONGTREE

Real Name: Richard Longtree

Identity/Class: Human (Native American, World War II era)

Occupation: Soldier, former athlete

Group Membership: US Military

Affiliations: Ronson Carpenter, Deadly Dozen, Wildcat Smith

Enemies: Nazis

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: Nazi concentration camp, 1940's

First Appearance: Combat Kelly and the Deadly Dozen#2 (August, 1972)

Powers/Abilities: Richard Longtree was a former Olympic champion, and was the pride of his tribe. He was a fierce, determined fighter, despite his reputation as a coward.

History: (Combat Kelly and the Deadly Dozen#2 (fb) - BTS) - Richard Longtree ended his career as an Olympic athlete to become a soldier during World War II, but was accused of cowardice. Around 1942, he was captured by the Nazis, and sent to a concentration camp alongside Wildcat Smith and Ronson Carpenter. The three men made attempts at escaping, but the other prisoners refused to help them, afraid of retaliation.

(Combat Kelly and the Deadly Dozen#2) - After two years in the camp, Longtree was struck in the camp yard by a guard one day and snapped, attacking the guard. The guards beat him badly, and Carpenter and Smith brought him back to their quarters to tend his wounds, and soon discovered that Jay Little Bear, Combat Kelly, Dino Manelli and Percival Pinkerton of the Deadly Dozen had tunneled into the camp to spearhead a rescue operation. Pinkerton had brought a medical kit, and saw to Longtree's injuries. Although the other prisoners had not aided the three Native men in the past, they agreed to help in this attempt. The Deadly Dozen set off an explosives in their tunnels, and used the explosion to help cover their escape attempt. As they fled into the woods, pursued by the Germans, Longtree carried a fellow escapee over his shoulder, but they were shot by a German plane that was strafing the escapees. Longtree survived, with a wounded arm, but the other man died. When he reached the woods and saw that more people were still escaping, he ran back out to help them. Wildcat Smith and Ronson Carpenter ran after him to help, and they all opened fire on the plane, and managed to down it, but the plane crashed on top of them, killing them all.

Combat Kelly asked Captain Sam Sawyer to grant the three men the Medal of Honor, but Sawyer refused because their families hadn't been told about the earlier charges of cowardice, and the best he could do was to see to it that they never found out.

Comments: Created by Gary Friedrich, Dick Ayers and Mike Esposito.

by Prime Eternal

CLARIFICATIONS:
Richard Longtree should not be confused with:

• Long Tom, Thomsa J. Roberts, of Doc Savage's allies, @ Doc Savage I#1

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