PROJECT: VANISH

Classification: Terrestrial technology

Creator: Unrevealed Allied scientists

User/Possessors: Unidentified Nazi

First Appearance: Tales of Suspense I#68/2 (August, 1965)

Powers/Abilities/Functions: Project: Vanish involved the development of a disintegrator ray gun, which could destroy virtually anything--from trees to military tanks--that its beam hit; but it had not been perfected, and would overload if set to full intensity.

History:
(Tales of Suspense I#68/2 (fb) - BTS) - At some point during World War II, Allied scientists were stationed at a heavily guarded house on the northern England countryside, where they worked on the top-secret Project: Vanish; their task was to develop a disintegrator ray weapon. They successfully completed a functional prototype, however it hadn't yet been perfected, and the ray was too unstable when set to maximum intensity (Captain America was aware of this).

   At his Berlin base, the Red Skull (Johann Shmidt) somehow learned of Project: Vanish and was determined to get the weapon for the Nazis, so he planted an agent in an Allied prisoner-of-war compound.

(Tales of Suspense I#68/2) - Private Steve Rogers and company mascot Bucky Barnes were assigned to escort the Skull's agent from the POW camp, and the three rode in the back of a supply truck. When they drove past the house where Project: Vanish was stored, the Nazi agent used a hidden gas cylinder to temporarily blind everyone on the truck and made his escape.

(Tales of Suspense I#68/2 - BTS) - The Skull's agent went to the house and used additional cylinders of knockout gas to render the guards unconscious, then he found the Project: Vanish disintegrator gun.

(Tales of Suspense I#68/2) - Meanwhile, Rogers and Barnes were searching for the escaped prisoner; they went to the house and discovered the unconscious guards... then Rogers' rifle suddenly vanished when the escaped Nazi fired the disintegrator ray at it.

   After sending Barnes to get help, Rogers became Captain America and fought the Nazi, who destroyed a grove of trees in an attempt to get the Captain out in the open. A passing column of tanks heard the battle, and fired a warning shot at the Nazi, who then turned the weapon on a tank, disintegrating part of it.

   Knowing the limitations of the experimental weapon, Captain America tricked the Nazi by warning him not to turn the ray gun to full intensity, but the Nazi did so regardless, determined to wipe out everyone. However, when he squeezed the trigger, the disintegrator gun exploded, and the Nazi was knocked out.

   The ray gun was damaged beyond repair, putting an end to Project: Vanish.

Comments: Created by Stan Lee, Jack Kirby and Frank Ray.

Perhaps Project: Vanish was the Allies attempt to build a countermeasure to the "death ray" created by Heinrich Zemo.
--Ron Fredricks

New and additional images by Ron Fredricks.

Profile by Prime Eternal

 CLARIFICATIONS:
Project: Vanish should not be confused with: