SAM SAWYER

Real Name: Sam Sawyer

Identity/Class: Human (World War II era to modern day)

Occupation: Officer in the United States Army

Identity: Publicly known

Legal Status: Citizen of the United States with no criminal record

Group Membership: Commanding officer of the Deadly Dozen, Howling Commandos, and Maulers

Affiliations: Colonel William Ballinger, Black Widow (Natasha Romanoff), Winston Churchill, General Dwight D. Eisenhower, Christine DeGroot, Josef DeGroot, General Durstine, Hawkeye, Herbie, Invaders (Captain America (Steve Rogers), Human Torch (Jim Hammond), Miss America, Sub-Mariner, Whizzer), Peter Kazantis, Ilsa Koenig, Colonel Kyril Kuslov, Leatherneck Raiders, Jean-Luc LeBeau, Coral Liebowitz, Lee Mayer, Mike, Missouri Marauders, Field Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery, Jim Morita, Colonel Parker, Dr. Warren Parker, Cliff Powers, Franklin Roosevelt, General Ryan, S.H.I.E.L.D., Josef Stalin, Wilhelm Steuben, Tom Tanaka, Thor, Dr. Karl von Rusteg, Dr. Zenish

Enemies: Agent of 1,000 Faces, Pasha Omar Bey, Blitzkrieg Squad, Dr. August Draus, Major Frobrich, Hydra, Kevin Kenner, Colonel Klaue, Jorgen Kline, Captain Eric Leroux, Loki, Charly Ming, Red Skull (Johann Shmidt), Paul Ryan, Baron Strucker LMD

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: "Happy Sam," 05-292-810 (serial number)

Place of Birth: Unrevealed

Marital Status: Urevealed; apparently unmarried both during World War II and at the time of his death

Base of Operations: The Pentagon, Washington D.C.
Formerly Able Company base, England (during World War II)

First Appearance: Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#1 (May, 1963)

Powers/Abilities: Sam Sawyer was an excellent military leader and hand-to-hand combatant. An injury he suffered in 1942 prevented him from participating in military combat from that time on.

Height: 6'2" Weight: 230 lbs. Eyes: Blue Hair: Grey

History: (Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#72 (fb)) <1940> - Sawyer was sent to Marrakech on behalf of the British government to help the scientist Wilhelm Steuben escape to England. During the adventure, he became an ally of the bar owner Mike, Danish resistance leader Josef DeGroot, and matched wits with the gunman Charly Ming, crimelord Pasha Omar Bey and corrupt official Captain Eric Leroux.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#34 (fb)) <1940, May 10> - Lt. Sawyer was serving the British military, and met Nick Fury and Red Hargrove, a pair of Americans who were training parachuters for the British. After Germany attacked Holland and Belgium, Sawyer was assigned to rescue a British agent from Holland. He chose Fury and Hargrove to accompany him on the assignment. Red soon gave Sam the unwanted nickname, "Happy Sam." When they caught sight of the agent's car they tried to land their plane, but crashed. The "agent" they met up with was actually an agent of the Gestapo, who evaded them. Forced to travel by foot across Holland, the trio ran into a traveling circus which included strongman Timothy "Dum-Dum" Dugan. When they learned he was American they befriended him, and he helped them travel to the coast. Along the way, Fury found the real agent they had been sent to find, and they managed to escape Holland in a boat, then met up with a British patrol boat that brought them back to England.

Following Pearl Harbor, Sawyer was transferred to the American military and was reunited with Dum-Dum when he enlisted. He and Dugan fought side-by-side in the field as rangers.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#11 (fb)) - In North Africa, Sawyer won citations for valor, and refused field promotions until an injury forced him to abandon the field and assume the role of C.O.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#34 (fb)) - Sawyer prepared to assemble the First Attack Squad, a special team of rangers. He brought Dugan and Fury into the squad, along with Isadore "Izzy" Cohen, Robert "Reb" Ralston, Dino Manelli, Gabriel Jones, and Jonathan "Junior" Juniper.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commanods#44 (fb)) - The First Attack Squad were put through their training by Captain Sawyer. When Dr. MacMillan, a British rocket scientist was captured by the Germans and held outside of Paris, Captain Sawyer sent the First Attack Squad into the field as a commando unit, working in partnership with the British. When they returned with Dr. Macmillan, Prime Minister Winston Churchill was so impressed with their performance that he made them the first Ranger Squadron to also hold the title of commandos. When Sawyer learned how the squad had used Reb's yell to trick the Nazis, he nicknamed them the "Howling Commandos."

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#1) - Captain Sawyer sent the Howling Commandos on a mission to France to rescue Pierre LaBrave, a French resistance fighter who held information on the Allies' D-Day plans.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#2) - Captain Sawyer sent the Howling Commandos to halt a German attempt at developing atomic weaponry in Heinemund.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#3) - After the Howlers had been sent to the guard house (putting over a dozen men in the hospital), Sawyer got them out and sent them on a mission to Italy to help the entrapped forces of General Curtis.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#4) - When Sgt. Fury received a request to go to the Hawleys for tea along with Captain Sawyer, Lord Hawley requested that they send the Howling Commandos to Germany and kidnap Lord Ha-Ha, who was Hawley's son. Sawyer agreed, and sent Fury and the Commandos.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#5) - When Fury was challenged to a duel with Strucker, Sawyer ordered him to keep away, but Fury went, and was given a humiliating defeat. Sawyer demoted Fury to private, but when Fury defeated Strucker in a rematch, Sawyer made him a sergeant again.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#6) - Sawyer assigned the Howlers to assassinate Erwin Rommel in North Africa, although the mission was ultimately called off when it was learned that Rommel was involved with conspirators seeking to assassinate Hitler.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#7) - After Sgt. Fury struck a superior officer, Lt. Spencer Parker, Sawyer turned to his friend Colonel William Ballinger to defend him. Fury ultimately beat the charges when he revealed that he had known about a booby trap in advance.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#8) - After Percival "Pinky" Pinkerton had been assigned to the Howlers, Sawyer gave them the mission to stop Baron Heinrich Zemo, creator of a death-ray.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#9) - General Durstine had Sawyer assign the Howling Commandos on a dangerous mission into Berlin to capture Adolf Hitler. They seemingly succeeded in their mission, only to discover that the Hitler they had taken was one of his imposters. Sawyer was furious, but General Durstine was pleased, since now they had proof that Hitler was using doubles.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos II#1 (fb) - BTS) - <Winter 1942> Sawyer sent the Howling Commandos on a mission in Yugoslavia to take down a nuclear weapons facility. They were ordered to avoid enemy contact.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos II#1) - At the debriefing in Buckingham Palace, London Sawyer chewed the Commandos up for not avoiding enemy contact. Fury pointed out that by not following orders they were able to take down a nuclear facility, destroy a warbot and steal a Japanese submarine filled with gold, which left Sawyer speechless.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#118) <1942, August 30> - Captain Sawyer coordinated with Field Marshal Montgomery to send the Howling Commandos to Africa to help drive Rommel from El Alamein, and they succeeded.

(Invaders I#40) <1942> - Captain Sawyer confronted the Invaders at Fort Dix to inform them of a low-flying aircraft spotted in England that had escaped radar, and appeared to be German. The Invaders investigated the craft, which turned out to be transporting Master Man and Warrior Woman.

(Gambit III#10 (fb) - BTS) <1943> - Sawyer ordered the Howling Commandos to cooperate with Jean-Luc LeBeau in an attempt to recover the Momentary Princess jewel.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#10) - Sawyer sent the Howlers on a mission to Okinawa to rescue Colonel Phil Parker from the Japanese. Fury had served with Parker in the past, and was eager to rescue his one-time c.o., which was why Sawyer got him the assignment.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#11) - Sawyer took a two week span of detached service, during which the by-the-book officer Captain Flint took command of the Howling Commandos. Sawyer was surprised when he returned to hear from Flint that he was impressed with the Howling Commandos. Sawyer gave Fury a cigar as a present.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#12) - Sawyer ordered the Howlers to destroy a V-1 rocket site in Germany. The Howlers returned without Manelli or Fury, and had news of Manelli defecting to the Nazis. Manelli returned to explain his actions, but without Fury had no proof. Sawyer had no choice but to court martial Manelli. Manelli was almost executed, but Fury turned up alive just in time to explain that he had asked Manelli to pretend to defect to obtain intelligence on the V-1 site.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#13) - Sawyer came upon the Howlers practicing judo moves, but found Cohen was alone, playing with Gabe's bugle. When Izzy explained that he didn't have a sparring partner, Sawyer used a judo throw to toss him to the ground. Later, he let the Howlers know that Captain America had requested their aid in halting Operation: Einfall.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#14) - Sawyer sent the Howlers to destroy a German V-2 rocket site, but it proved to be a trap set by the Blitzkrieg Squad.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#15) - Sawyer sent the Howlers to Holland to aid Agent X in destroying the dikes on the coast to destroy the Nazi forces.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#16) - Sawyer sent the Howlers to North Africa to investigate a missing spy, which ultimately led them to a secret V-2 base.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#17) - Sawyer contacted the Howlers while they were still in Africa and sent them on another assignment to find missing soldiers, ultimately leading to a Nazi labour camp that the the Howlers broke up. When they returned, Sawyer surprised them by having a general present them with the oak leaf clusters decoration.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#18) - After Fury decided to propose to Pamela Hawley, Sawyer noticed a change in him, as he became much more agreeable. Sawyer sent the Howlers to destroy the raider Deutschland in Norway, which they succeeded at. While they were away, Pamela was killed in an air raid. Sawyer tried to tell Fury when he returned, but Fury wouldn't listen, and finally received the bad news from Pamela's father.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#19) - Seeing how Fury had been driving himself since Pamela's death, Sawyer gave the Howlers a furlough. However, Fury used this furlough for an unauthorized mission to Holland, where he killed General von Krummpt, the man who ordered the attack that killed Pamela.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#20) - When the Blitzkrieg Squad took hostages at Kerrydale Castle, Scotland, Sawyer assigned the Howlers to rescue them. When Bull McGiveney complained that Fury's squad received better assignments than the Maulers, Sawyer responded that this was because Fury was the better sergeant.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#21) - Sawyer assigned the Howlers to rescue the daughter of Dr. Zenish, a scientist building war supplies who had sabotaged his own work for fear of what the Nazis would do to his family.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#22) - Captain Sawyer sent the Maulers and Howlers on a mission together to Romania to take out flak guns so that the air force could bomb the Ploesti oil fields. The mission was a success.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#24) - Captain Sawyer gave the Howlers and Hans a two-week furlough in the United States, but wound up cutting it short and called them all back except for Dugan, who was wounded and hospitalized, and Hans, who elected to stay with Reb's family.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#25) - Captain Sawyer was kidnapped and replaced by the Red Skull, who used the captain's identity in a plot to frame Sgt. Fury as a traitor, but Fury realized what was going on and eventually rescued the real Sawyer.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#26) - Sawyer gathered the Howling Commandos and Captain Savage together to alert them to the recent capture of Dum-Dum and three air force men on the German ship Sea Shark. Captain Savage was instructed to bring the Howlers to the Sea Shark in an attempt to rescue Dum-Dum, but they found that Dum-Dum and the others had already destroyed the Sea Shark by the time they arrived.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#27) - After the Howlers lost Fury on a mission to destroy Dr. Draus' light weapon. He was about to send Sgt. McGiveney with the Howlers to try and find Draus, but Fury suddenly returned with Draus as his captive, aided by Draus' former subordinate Eric Koenig. Sawyer arranged for Draus to be imprisoned.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#28) - Sawyer sent the Howlers to Cherbeaux to help organize the local resistance against Nazi forces led by Baron Strucker.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#29) - Sawyer greeted the Howlers upon their return from Cherbeaux.

(Fury I#1) - Sawyer then sent Fury to see Rick Stoner of army intelligence, who berated Fury for not going by the book.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#31) - When a spy learned that Sam Sawyer knew about D-Day, he was captured and brought to Germany so that Major Frobrich of the S.S. could interrogate him. The Howling Commandos came to Sam's rescue and broke him out of the base. Sawyer was so happy that he let Fury get away with calling him "Sam"-- once.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#32) - Sawyer sent the Howlers to Norway to destroy a Nazi deuterium plant.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#33) - Sawyer broke up a fight between the Howling Commandos and Maulers, and demanded that the two squads learn to cooperate. Later, he and Captain Simon Savage met with Sgt. Fury and introduced him to Peter Kazantis, a member of the Greek royal family who the Howlers were to escort to Greece to help unite the resistance effort.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#34) - Fury returned without the other Howling Commandos. As Sawyer and Fury quarreled over rescuing the Howlers, Sawyer recalled how he and Fury had first met, and how the Howling Commandos had been formed. After learning that the Howling Commandos were being transported to Berlin, Sawyer offered Fury an opportunity to rescue them, and Fury promised to deliver.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#35) - Captain Sawyer arranged a secret mission for Fury, Eric Koenig, "Rickets" Johnson and Bull McGiveney to perform in order to rescue the Howling Commandos. He arranged for their mission to be to obtain photos of German troop placements. The rescue team returned with all of the Howlers, but Dino had been badly injured in the leg and forced to leave the service. Sawyer set up Koenig to be Dino's replacement.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#36) - Sawyer assigned the Howling Commandos on a mission to Switzerland to prevent Colonel Ludwig von Baum from completing a journey to Italy. After the successful completion of the mission, he made Eric's posting to the commandos permanent.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#38) - Sgt. Fury asked Sawyer for permission to rescue Dr. Warren Parker from a concentration camp so that he could operate on Dino's leg to restore him for combat. Sawyer could not authorize any such mission, so he planned it as a secret, allowing Fury to take one of the base's planes. He also sent the newly-arrived ranger Jim Morita to assist him. Upon their return with the doctor, Sawyer told Dr. Parker that it would mean a lot to the Howlers if he could operate on Manelli.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#39) - Sawyer witnessed the return of the Howlers from Festung von Furcht, where they had captured the Thunderer jet, and watched as Koenig crash-landed it at Able Company base.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#40) - Sawyer sent the Howlers to rescue Jacques Dernier from the Nazis. When they returned, he reunited them with Dino Manelli, who would soon be ready to resume service with them.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#41) - Sawyer allowed Manelli to use the Howlers in the production of a film for the U.S. government, and later informed Fury that he would be receiving a medal from Winston Churchill.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#42) - Dino's sorrow over Nina's death caused him to go AWOL, and when Fury went after him, Sawyer had to put Bull McGiveney in charge of the Howlers' next mission, to find the location of a factory in Germany for Allied bombers to target. Fury and Dino were both ordered to their quarters for going AWOL, but they set after the Howlers anyway, and Sawyer wound up placing the entire squad in their quarters when he found out they had also helped Eric bring his sister Ilsa back from Germany.

(Marvel Comics Presents#77/3) - Sawyer sent the Howlers to destroy a German oil dump in Ploesti, Romania.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#43) - Captain Sawyer sent the Howlers back to North Africa to aid British forces against a super-tank being used by Rommel.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#45) - After sending the Howlers on a mission alongside the gung-ho general's son Paul Ryan, Sawyer received a complaint from Sgt. Fury, but Sawyer couldn't promise to settle matters. Sawyer went to see General Ryan, and they wound up witnessing a fight between Fury and Paul Ryan. The general was ashamed of his son, and set him up for a court martial, recommending he be placed in a doctor's care. With the crisis past, Sawyer sat down and had a drink with Fury, Dum-Dum and Ilsa, and allowed Fury to call him "Sam"-- just once.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#46) - Sawyer assigned medic Cliff Powers to accompany the Howlers on a mission to rescue Koenig and the Maulers, who were pinned down and wounded in France.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#47) - Sawyer met up with the Howlers after they had been on a furlough in London to inform them that the Blitzkrieg Squad had escaped custody.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#48) - Sawyer held meetings with O.S.S. agent Lee Mayer, who was tracking the Blitzkrieg Squad's movements, but the squad came right to Able Company base to kill the Howlers. Colonel Klaue took Sawyer hostage, but Sawyer helped the Howlers, Maulers and Morita's Nisei Squadron fight back, and they were all defeated. He then ordered Fury to place Klaue and the Blitzkrieg Squad in their stockade.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#51) - Sawyer brought the Howling Commandos to Teheran to help provide security while President Roosevelt, Josef Stalin and Winston Churchill held a meeting. He had the Howlers dress as civilians during the mission, and Dino ultimately helped thwart an assassination attempt.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#52) - Captain Sawyer joined the Howlers on a mission to rescue Dr. Karl von Rusteg from the prison camp Treblinka. They managed to tunnel out of the camp, disguise themselves as Nazis, and escape Germany in a commandeered PT boat.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#53) - Lee Mayer of the O.S.S. once again requested the Howling Commandos aid, and Sawyer allowed him to send the Howlers on a mission to capture strategist Otto Froebe.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#54) - Captain Sawyer placed the Howlers into specialty training, but had to call the training off when a new mission came up.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#57) - Sawyer assigned the Howlers to break Jim Morita and his squad out of Prison Camp 13, deep within Germany.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#58) - Captain Sawyer sent Dino to meet up with actor John Barrywell, but he turned out to be the Agent of 1,000 Faces in disguise. The Agent used Dino as bait for the other Howlers, and disguised himself as an O.S.S. agent to make Sawyer send the Howlers to his location, but he was defeated by the Howlers in the end.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#59) - Sawyer witnessed the return of Izzy Cohen to duty with the Howlers.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#59 - BTS) - Sawyer was captured by the Agent of 1,000 Faces, who took his place while Sawyer was sent to Germany.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#61) - Sawyer was interrogated in Germany, but refused to give up information on the Allies plan to attack France. Using a transmitter in his shoe, he was able to send his coordinates to Allied bombers flying through Germany, and Captain Flint sent the Howling Commandos to rescue him. Sawyer managed to break out on his own, and forced a German woman to assist him in escaping, until he met up with the Howling Commandos, and forcibly brought the woman with them as they returned to England.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#63) - Sawyer allowed Jerry Larkin to join the Howling Commandos because of orders given to him from a general.

(Captain Savage and his Battlefield Raiders#11) - Sawyer assigned the Howling Commandos to a mission alongside the Leatherneck Raiders to rescue scientist Terry Reiker from the Japanese.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#65) - When Manelli and Koenig both went missing for an evening, Sawyer sent Fury to go find them. Fury found that Koenig had seemingly betrayed them, become a Nazi again, and had taken Manelli captive to help bring Fury to him.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#66-67) - Sawyer sent the remaining Howling Commandos to the U.S.A. to help train new commandos, and assigned Sgt. McGiveney and the Maulers to help rescue Fury from Germany. McGiveney was successful, although Koenig remained a traitor, and Sawyer gave the entire squad a furlough in the States.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#70) - Sawyer assigned the Missouri Marauders to aid the Howling Commandos in destroying a bridge in France to cut off German supplies to the coast.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#72) - Sawyer related his 1940 adventure in Marrakech to the Howling Commandos.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#73 (fb)) - Sawyer assigned Fury to assist the Russian Colonel Kyril Kuslov in cutting off German supply lines to Moscow.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#74) - Sawyer had the Howlers obtain the seven parts of Operation: Jigsaw, and joined them in the field to piece the plans together. He discovered that the Nazis were manufacturing nerve gas. Sawyer and the Howlers flew a bomber over the plant and destroyed the facilities.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#75 (fb)) - Sawyer assigned the Howlers (joined by Koenig's replacement, Duane Wilson) to rescue a general who knew the D-Day plans from captivity in Germany. Wilson wound up deserting, and had to be court martialed.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#77) - Sawyer assigned the German-born Sgt. Hans Klaus to the Howling Commandos to assist in the capture of Eric Koenig, but Fury's distrust of Klaus cost them the mission, and Sawyer was furious when they returned without Eric.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#78) - Sawyer assigned Sgt. Klaus to assume command of the Howling Commandos, release Koenig from German custody and halt Baron Johann von Braun's attempt to launch a V-2 attack on England. When Koenig was returned to England, he was immediately faced with a court martial.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#79) - Captain Sawyer helped arrange for Eric's release from all charges, and told Fury that Eric had been working for them all along. He sent the Howlers on a mission to destroy a castle in the Bavarian Alps.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#81) - Sawyer assigned one-time All-American Fred Jones to the Howlers, and Jones soon proved his worth to the squad. Sawyer sent them on a mission to capture Eva Braun from a French chateau, but Jones was shot in the leg, and ultimately lost his leg. However, he brought back plans of Colonel Kritzberg's V-2 missile launching site which Sawyer passed on to the Air Force.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#83) - Captain Sawyer assigned former wrestler "Man-Mountain" McCoy to the Maulers, and soon McCoy was up against Dugan in the base's wrestling competition. When the Maulers and Howlers got into a barfight, Bull and Fury received a manual labour punishment from Sawyer so that McCoy and Dugan would still be able to fight.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#84) - Sawyer alerted Fury and Bull to the capture of McCoy and Dugan by the Agent of 1,000 Faces, and allowed them to lead their squads in a rescue operation. When they returned, Sawyer believed that McCoy and Dugan would have their bout, but they had become friends and refused to fight.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#86 (fb)) - Sawyer held a briefing with the Howling Commandos and Kevin Kenner as he sent them on a mission to help Rueben Jabokwitz defect, unaware that it was all a trap hatched by Kenner, secretly a spy. He was killed in action by Izzy.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#88) - Sawyer had to deal with tension among the Howlers' ranks as Reb and Pinky came to blows over the competition between General Patton and Field Marshal Montgomery. He wound up assigning the Howlers to help Patton conquer Messina, under orders from General Eisenhower.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#92 (fb)) - Sawyer assigned Tom Tanaka to assist the Howlers in exposing and destroying a German missile site hidden beneath a medical base.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#92) - When Tanaka died on the mission, Sawyer agreed to let Fury inform his parents.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#119 (fb)) <1944, October> - Sawyer assigned the Howlers to investigate the "Hawk Eyrie," headquarters of the Planner.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos Annual#4) <1944, December 16> - Sawyer sent the Howlers to Belgium where they fought in the "Battle of the Bulge."

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#94) - Sawyer assigned the Howlers to help evacuate a German town before a scheduled airstrike against a nearby missile site. When the time for the strike came, Sawyer assigned the bombers, which included Herbie and Hawkeye.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#96) - Afterward, Hawkeye was distressed over the civilian casualties, and Sawyer had to get him to snap out of it and join Herbie in returning to the site to rescue the Howling Commandos.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#98) - Captain Sawyer created a new attack team called the Deadly Dozen, comprised of nine military convicts. He placed Dugan in charge of the Dozen, and transferred Manelli and Pinkerton to complete the roster. He also promoted Dugan to sergeant so that he could lead the squad. After a successful mission to capture Nazis that were landing in England, the Dozen were declared ready for duty.

(Combat Kelly and the Deadly Dozen#1 (fb)) - Captain Sawyer removed Dugan from the Deadly Dozen and assigned Combat Kelly as the new leader. Feeling that "Hoss" Cosgrove wouldn't work out, he was removed and Kelly brought in Jay Little Bear and Doc Watson to the Deadly Dozen. The team was sent on a mission to Germany to destroy a Luftwaffe factory, and succeeded.

(Combat Kelly and the Deadly Dozen#2) - Captain Sawyer met with Combat Kelly and Jay Little Bear after a mission to rescue prisoners in which three Americans-- Ronson Carpenter, Wildcat Smith and Richard Longtree-- had all been killed helping them to escape. Kelly believed they had earned the medal of honor, but Sawyer refused. He then spoke to Little Bear privately and told him that the three men were all accused of cowardice, and so could not be given an award; their families would be told that they died without honor.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#102) - Sawyer sent the Howlers to aid Agent Q in destroying the counterfeit money operation set up by Lo Parino.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#106 (fb)) <1945, February> - Sawyer sent the Howlers to help free prisoners from a Nazi camp near Dresden before the Allies bombed it.

(Combat Kelly and the Deadly Dozen#6 (fb)) - Sawyer assigned Captain Jack "Mad-Dog" Martin to the Deadly Dozen to help breakthrough the Nazi lines. Despite the objections of the Deadly Dozen, they succeeded in the mission thanks to Martin.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#110 - BTS) - Sawyer sent a telegram to Fury informing him that Daily Bugle reporter C. Thomas Sites would be accompanying the Howling Commandos in the field.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#114) - Sawyer traveled with the Howling Commandos on a mission to Africa after Fury had been seemingly killed. They discovered Fury alive, and in the clutches of Baron Strucker, but after freeing him they found that he was insane.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#115) - The Howlers asked for permission to rescue psychiatrist Irving Levine from a German prison camp so that he could help Fury. Sawyer refused to authorize their mission, but looked the other way, and they came back with Levine, who soon brought Fury around.

(Combat Kelly and the Deadly Dozen#8) - Sawyer assigned the Deadly Dozen on a mission against Dr. Sweikert, a sadistic Nazi doctor experimenting on his subjects. Kelly refused to let Laurie Livingston accompany them because he was in love with her, but Sawyer ordered him to keep her on the team.

(Combat Kelly and the Deadly Dozen#9) - Kelly returned from the mission with only Livingston, crippled by Sweikert; the rest of the Deadly Dozen had all been killed. As Sawyer began to berate Kelly, Kelly blasted back that he had had enough, and tore off his stripes, declaring that he wouldn't fight anymore, and would rather return to the brig.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#116) - Fury was taken off the Howlers to help train Larry Freese, Russ Talbert, James MacReedy and Lon Wilcox, but eventually returned to the Howling Commandos.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#117) - Sawyer assigned Fury and Jones to track down Danny "Drummer" Bellaman, an old friend of Gabe's who possessed a deadly Nazi viral weapon.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos Annual#1) - During the Korean War, the Howling Commandos were reunited under the command of Colonel Sawyer, and he led them into combat to destroy a MIG base. They also reunited with Captain Savage on the mission as he transported them to shore. When Sawyer was hit by a bullet, Fury managed to talk him into sitting out the rest of the mission, but Sawyer soon followed them to the MIG base to help them escape the Koreans. After the base was destroyed, Sawyer granted a battlefield commission of lieutenant to Fury so that he could eventually assume command of the Howling Commandos from him.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos Annual#3 (fb)) - General Sawyer was placed in charge of a civilian mission to prevent the completion of a hydrogen bomb in Vietnam, and the one-time Howling Commandos were assembled by S.H.I.E.L.D. for the task. Sawyer refused to acknowledge them as friends, continuing to treat them as grunts as he had in the war, despite their efforts at inviting him to reminisce with them. Sawyer also assigned Sgt. Bull McGiveney to escort the Howlers in Vietnam, and assigned S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Jasper Sitwell to the Howlers to fill out their ranks.

(Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos Annual#3) - When the squad returned to the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier after a successful mission, Sawyer was as professional towards them as ever, but as he left their debriefing he told them he was proud of them, just in case it was the last time they ever met.

(Thor I#233-234) - When Loki led an army of his minions from Asgard into Washington D.C. to herald his attempted conquest of Earth, General Sawyer was placed in charge of defending Washington. Because Thor was one of the only super-heroes not sealed off from aiding by Loki's force fields, he came to Sawyer's aid. Although Sawyer and Thor did their best to led their armies against Loki, they were outmatched, and Sawyer feared that they would have to resort to atomic weapons. However, Thor eventually triumphed over Loki in personal combat, ending the invasion.

(Marvel Fanfare I#10) - General Sawyer arranged a meeting at S.H.I.E.L.D. Central, assuming authority over Colonel Fury, who chaffed at being under orders from Sawyer again. They discussed the Black Widow, and whether or not she could be trusted. When the Black Widow herself burst into the meeting, demanding to know why S.H.I.E.L.D. agents had attacked her at her home, they informed her that her friend Ivan Petrovitch was a prisoner in Russia, and they wanted to be sure that she was the right person to send on a rescue mission.

(Captain America I#273-274) - General Sawyer was on his way to the Howling Commandos' reunion when he was kidnapped by agents of Hydra led by an LMD of Baron Strucker. He dropped his hat as they caught him, and indicated to Captain America that it was important. Nick Fury found a microfilm inside detailing the Grand Forks Air Base. The Strucker LMD used an LMD of Sawyer to steal a B-52 bomber with nuclear missiles, and transported it and the real Sawyer to Hydra Island to force Sawyer into giving them the navigation override codes. Sawyer knew that he wouldn't be able to stand up to Hydra's brainwashing techniques and tried to destroy the plane as they flew, but the Strucker LMD jolted him with electricity, giving him a heart attack. Hydra medics stabilized him, and he then turned off the plane's anti-detection technology so that Fury would be able to find them. Hydra another LMD to trick the Howlers when they and Captain America came to save Sawyer, but they were not as easily fooled as before. Captain America saved the real Sawyer from Hydra, but had to hide him an air shaft and leave him there to stop the Strucker LMD, at Sawyer's insistence. Sawyer then got up to try and stop Hydra himself, and dressed in a Hydra uniform to get to the bomber. He set the bomber to self-destruct, then exited, knocking down the Strucker LMD. The LMD set itself to self-destruct, and Sawyer flung himself over the LMD to shield the Howlers from the blast.

As Sawyer lay dying, he once again insisted to Fury, "How many times...do I have to tell you, Fury...it's General Sawyer...not Sam..." He insisted that he was too far gone to survive, but that the Howlers should escape Hydra Island before the bomber exploded. His dying words were: "You and your Howling Ya-Hoos may have been...the biggest pain in the neck this nursemaid had...but you were the best! I'm proud to have been your commander...and friend!"

Nick carried Sawyer's body back with him, and he was buried two days later in Arlington, Virginia. Gabe Jones played a bugle charge instead of Taps, knowing that Sawyer hated Taps. The Howlers donned their old commando gear for the occasion.

Comments: Created by Stan Lee, Jack Kirby and Dick Ayers.

Sam Sawyer appeared in Captain America/Black Panther: Flags of Our Fathers#2-4 (July-September, 2010). Unfortunately the series just does not work well within Marvel continuity, which disqualifies his appearances in this series from this profile.
--Markus Raymond

Sawyer's tombstone in Captain America I#274 gave his birth date as March 21, 1910.

Profile by Prime Eternal

CLARIFICATIONS:
Samuel Sawyer should not be confused with:

Sawyer, owner of the Circus of Crime, @ Kid Colt, Outlaw#106
• Sawyer, of the Universal Cosa Nostrum, @ Marvel Comics Presents#172
• Kate Sawyer, daughter of U-Go-Girl, @ X-Force I#124
• Larry Sawyer, stalked by Joe Smith, @ Captain America I#246
• Susan Sawyer, student at ESU, abused by her boyfriend, @ Slingers#1

Non-Marvel Copyright info
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