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DANIEL GRIMM SR.

Real Name: Daniel Grimm

Identity/Class: Human, civilian

Occupation: Unrevealed

Group Membership: None

Affiliations: Unrevealed

Enemies: None (though he was arguably his own worst enemy)

Known Relatives: Benjamin Grimm Sr. (father), Mary Grimm (mother), Benjamin J. Grimm (son), Daniel Grimm Jr. (son, deceased), Elsi Grimm (wife, deceased), Jacob Grimm (brother), Sophie Grimm (sister, deceased), Alyce Grimm (sister-in-law, deceased), Petunia "Penny" Grimm (sister-in-law)

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: 7135 Yancy Street, New York City

First Appearance: The Thing I#1 (July, 1983)

Powers/Abilities: Daniel Grimm possessed no superpowers. A heavy smoking, slightly overweight alcoholic, his stamina was most likely well below that of most men his age. Grimm was short-tempered, abusive and argumentative, but despite his shortcomings still had strong moral convictions, outright condemning stealing, vandalizing and gang violence.

Height: 6'1" (by approximation)
Weight: 190 lbs. (by approximation)
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Brown

History:

(1939 Daily Bugle) - Record of recent births in New York City and surrounding areas. GRIMM. A son for Benjamin and Mary, a younger brother for Jacob, bashful, blue-eyed Daniel weighs in at 7 pounds, 13 ounces. Our little "idol of millions."

(The Thing I#1 (fb) - BTS) - Daniel, his brother Jacob and their sister Sophie Grimm grew up on Yancy Street in New York City. While Jacob managed to escape the crushing poverty of the crime-ridden neighborhood, Daniel remained there. He met and married his wife Elsi and eventually fathered two sons: Daniel Jr. and Benjamin J. Grimm, born several years apart.

   Over the years, Daniel developed a drinking problem that made it impossible for him to properly support his family. He never lasted more than six months at any job, which kept his family in perpetual poverty.

(Infinity Crusade#2 (fb) ) - When Daniel's sister Sophie contracted terminal cancer, he took Elsi and their youngest son Ben to see her. After Sophie's death, they also visited her grave.

(The Thing I#1 (fb) - BTS ) - Grimm's oldest son Daniel Jr. had risen to the ranks of the Yancy Street Gang, eventually becoming its leader. He also started to give his mother Elsi money to help support the family.

(Fantastic Four I#355 (fb) ) - Daniel caught Ben writing Yancy Street Gang graffiti on the walls in the hallway of their appartment building. He slapped his youngest child around, while telling him how he hated Daniel being part of the gang. As the blows landed, he told Ben he was going to make sure he wouldn't waste his life too.

(The Thing I#1 (fb) ) - Daniel was less than happy with his oldest son being part of, let alone leading, a gang. This led to several arguments, with Daniel suspecting the money his son brought home might actually be stolen.

(The Thing I#1 (fb) - BTS) - After a particularly heated confrontation, Daniel snuck out of the house, secretly followed by his brother Ben. Daniel joined the other Yancy Street Gang members for a rumble, a streetfight, against their rivals, the Thompson Avenue Gang. During the fight, Dan sustained a critical stab wound, which so angered young Ben that he joined in the fight as well, only to be apprehended by the police.

(The Thing I#1 (fb) ) - Learning their son had died, Daniel and a hysterical Elsi went to the police station to collect Ben. Unable to deal with his emotions of grief, Daniel lashed out at his remaining child.

(The Thing I#1 (fb) - BTS) - Ten years after losing their oldest son, Daniel and Elsi were killed during an unspecified accident, leaving the care for their youngest child in the hands of Daniel's brother Jacob and his wife Alyce.

Comments: Created by John Byrne (writer), Ron Wilson (pencils), Joe Sinnott (inks).

Man, John Byrne was really out to get poor Ben, wasn't he? After 20+ years of virtually no backstory at all, Byrne slowly started filling in the blanks, first by introducing Ben's aunt Petunia and his uncle Jacob in Fantastic Four, then with the first issue of the Thing's solo series he gave the rest of the family history: a deadbeat drunk for a dad, living in abject, crushing poverty, gang violence killing the older brother he idolized... topped off by being orphaned as a teen. And that was before he even got turned into an orange rockmonster. If this was a movie, here's where Ben'd be walking in the pouring rain while a maudlin, violin heavy soundtrack played.

Secret Wars II#7 has Ben haunted by his father Daniel's ghost. But considering this was part of Mephisto's manipulations, it's more likely Daniel Grimm Sr. was merely an illusion crafted by the lord of lies.

Thanks to Wolfram Bane for pointing out the mention of Daniel's birth in 1939 Daily Bugle.

Profile by Norvo.

CLARIFICATIONS:
Daniel Grimm Sr. should not be confused with:

Elsi Grimm

Daniel's long suffering wife Elsi was a European immigrant (her country of origin was never given) who came to America without her parents, only learning of her mother's death back in "the old country" through a letter. Elsi tried her best to keep her family up and running, putting food on the table (cabbage and beans was a particular Grimm family favorite) in spite of the meager financial means and her husband's heavy drinking. Elsi wasn't able to prevent her son Daniel from joining the Yancy Street Gang and also couldn't protect her other son Ben from the harsh realities of life, when cancer claimed Sophie, his favorite aunt and Elsi's sister-in-law. Later, Elsi took the money her oldest son Daniel Grimm Jr. brought home before he was lethally knifed during a gang fight. A policeman informed her of the death of her son, when he asked Elsi where her husband was, she admitted he was out drinking. Elsi died in the same undisclosed accident that killed her husband, leaving Ben an orphan.

--The Thing I#1 (Thing I#1 (fb) - BTS, Infinity Crusade#2 (fb), Thing I#1 (fb) - BTS, Fantastic Four I#355 (fb), Thing I#1 (fb), Fantastic Four III#56 (fb), Thing I#1 (fb) - BTS, Thing I#1 (fb), Thing I#1 (fb) - BTS







images: (without ads)
Thing I#1, p14, pan3 (main image)
Thing I#1, p15, pan2 (slaps Ben)
Fantastic Four III#56, p8, pan4 (Elsi Grimm)

Appearances:
Thing I#1 (July, 1983) - John Byrne (writer), Ron Wilson (pencils), Joe Sinnott (inks), Al Milgrom (editor)
Infinity Crusade#2 (July, 1993) - Jim Starlin (writer), Ron Lim (pencils), Al Milgrom (inks), Craig Anderson (editor)
Fantastic Four I#355 (August, 1991) - Danny Fingeroth (writer), Al Milgrom (pencils), Nella Morglim (inker), Ralph Macchio (editor)
Fantastic Four III#56 (August, 2002) - Karl Kesel (writer), Stuart Immonen (pencils), Scott Koblish (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)
1939 Daily Bugle (2009) - Jess Harrold, Sheila Johnson, Dugan Trodglen & Jeph York (writers), Bob Greenberger (research), John Rhett Thomas (editor)

Last updated: 11/28/13

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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