Real Name: Inapplicable (see comments)
Identity/Class: Animated statue (1960s era)
Occupation: None
Group Membership: None
Affiliations: Mr. White (first name unrevealed)
Known Relatives: None
Aliases: None
Base of Operations: A park in an unidentified American city
First Appearance: Amazing Adventures I#6/2 (November, 1961)
Powers/Abilities: Appearing to be an immobile statue sculpted from an unspecified material (possibly granite), it memorialized an unspecified bearded man holding a scroll of paper in its right hand.
In some unspecified manner, the effigy became animated and fought to defend its "friend" Mr. White when he was assaulted by two robbers--the statue sustained minor damage in the altercation and "skinned" its knuckles.
While animated, the statue could move freely from its pedestal, and it was able to speak.
Height: 6' (by approximation)
Weight: 800 lbs. (by approximation)
Eyes: Inapplicable
Hair: Inapplicable
History:
(Amazing Adventures I#6/2 (fb) - BTS) - The origin of this
statue is unrevealed, but it stood upon its pedestal in a city
park. The statue would receive daily visits from Mr. White when
the elderly man came to the park to feed breadcrumbs to the birds--since
Mr. White was kindhearted and unselfish, the statue came to regard him
as its friend.
(Amazing Adventures I#6/2) - One day in the park, Mr. White was attacked by Ben and Spade, two muggers who were trying to steal the old man's wallet. Angered that the muggers dared to strike its friend, the statue left its pedestal and fought the robbers, punching them and knocking them both out, but it "skinned" its knuckles during the fight.
(Amazing Adventures I#6/2 - BTS) - With the fight over and its friend saved, the statue returned to its pedestal.
(Amazing Adventures I#6/2) - A female bystander alerted a nearby police officer about a big fight in the park, by the time the policeman arrived, he saw Ben and Spade laying unconscious, and Mr. White standing by the statue. The policeman asked Mr. White how he managed to beat up the two hoods; but Mr. White denied doing it himself, and told the policeman that his rescuer was "the fourth man". The policeman was perplexed, for he only counted three men, and he thought nobody could have run past without his seeing them; regardless, the police officer took the two muggers into custody.
When he was all out of breadcrumbs, Mr. White left the park after saying goodbye to his friends: The birds...and the statue.
Comments: Created by Stan Lee (writer) and Steve Ditko (artist).
It was never revealed who this statue was supposed to represent, nor was it referred to by any specific name, so I just identified it by this 5-page story's title -- The Fourth Man!
The story was done with a surprise-ending, and it wasn't revealed that it was actually the statue who saved Mr. White until the last panel.
Perhaps this statue was sculpted by Anton Gorge (who also sculpted the Monsters of Bald Mountain).
A few months after this story was published, a similar plot would be repeated (following the retitling of this series to Amazing Adult Fantasy) in issue #13/5--At the Stroke of Midnight!-- wherein the Statue of Liberty came to life and fought off the Undersea Giants (the Statue of Liberty also sustained "skinned" knuckles).
Profile by Ron Fredricks.
CLARIFICATIONS:
The "Fourth Man" has no known connections to:
Mr. White has no known connections to:
Ben has no known connections to:
Spade has no known connections to:
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A kindly gentle soul, Mr. White enjoyed going to the park every day to feed breadcrumbs to the birds. When Mr. White took out his wallet and generously gave some neighborhood kids money so they could go to a baseball game, he was seen by two muggers--Ben and Spade--who followed him into the park. Mr. White was standing by the statue in the park and feeding the birds when he was assaulted by the muggers--although he bravely stood up to them, the elderly man was no match for the two thugs, who mercilessly punched him. But Mr. White was saved by the statue, for it considered the old man to be its friend--the animated statue pummeled the muggers and knocked them senseless. When a policeman arrived on the scene and saw Mr. White with the two unconscious muggers, Mr. White explained that he was saved by "the fourth man". --Amazing Adventures I#6/2 |
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Two low-life thugs wanted by the police, they followed kindly Mr. White into the park and tried to rob him because they figured he would be an easy target. But the muggers got more than they bargained for when a statue in the park came to life to defend its friend, Mr. White; Ben and Spade were pummeled by the statue and knocked senseless. The unconscious Ben and Spade were later taken into police custody. --Amazing Adventures I#6/2 |
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images: (without ads)
Amazing Adventures I#6/2, p1, pan1 (Main Image - "Fourth Man" (center foreground, rear view) faces Ben, Mr. White, and Spade (background, left to right))
Amazing Adventures I#6/2, p2, pan5 (Mr. White (left) feeds birds breadcrumbs; "Fourth Man" on pedestal (right))
Amazing Adventures I#6/2, p4, pan4 ("Fourth Man" (center, silhouette) fights Spade and Ben)
Amazing Adventures I#6/2, p5, pan5 ("Fourth Man" back on pedestal, with "skinned" knuckles)
Amazing Adventures I#6/2, p5, pan2 (Mr. White explains to police officer that he was saved by the "Fourth Man")
Amazing Adventures I#6/2, p2, pan3 (Mr. White gives money to children)
Amazing Adventures I#6/2, p2, pan1 (Ben and Spade plot to rob Mr. White)
Amazing Adventures I#6/2, p3, pan6 (Ben and Spade shocked when they see and hear "Fourth Man")
Appearances:
Amazing Adventures I#6/2 (November, 1961) - Stan Lee (writer), Steve Ditko (pencils and inks), Artie Simek (letters), Stan Lee (editor)
First Posted: 05/24/2018
Last updated: 01/20/2019
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
Non-Marvel
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