PAPA ROBERTI

Real Name: Roberti (first name unrevealed)

Identity/Class: Human, possibly magic user (Post-World War II)

Occupation: Puppeteer

Group Membership: None

Affiliations: The children of Amesville

Enemies: Alderman Evans, Mayor Shard and other public officials of Amesville

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: Amesville, USA

First Appearance: Journey into Mystery I#25 (July, 1955)

Powers/Abilities: Papa Roberti was an aging man past his prime. He seemed to possess a magical ability to bring life to his puppets and direct them to perform tasks.

Height: 5'10" (by approximation)
Weight: 145 lbs. (by approximation)
Eyes: Brown
Hair: Gray-Black

History: (Journey into Mystery I#25/6 (fb) - BTS) - Papa Roberti was a puppeteer (possibly of Italian ancestry) who made his home in Amesville, traveling around the town with his horse and wagon putting on puppet shows for the town's children. Although he collected mere pennies from the children at each performance, he continued his profession for many decades. Among the children who enjoyed his work was the man who grew up to become Mayor Shard of Amesville, although as an adult, he forgot how he had enjoyed Roberti's puppets.

(Journey into Mystery I#25/6) - As Amesville was preparing for a visit from Governor Bruce Talbot, Mayor Shard feared what the governor would think of the town's shabby-looking town hall. As Mayor Shard discussed this with his staff, he didn't realize Papa Roberti was nearby putting on a puppet show for the children and that Roberti had overheard his concerns. That evening while the townsfolk slept, Papa Roberti had his puppets come to life and make quick repairs to the town hall, granting it a pristine appearance.


Although Mayor Shard marveled at the improvements to the town hall, he felt that the rest of the buildings on Maple Street remained so poor-looking that the buffed-up appearance of town hall would only draw attention to their defects. Papa Roberti overheard him again and that evening the puppets repaired every building on Maple Street. The following day, Mayor Shard decided he wanted maple trees on Maple Street. Realizing children had been nearby at the previous two occasions, he went by the children watching Roberti's puppets and voiced his wish for maple trees, thinking the children were somehow responsible. Sure enough, that night the puppets planted maple trees.

Mayor Shard now believed Amesville was ready for Governor Talbot's arrival except for the presence of Papa Roberti, considering his wagon to be an eyesore. Mayor Shard ordered Roberti to leave Amesville. Dejected, Papa Roberti exited without explaining how he had been responsible for the town's improvements. Much to Mayor Shard's chagrin, when Governor Talbot arrived he decided the town looked so prosperous they could afford higher taxes!

Comments: Created by Carl Wessler and Joe Sinnott.

I wrote this profile on the day Sinnott's death was reported. Rest in peace, Mr. Sinnott, and thank you for making a little bit of magic in our lives.

Profile by Prime Eternal.

CLARIFICATIONS:
Papa Roberti should not be confused with:

Mayor Shard and his staff

Mayor Shard (second from left) and the other public officials of Amesville, including Alderman Evans (fourth from left). Mayor Shard was a lifelong resident of Amesville; as a child he had enjoyed Papa Roberti's puppets, but by the time he was grown, he had forgotten him.

As Mayor Shard and his staff were preparing Amesville for a visit from Governor Talbot, they discussed their plans in public on Maple Street while Papa Roberti was putting on his puppet shows. Initially, Mayor Shard feared the shabby appearance of their town hall would put off Governor Talbot; Papa Roberti heard him and overnight had his magic puppets repair the building. Mayor Shard was amazed and couldn't imagine how the quick work was done. When he then complained about the appearance of the other buildings on Maple Street, Roberti heard him again and refurbished all the buildings on Maple Street. Again amazed by this, Mayor Shard now decided he wanted maple trees on Maple Street. Assuming the children who were watching the puppet shows were somehow responsible for the quick work, Shard made his third request known; again, Roberti's puppets did the work by night. Mayor Shard decided the last thing needed to beautify Amesville was to remove Papa Roberti because of his unsightly wagon. Shard's staff argued against it, fearing the children would complain and it might affect their town's improvements, but Mayor Shard went ahead and drove Roberti from town. The town's children complained, but Mayor Shard was firm in his decision. When Governor Talbot arrived, he saw the improvements on Maple Street and concluded the townsfolk were more prosperous than he thought. Consequently, he raised their taxes. Mayor Shard angrily blamed whoever was responsible for the repairs for ruining their town.



--Journey into Mystery I#25/6

Governor Bruce Talbot

Governor Talbot was the governor of the territory which included Amesville. When he came to inspect Amesville after the improvements Papa Roberti's puppets had made, he was convinced the people of Amesville were far more prosperous than he had thought; consequently, he raised their taxes.









--Journey into Mystery I#25/6

images: (without ads, as reprinted in Marvel Masterworks: Journey into Mystery Vol. 3, 2010)
Journey into Mystery I#25/6, p4, pan4 (main)
Journey into Mystery I#25/6, p5, pan6 (wagon)
Journey into Mystery I#25/6, p5, pan7 (puppets)
Journey into Mystery I#25/6, p2, pan2 (Mayor Shard)
Journey into Mystery I#25/6, p5, pan3 (Governor Talbot)

Appearances:
Journey into Mystery I#25/6 (July, 1955) - Carl Wessler (writer), Joe Sinnott (pencils, inks), Stan Lee (editor)

First posted: 06/25/2020
Last updated: 06/25/2020

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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