JASPER PETRIEJASPER PETRIE
Real Name: Jasper Petrie
Identity/Class: Human
Occupation: Unrevealed
Group Membership: Possibly A.I.M. (Advanced Idea Mechanics; see comments; and, if so, likely Paul Allen)
Affiliations: Unidentified AIM agents
Enemies: Dr. Wilma Calvin, Man-Thing (Ted Sallis)
Known Relatives: None
Aliases: None
Base of Operations: Unrevealed;
last seen in the swamps outside Citrusville, Florida
First Appearance: Astonishing Tales I#12 (June, 1972)
Powers/Abilities: Jasper had access to at least handgun and was willing to use it to at least threaten an old woman.
He seemed to be superstitious and spoke with a Southern accent.
His right arm was at least badly burned by the Man-Thing (and possibly amputated, see comments)
Height: Unrevealed (perhaps 5'6" - 5'8"; he looked to me more than 2' shorter than the 7' tall Man-Thing)
Weight: Unrevealed (perhaps 160 lbs.)
Eyes: Unrevealed (only seen in a black-and-white story)
Hair: Black (or at least dark)
History:
(Astonishing Tales I#12 (fb) - BTS) - Following Ted Sallis' transformation into the monstrous Man-Thing and the finding of the badly burned Ellen Brandt, reports of a monstrous creature prevented locals from helping scouring the everglades for evidence of Sallis.
Seeking to learn the secret of the formula Sallis had created in conjunction with Project Gladiator, AIM agents further stirred up the local townspeople of Citrusville, accusing Dr. Wilma Calvin of being a witch and the project of building monsters.
(Astonishing Tales I#12 (fb) - BTS) - Soon thereafter, an AIM agent led five angry men to confront Dr. Calvin at Project, noting "Jasper Petrie met up with some of your 'research' -- and the doc just finished cutting off his arm!" (see comments).
Comments: Created by Roy Thomas, John Buscema, and Dan Adkins.
Did Petrie lose his arm?
After Petrie rushed off, the Man-Thing followed Dr. Calvin back to Project Gladiator, and he listened as she had a brief conversation with Jim and Paul Allen in the laboratory when the AIM agent started yelling for Dr. Calvin. We don't know how long the Man-Thing followed her through the swamp after that confrontation, but it didn't seem like more than 5-10 minutes. Maybe it was a couple of hours (although it's a little hard to believe the elderly Calvin would travel that far/long by herself through the swamps, especially knowing how the townspeople felt about her), but even then, it seems hard to believe that Petrie could have made it to a doctor and have his arm amputated, and then the AIM agent and his associates made it to Project Gladiator.
Yeah, the Man-Thing fried his arm, but it's hard to believe so much damage was done that they'd have to amputate. Maybe the blood supply was fried. Regardless, they're not going to amputate someone's arm unless gangrene was setting in or tetanus or something was risking the person's life. They'd have debrided the wound, maybe even done vascular grafts, etc., and only gone to amputation if absolutely required. Typically, that would have been weeks to months to get to that point. Things may have seemed for desperate in a small town in 1972, but they still probably would have sent him to a bigger city with a more advanced hospital before amputating his arm. Plus, with the sliding timescale, the story only took place 8-12 years ago...
So, perhaps the AIM agent was just exaggerating, or outright lying, to get the townspeople to support him in violently confronting Calvin. Maybe Petrie had his arm amputated, maybe he didn't. The world may never know.
Was Petrie a member of AIM?
All we know is that the AIM agent knew him by name, and that AIM had been stirring up the local population into believing Dr. Calvin was a witch that was building monsters.
I would think, since he went in with no back-up, that Petrie was just a local man trying to take matters into his own hands and presumably influenced by AIM's rhetoric against Calvin, rather than being a member of AIM.
This profile was completed 9/02/2020, but its publication was delayed as it was intended for the Appendix 20th anniversary 's celebratory event.
Profile by Snood.
CLARIFICATIONS:
Jasper Petrie should be distinguished from:
images: (without ads)
Astonishing Tales I#12, pg. 11, panel 3 (profile, encountering Man-Thing);
panel 4 (frontal, ordering Man-Thing back);
panel 5 (arm burned)
Appearances:
Astonishing Tales I#12 (June, 1972) - Roy Thomas (writer), John Buscema (penciler), Dan Adkins (inker), Stan Lee (editor)
First posted: 09/16/2021
Last updated: 09/15/2021
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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