Jim Reuben aka “Fire-Man”

Created by Charles Varrel (text) & Martin Filchock (art)

FIRE-MAN was a short-lived superhero from the 1940s whose real identity was that of JIM REUBEN, who ran a small detective agency called The Fire-Man Association.

Not such a secret identity, I guess.

Jim was initially a mere lad, working as a firefighter at a Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) Camp during the Great Depression in northern Utah, when he was rendered unconscious and taken prisoner by a “weird thing” during while fighting a forest fire, and became a victim of a mad scientist’s diabolical experiments.

Against his will, Jim was transformed into a lighter-than-air being made from carbon-monoxide and other gases with super-strength who could fly, control fire, and was impervious to resist heat. He’s sort of like the anti-Human Torch–he can’t burst into flame, but he can extinguish them just by touching them. Upon discovering his new powers and realizing their potential, he makes a vow: “I will do all I can to aid humanity. I’m going to fight fire and crime.”

And so he sets up the Fire-Man Association, where he greets clients dressed in his bright red jumpsuit, with a lovely yellow cape and a spiffy winged helmet.

I tell ya, they don’t write ’em like that anymore.

Fire-Man appeared in only a handful of stories, all back-up features, in Liberty Scouts (which soon changed its title to Liberty Guards after complaints from the Boy Scouts of America) and Man of War, alongside such other forgotten heroes as Vapo-Man and Undercover-Man.

COMICS

  • LIBERTY SCOUTS
    (1941-, Centaur)
    2 issues
    For some reason, this comics first issue was #2.

    • “The Fire-Man” (June 1941, #2)
    • “The Fire-Man” (August 1941, #3)
  • MAN OF WAR
    (1941-42, Centaur)

    • 2 issues(November 1941, #1)
    • (January 1942, #2)
Respectfully submitted by Kevin Burton Smith.

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