Jim Hammond

Created by scientist Phineas Horton, Jim Hammond is a synthetic android whose artificial body spontaneously ignites on contact with air. Debuting in Marvel Comics #1 (1939), he learned to control his pyrokinesis—flying, projecting flame, and generating intense heat—becoming one of Marvel's first super-heroes.

Few characters can claim to have been there at the very beginning of Marvel's universe, but Jim Hammond is one of them — debuting in 1939's Marvel Mystery Comics #2, brought to life by the legendary Bill Everett in the earliest days of the Golden Age. Over an extraordinary span stretching nearly nine decades, Hammond has proven himself one of comics' most enduring figures, racking up 366 catalog appearances and 25 collector-significant key issues that speak to a legacy few Golden Age characters can match. His adventures have played out across the pages of Marvel Mystery Comics, Captain America Comics, and The Invaders, where he keeps remarkable company — sharing stories with Captain America, Steve Rogers, Namor the Sub-Mariner, and Thomas Raymond. If you want to understand where Marvel truly began, Jim Hammond is essential reading.