Gargantua/WW75

Gargantua is a fictional ape featured on the 1975 television series Wonder Woman. Played by actor Mickey Morton, he appeared in the seventh episode of season one, "Wonder Woman vs. Gargantua!".

Biography
Gargantua was an over-sized gorilla that lived in the jungles of the Democratic Republic of the Congo during the early 1940s. An ambitious Nazi agent named Erica Belgard perfected a conditioning process by which she could not only control the gorilla's actions, but could incite him into a frenzy using visual stimuli. Dubbing the animal Gargantua, Erica believed that she could earn respect from the Nazi high command by proving that her mind-controlled gorilla could defeat super-hero, Wonder Woman.

Eric and her colleague, Hans Eichler, smuggled Gargantua to the United States where he lived at the circus. When the time was right, they used him to abduct a Nazi defector named Conrad Steigler, who had been working with the Allies. Gargantua tossed around a few MPs guarding the hotel that Steigler was staying at, then scaled the wall of the building and leaped through the glass window to abduct him.

Wonder Woman tracked Gargantua and the Nazis to a warehouse, and Erica sent Gargantua to battle the Amazon, enabling them the chance to escape. The frenzied gorilla lunged at Wonder Woman, who evaded his blows. Several USAF guards showed up and opened fire on Gargantua. Wonder Woman, realizing that the creature was being controlled, deflected one bullet, but another shot struck Gargantua in the arm. They took him to a hospital where he was treated by a vet named Doctor Osmond. Through the course of Gargantua's recovery, Wonder Woman was able to temporarily reverse Erica Belgard's behavioral programming.

Belgard found Doctor Osmond, and recaptured Gargantua. She reconditioned him to obey her commands, but the process did not take hold as strongly as it had before. The second time she sent Gargantua after Wonder Woman, the ape was able to shake off the brainwashing. Wonder Woman captured Belgard and her Nazi cohorts and returned Gargantua back to his jungle home.

Notes & Trivia



 * Playing Gargantua is not the only time that actor Mickey Morton would portray a DC Comics baddie. Soon after appearing on Wonder Woman, Morton played the role of dumb-as-bricks swamp monster Solomon Grundy on the two-part TV movie Legends of the Superheroes.


 * Gargantua bears a slight similarity to another DC Comics character, Giganta. Giganta is also a foe of Wonder Woman, and was once an ape, who had been evolved into a human through the efforts of a scientist named Doctor Zool. Giganta has appeared on episodes of Challenge of the Super Friends, as well as the Legends of the Superheroes TV special.

Appearances

 * 1) Wonder Woman: Wonder Woman vs. Gargantua!