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| The Burglar | |
| Continuity: | Marvel Universe |
| Notability: | Antagonist |
| Type: | Criminal |
| Gender: | Male |
| Race: | Human |
| Location: | New York City, New York |
| Relatives: | Jessica Carradine (daughter) |
| Status: | Deceased |
| First: | Amazing Fantasy #15 |
| Final: | Amazing Spider-Man #200 |
The Burglar is a fictional criminal featured in comic books published by Marvel Comics. He exists in the mainstream Marvel Universe and is an important figure in the Spider-Man family of comic titles. He first appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15 in August, 1962.
The burglar is most notable for being the petty thief that Peter Parker let slip past him at a sports event, and ultimately murdered his uncle, Ben Parker.
Biography[]
This nameless and seemingly inocouous petty criminal has the distinction of being one of the most pivotal of all known villains, for he is partially responsible in determining the future career of a certain web-headed wallcrawler known as Spider-Man.
Shortly after developing superhuman strength and agility, fifteen-year-old Peter Parker decided to parlay his new talents as a professional wrestler under the ring name Spider-Man. One evening, after collecting his pay, Peter encountered the burglar rushing past him after he had already stolen money from the studio's office.
A security guard named Baxter Bigelow pursued the burglar and yelled for him to stop. Peter did nothing and the thief escaped via an elevator. The security guard admonished Spider-Man for letting the burglar slip past him, but Spidey scoffed, telling him that nobody pushes him around anymore and that he only looks out for number one.
The following eevening, while walking back home, Peter spied a police squad car outside of his house. Police officer Bernard O'Brien had the misfortune of telling Peter that a burglar had broken into his house. His Uncle Ben had startled the man and was fatally shot as a result. The officer told Pete that the police were tracking the burglar and had him trapped at the old Acme warehouse.
Consumed by both rage and grief, Pete changed into his Spider-Man costume and races down to the warehouse. Using his wall-crawling abilities, he was able to gain access to the building before the police could. He found the burglar and cornered him. The man pulled a gun, but Spider-Man webbed his hand closed then knocked him out with a right cross. As he pulled him into the light, he was horrified to discover that the man who murdered his Uncle Ben was the same thief that slipped past him at the TV studio. He webbed up the burglar and left him for the police. Peter walked home with his head hung low, consumed by guilt over the part he played in his uncle's demise. [1]
Notes & Trivia[]
- The character of Burglar was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko.
- The identity of the burlgar has never been revealed. It is possible that his surname may be Carradine as this was the name of his daughter, Jessica Carradine.