QUENTIN HARDERMAN
Real Name: Quentin Harderman
Identity/Class: Human
Occupation: Advertising executive, leader of Committee to Regain America's Principles, owner of Quentin Co.
Group Membership: Committee to Regain America's Principles (Moonstone/Lloyd Bloch, Tumbler/John Keane, Viper/Jordan Dixon)
Affiliations: His secretary, Sanitation Unit, Secret Empire, Serpent Squad
Enemies: Captain America (Steve Rogers), Falcon (Sam Wilson)
Known Relatives: None
Aliases: "Station Wagon-1", "Quent"
Base of Operations: His office on Madison Avenue, New York City
First Appearance: (Mentioned) Captain America I#163 (July, 1973); (seen) Captain America I#169 (January, 1974)
Powers/Abilities: Quentin Harderman had a clever, manipulating, and persuasive personality, and he was an expert at handling the media.
He conducted his business affairs using his personal motto: "Lies are neat, truth is messy."
Height: Unrevealed (5'10"; by approximation)
Weight: Unrevealed (170 lbs.; by approximation)
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Black
History:
(Captain America I#163 - BTS) -
Harderman received a phone call from his business partner Viper, who had
him start an advertising campaign called "The Un-Selling of Captain
America," with the intention of discrediting the hero in the eyes of the
American public.
(Captain America I#169 (fb) - BTS) - As part of his anti-Captain America ad campaign, Harderman created the Committee to Regain America's Principles, which was actually a front group for the subversive Secret Empire.
(Captain America I#170 (fb)) - At some point, Harderman and Viper met with Moonstone, who wanted to join Harderman's Committee, because he felt that he could be a distinct asset to them. Viper and Harderman agreed, and Moonstone became part of the conspiracy.
(Captain America I#170 (fb)) - Some time later, Harderman told Moonstone that Viper had been captured by Captain America, and now a smear-ad campaign to ruin Captain America's reputation was to take place, and a murder frame-up was also part of the plan.
(Captain America I#169 / Captain America I#174 (fb)) - Captain America saw a television commercial produced by the Committee to Regain America's Principles, wherein he was being discredited as an unchecked vigilante; since it was all a lie, Cap decided to pay a visit to the advertising agency responsible for the commercial.
(Captain America I#169) - After arriving at the ad agency, Captain America told Harderman's secretary that he wanted to see her boss; the secretary told Cap that Harderman wouldn't see anyone that day, but Captain America brusquely told her that he himself insisted and walked past her.
When he got into Harderman's office, Captain America saw that Harderman was the same man who appeared in the TV commercial. Harderman mentioned that he felt the commercial was appropriate, and that the Committee to Regain America's Principles was primarily a personal statement; however, Harderman told Captain America that he would be willing to change his opinion if Cap was willing to participate in a charity boxing exhibition the next morning, which Harderman was tied to. Agreeing to the deal, Captain America left the office; Harderman (identifying himself as "Station Wagon-1") then telephoned the Tumbler to tell him that the plan was operative.
The next morning, at the crowded exhibition hall where the charity boxing match was to take place, Harderman introduced the man Captain America was about to fight as John Robert Keane, but Cap immediately recognized him as the Tumbler. As the Tumbler got scared and tried to run away, Cap grabbed him and the two engaged in a brief struggle; but suddenly the Tumbler dropped dead. Harderman thought to himself, "Just as planned! That sucker didn't know he was being set up all along." -- in the shadows of the building's ceiling, Moonstone was revealed as the real murderer (but only to the readers), having shot the Tumbler through his skull with a sliver-thin laser beam.
(Captain America I#170 / Captain America I#171 (fb) / Captain America I#174 (fb)) - As a crowd of onlookers stood around the Tumbler's corpse, Harderman accused Captain America of murdering "an innocent man". Cap realized that Harderman had set him up and angrily grabbed him, but cops came to arrest the hero. Believing the police officers were possibly part of the set-up, Captain America fled, only to be caught and knocked unconscious by Moonstone. Harderman arrived and announced to the city that their new hero was Moonstone.
(Captain America I#170 - BTS) - The unconscious Captain America was taken to jail.
(Captain America I#170) - Captain America woke up in his jail cell, and heard Harderman and Moonstone talking with the press. One of the reporters asked Moonstone about his past, and he began to tell a tale about himself being a janitor at a small mid-western university, where he was empowered by a moon rock (a story made up by Harderman, because Moonstone was actually a thief instead of a janitor). After Moonstone was done with his false origin story, Harderman told the press that he thought they got enough, and thanked them for coming.
Meanwhile, the Sanitation Unit, a group of supposed Captain America supporters, blasted a hole in the wall of the hero's jail cell...
(Captain America I#171) - ...but despite their urging him to escape, Captain America refused to accompany the Sanitation Unit because he believed due process would eventually clear him of the Tumbler's murder; the Sanitation Unit subsequently used knock-out gas and carried off the unconscious Cap.
When Captain America began to revive in an alleyway, he overheard the members of the Sanitation Unit mention an address on Penn Street, and that they were actually working to further discredit him. After fighting the gang and knocking them all out, the fugitive Cap decided to go to the address, which was the only solid clue which might ultimately clear him.
Outside Quentin Co., at 1701 Penn Street, Captain America put two and two together -- "Quentin" as in "Quentin Harderman"; the Falcon arrived as well, and the two of them began to talk about the recent events. Suddenly, Moonstone appeared and he managed to defeat both of the heroes.
(Captain America I#172) - Just before Moonstone could kill Falcon and Captain America, Harderman came and stopped him -- he told Moonstone that the plan was to ruin their reputations, not make them martyrs. He ordered Moonstone to call the media, and go ahead with the plan; but both the heroes managed to escape from Moonstone and the Sanitation Unit.
(Captain America I#173 - BTS) - Professor X (Charles Xavier; see comments) revealed to Captain America that the Secret Empire had used advertising or propaganda produced by their agents on Madison Avenue, one of whom was Quentin Harderman, the man who had framed Captain America.
(Captain America I#174) - Harderman watched from backstage while Moonstone was interviewed on a TV talk-show -- after hearing the applause, he thought to himself that the audience was lapping it all up, and the American people seemed to trust Moonstone as their new hero. While his old partner the Viper had merely craved for revenge on Captain America, Harderman believed that he and his Secret Empire allies would soon go far beyond that.
(Captain America I#175 - BTS) - Moonstone was the star of a congressional hearing, which Harderman attended and had overheard Moonstone's testimony.
(Captain America I#175) - When Moonstone stepped out of the door to the hearing, Harderman complimented him on how smoothly it went; he told Moonstone that his position as "public hero #1" was secure, thanks to Harderman's genius at manipulating the truth.
But suddenly, a "flying saucer" aircraft landed on the White House lawn, and Harderman told Moonstone that their Secret Empire allies had arrived. Moonstone was sent out to "attack" their allies so the television audience would still think that he was a hero. But Moonstone feigned defeat and was taken aboard the aircraft. When he came out shortly afterward, Moonstone announced to the American television audience that the Secret Empire was far too strong, and after seeing their weaponry, he felt the only recourse was to surrender the nation to the Secret Empire's subjugation.
But Captain America came to the rescue, and Moonstone said loudly "So -- the renegade vigilante shows up to join his Secret Empire friends." Tired of the lies being told about him, Captain America charged Moonstone at full force, and after a fierce battle, Cap defeated his foe.
Realizing the tide had turned against him, Harderman "changed colors" and approached Captain America, claiming with his false words that he and his Committee had been duped by the real enemy, Moonstone; but feeling betrayed by Harderman, Moonstone revealed the truth to all the cameras present, that Harderman and his Committee were actually a front for the Secret Empire, and it was all a set-up to frame Captain America.
Meanwhile, on a television in prison, Viper watched Moonstone's confession, as his own plans to frame Captain America fell to the ground.
Afterward, Moonstone was sent to prison -- presumably, Quentin Harderman was sentenced to prison as well.
Comments: Created by Steve Englehart, Mike Friedrich, Sal Buscema and F. McLaughlin.
Harderman's name was presumably a parody of President Richard
Nixon's Chief of Staff, H.R.
Haldeman, who previously had a career in the advertising
industry, and appeared on the "smoking gun" Watergate tapes.
--Continental Op
...and I guess the Sanitation Unit would be a parody of the White House Plumbers.
For the sake of brevity on this profile, many details of this
complex story-line not directly involving Quentin Harderman were
omitted -- Professor X was involved because the Secret Empire had
kidnapped several of his original X-Men, along with some of their
mutant foes (including Mastermind
and Unus);
the Secret Empire was siphoning the mental energy of the captive
mutants to power their "flying saucer" aircraft.
--Ron Fredricks
New and additional images plus Sanitation Unit sub-profile by Ron Fredricks.
Profile by The Beetle. Expansion by Ron Fredricks.
CLARIFICATIONS:
Quentin Harderman should not be confused with:
The Sanitation Unit has no known connections to:
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Quentin Harderman's secretary She (name unrevealed) worked for Quentin Harderman's advertising agency as his receptionist and administrative assistant. When Captain America (Steve Rogers) came to the agency and told her that he wanted to speak with her boss, she told him Mr. Harderman was busy; but when Cap brusquely insisted on seeing him, she pointed to Harderman's office. Her fate after Harderman was likely sent to prison remains unrevealed. --Captain America I#169 |
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A squad of anonymous Secret Empire agents, they were only identified by numbers -- although their full membership was not specified, they included Number One, Number Four, Number Seven, Number Eight, Number Twelve, and Number Twenty. They were assigned to assist Quentin Harderman and Moonstone in a plot to discredit Captain America (Steve Rogers). They were armed with "rock-blasters," which fired destructive beams capable of shattering brick and concrete walls; they were also armed with guns that fired knockout gas -- their uniforms and nose filters protected them from the effects of the gas. When Captain America was framed for supposedly murdering the Tumbler and arrested, the Sanitation Unit blasted open the wall of his jail cell. They claimed to be supporters of the hero, and wanted to see him go free; but Cap doubted their true intentions, and told them that he'd remain in jail because he believed that due process would eventually clear him of the crime. When the jail guards showed up, the Sanitation Unit sprayed the area with knockout gas and carried the unconscious Captain America away with them. When Cap later revived in an alleyway, he overheard the Sanitation Unit talking among themselves about how they were actually part of the conspiracy to further discredit him, so he fought his way past them, but he was now an escaped fugitive. Cap was later reunited with the Falcon (Sam Wilson), but they were both defeated and knocked unconscious by Moonstone. The Sanitation Unit was waiting in Manhattan's sprawling Central Park, where Moonstone brought the two unconscious heroes for them to guard while he left to contact the media. But Captain America and the Falcon revived and escaped by the time Moonstone returned -- the angry Moonstone ordered a member of the Unit to hit him on the back of his head, so he'd have "proof" when he told the reporters that Captain America had jumped him from behind and got away. The eventual fate of the Sanitation Unit was unrevealed. --Captain America I#170 (170, 171, 172 |
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images: (without ads)
Captain America I#170, p2, pan1 (Quentin Harderman accuses Captain America of murdering the Tumbler)
Captain America I#169, p10, pan7 (Quentin Harderman)
Captain America I#170, p2, pan4 (Captain America accuses Harderman of framing him for the murder of the Tumbler)
Captain America I#175, p16, pan6 (Quentin Harderman claims he was duped by Moonstone)
Captain America I#169, p10, pan3 (Quentin Harderman's secretary)
Captain America I#171, p1, pan1 (Sanitation Unit blasts hole into Captain America's jail cell)
Captain America I#171, p2, pan2 (two members of Sanitation Unit by Captain America)
Appearances:
Captain America I#163 (July, 1973) - Steve Englehart (writer), Sal
Buscema (pencils), John Verpoorten & Tony Mortellaro (inks), Roy
Thomas (editor)
Captain America I#169 (January, 1974) - Steve Englehart & Mike
Friedrich (writers), Sal Buscema (pencils), Frank McLaughlin (inks), Roy
Thomas (editor)
Captain America I#170 (February, 1974) - Steve Englehart & Mike
Friedrich (writers), Sal Buscema (pencils), Vince Colletta (inks), Roy
Thomas (editor)
Captain America I#171 (March, 1974) - Steve Englehart & Mike
Friedrich (writers), Sal Buscema (pencils), Vince Colletta (inks), Roy
Thomas (editor)
Captain America I#172 (April, 1974) - Steve Englehart & Mike
Friedrich (writers), Sal Buscema (pencils), Vince Colletta (inks), Roy
Thomas (editor)
Captain America I#174 (June, 1974) - Steve Englehart (writer), Sal
Buscema (pencils), Vince Colletta (inks), Roy Thomas (editor)
Captain America I#175 (July, 1974) - Steve Englehart (writer), Sal
Buscema (pencils), Vince Colletta (inks), Roy Thomas (editor)
First posted: 06/04/2003
Last updated: 07/07/2026
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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