MARLEY

Real Name: Unrevealed (last name is possibly Marley)

Identity/Class: Human

Occupation: Madman;
    former intelligence operative

Group Membership: C.I.A. (see comments)

Affiliations: None

Enemies: Luke Cage, NYPD, Claire Temple, Timmy

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: Impersonated Santa Claus

Base of Operations: Harlem, Manhattan, New York, USA

First Appearance: Hero for Hire I#7 (March, 1973)

Powers/Abilities: Marley is an excellent hand-to-hand combatant and marksman. He had access to a variety of weapons, including an oak cane (when dressed for the 19th century), an automatic rifle (when dressed for the present) and a laser pistol plus a wrist-mounted laser weapon (when dressed for the future). When dressed as Santa Claus, he used a bell as a club. His greatest weapon was his atomic bomb, which he controlled using his EMIAD 230 Computer. Marley was also a master of disguise who adopted a variety of costumes, dialects and make-up.

Height: Unrevealed (approximately 6'0")
Weight: Unrevealed (approximately 180 lbs.)
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Brown

History:
(Hero for Hire I#7 (fb)) - The man known only as "Marley" had been a wartime intelligence operative. When the war ended, security around his Army base grew lax and he took the opportunity to steal an atomic bomb. Dismantling it into its components, he wrapped up the parts of the bomb into innocent-looking parcels then simply walked out of the base. "Marley" believed the world had learned nothing from the war and that mankind would only grow less and less civilized. To that end, he resolved that he would destroy mankind before it could destroy itself. In time, "Marley" reassembled the bomb in Manhattan and placed it under the control of an EMIAD 230 Computer. Before activating the bomb on Christmas Eve, "Marley" decided to perform a series of tests to see if, as he theorized, mankind was deserving of its destruction.

(Hero for Hire I#7) - Disguising himself as a man from the 19th century wearing a top hat and brandishing an oak cane, he resolved to find a child and start beating him in public because in the 19th century, if a man were seeing beating a child, a crowd would have formed to stop him. "Marley" theorized that no one would care if he were seen beating a child. Finding a boy named Timmy who was selling newspapers in Harlem, "Marley" began to assault Timmy, striking him with his cane. The local hero for hire Luke Cage witnessed the attack and when "Marley" insisted he had the right to beat Timmy, Cage slapped him in the face. "Marley" could tell Cage was strong but declared that he was "a member of her Majesty's Fifth Northumberland Fusiliers" and struck Cage with the cane using all the force he could muster. Much to his surprise, Cage wasn't even hurt by the attack and Cage smashed the cane into pieces. Calling him a worm, Cage punched "Marley" in the stomach. "Marley" yielded to Cage and explained that he beat Timmy because the boy had asked for 15 cents for a newspaper when in his mind, a newspaper cost only 2 cents. When Cage asked who he was, he claimed to be Marley, "a dealer in chains." Claiming he had an appointment with his partner who was "very stingy with his time," Marley departed into the streets while Cage took Timmy to his friend Dr. Noah Burstein for care. As he left, Marley was impressed to see someone had been willing to help a person in trouble.

    Marley became fascinated with Luke Cage. Since, as a man from the 19th century, he had been armed with nothing more than a cane, he wondered if Cage would be as willing to face a man armed with a gun. Marley dressed himself as a contemporary soldier, pretending to be a veteran that had lost both of his legs and took up a spot on the street as a beggar. When Cage and his girlfriend Claire Temple saw him begging on the corner, Cage paused to put some money in his cup. Behaving like a traumatized soldier, Marley acted paranoid as though he thought he were surrounded by enemies. When Cage tried to console him and say the war was over for him, Marley drew out an automatic rifle and called Cage a deserter whose actions were punishable by death then opened fire on him. Cage stood in front of Claire to defend her as the gun's bullets bounced off his skin. Marley was surprised to see Cage was bulletproof and claimed it was further evidence that he was "the enemy." Cage took away his rifle then tore it apart with his hands. Cage felt sorry for Marley, thinking he was a genuine veteran who was a victim of forces beyond his control. He told Marley he was lucky he'd shot at someone whose skin was bulletproof because if he'd killed someone, he would have been sorry. As Cage and Claire walked on their way, Marley lit a cigarette, once again fascinated at how Cage had reacted. He decided to continue testing Cage's character.




    Marley was surprised that Cage neither ran nor sought revenge on him but showed compassion. He decided to test Cage a third time and see what Cage would be like when he was tired. He decided his next challenge should be one both bizarre and dangerous, thinking Cage would be certain to surrender to fear or hate. Donning a red wig and putting on a strange orange, green and purple costume, he took up a laser pistol and ambushed Cage and Claire again in the street. Holding his gun on them, he ordered them to enter an alley so that he could perform a "security check," demanding they show him their identification cards and authorization to be on the street. When Cage asked if he was playing at 1984, Marley replied that it was, in fact, Christmas 1984 and all citizens had to carry authorization. He threatened to fire his laser weapon at Cage unless he complied. Cage wasn't certain if his skin could resist the weapon but he sprang at Marley, knocking the gun from his hand. Marley had another laser weapon concealed on his left wrist and fired it at Cage but Cage dodged the blast. By this time, Cage had recognized him as the same man he'd stopped from beating Timmy and concluded that he was also the pretend veteran. Marley denied this, even as his speech patterns shifted into the dialects of the 19th century man and the veteran. As his blows did nothing to stop Cage, Marley finally tried to run away and fled into an abandoned building but Cage caught up to him and knocked him out.


    The police were called by a concerned witness and Cage delivered the unconscious Marley to them. The police put Marley in their car and started to drive to their precinct but Marley revived and clubbed both officers, knocking them out. Marley escaped the police car and disguised himself as a street corner Santa Claus, pretending to be collecting charitable donations for the poor. When Luke Cage followed his footprints from the police car, he asked the Santa Claus if he'd seen someone come by. Pretending he couldn't hear Cage clearly, "Santa" asked Cage to lean in closer. Once he leaned in close, Marley struck Cage over the head with his bell.

    Now garbed as an executioner, Marley chained up Luke Cage and brought him to his apartment, where he'd set up the EMIAD 230 Computer. When Cage awoke, Marley explained the tests of character he'd performed against Cage that evening. When Cage compared his actions to those of the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future from A Christmas Carol, Marley was somewhat taken aback, unaware he'd been following the book's plot. Marley showed the EMIAD 230 Computer to Cage and explained that he was about to activate the trigger and destroy Manhattan, which he was certain would cause World War III to erupt. Cage observed that he'd passed the tests Marley had posed to him and suggested that should prove mankind was worthy of preservation but Marley retorted that Cage was unusual while the rest of humanity were self-centered. Marley believed Cage should know the truth before the bomb went off. Just before he could press the trigger, Marley heard a noise from someone trying to come down his chimney. Cage used the distraction to break his chains, grab Marley and knock him out. Cage tore apart the EMIAD 230 Computer so that the bomb wouldn't detonate. The person in Marley's chimney proved to be a thief who had come to rob the apartment.

Comments: Created by Steve Englehart, George Tuska and Billy Graham.

    Marley's origin was set in 1946 at the end of World War II and he claimed to have been in the O.S.S. Due to the sliding timeline, it would have to be the end of some other war and he would have been in the C.I.A. instead. He also posed as a Vietnam War veteran, which is also a sliding timeline reference (no doubt he would have posed as a Sin-Cong War veteran in current continuity).

    EMIAD 230 was named after ENIAC, the first digital computer.

    The only time he gave a name was during his time as the man from the 19th century, where he introduced himself to Cage as "Marley." That name is an obvious reference to Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, yet when Cage noted Marley had adopted the roles of the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future from that book, Marley said he hadn't realized that; perhaps his name really is Marley and he was similarly blind to the reference?

    While posing as the man from the future, Marley identified himself as being from 1984. Although that was in the future in 1973, it's a reference to George Orwell's science fiction novel, Nineteen Eighty-Four, in which the year itself was arbitrary and not necessarily the year in which the story was set. Therefore, Marley claiming to be from 1984 isn't a topical reference.

Profile by Prime Eternal.

CLARIFICATIONS:
Marley should not be confused with:

EMIAD 230 Computer

The EMIAD 230 Computer was used by Marley to control the atomic bomb he'd rebuilt. Its functions were keyed to a trigger that Marley carried upon his person. Cage tore the computer apart to prevent the bomb from detonating.





--Hero for Hire I#7

images: (without ads)
Hero for Hire I#7, page 17, panel 1 (Marley as executioner, main)
Hero for Hire I#7, page 2, panel 2 (Marley, dressed from the past)
Hero for Hire I#7, page 7, panel 1 (Marley, dressed as a present-day veteran)
Hero for Hire I#7, page 10, panel 1 (Marley, dressed as a future resident)
Hero for Hire I#7, page 16, panel 5 (Marley as Santa Claus)
Hero for Hire I#7, page 18, panel 2 (EMIAD 230)

Appearances:
Hero for Hire I#7 (March, 1973) - Steve Englehart (writer), George Tuska (penciler), Billy Graham (inker), Roy Thomas (editor)

First posted: 12/25/2025
Last updated: 12/25/2025

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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