THE FIGHTING YANK

Real Name: Bill Prince

Identity/Class: Human (World War II Era to Modern Era)

Occupation: Retired soldier

Group Membership: Crazy S.U.E.S. (Blue Diamond, Bucky/James Buchanan Barnes, Sgt. Byrd, Captain America/Steve Rogers, Captain Flame, Davey Drew and the Demon, Father Time/Larry Scott, Robert "Flash" Foster, Don Gorman, Doug "Jap Buster" Johnson, Albert "Slow-Motion" Jones, Merzah the Mystic, Moon-Man, Captain Bob Strong, Jim "Taxi" Taylor, Young Avenger)

Affiliations: Blue Diamond, Bucky (James Buchanan Barnes), Sgt. Byrd, Captain America (Steve Rogers), Captain Daring (Lee Bradford), Captain Flame, Davey Drew and the Demon, Father Time (Larry Scott), Robert "Flash" Foster, Golden Girl (Betty Ross), Human Top (David Mitchell), Doug "Jap Buster" Johnson, Albert "Slow-Motion" Jones, Leopard Girl, Merzah the Mystic, Miss Patriot (Mary Morgenstern), Moon-Man, Captain Bob Strong, Sun Girl (Mary Mitchell), Jim "Taxi" Taylor, the Thunderer (Jerry Carstairs), Young Avenger

Enemies: Ah Kee, the Imperial Japanese Army

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: Valhalla Villas, Miami, Florida, USA; formerly mobile in the Pacific Theater; China

First Appearance: Captain America Comics I#17 (August, 1942)

Powers/Abilities: In his prime, the Fighting Yank was a terrific hand-to-hand fighter.

Height: Unrevealed (approximately 6')
Weight: Unrevealed (approximately 180 lbs.)
Eyes: Brown
Hair: Black

History:

(Captain America Comics I#17/4) - Bill Prince was a U.S. soldier who served in China during World War II, helping to drive convoy trucks carrying supplies to Chinese forces battling the Japanese army. When Bill was assigned a convoy run with Ah Kee as his interpreter, he was unaware Ah Kee was a spy working for the Japanese who let the Japanese know in advance the route of their convoy.

    After the convoy set out, they were soon ambushed by Japanese forces and forced to stop. The Japanese engaged in a firefight with the crew of the convoy trucks while Bill snuck around and punched out a Japanese soldier who was operating a heavy machine gun. Turning the gun at the other Japanese, Bill drove them off.

    Ah Kee went to sabotage the engine in Bill's truck but when Bill caught him, he claimed he was fixing it. Bill quickly realized Ah Kee had been sabotaging it but Ah Kee hit him with a wrench then dumped him over a cliff. Landing in the branches of a tree, Bill revived and climbed back up the cliff. Discovering another forces of Japanese soldiers had arrived he once again captured one of their machine guns and turned it against them. Bill turned on Ah Kee next, but Ah Kee killed himself rather than be caught; after his death, Bill realized wasn't Chinese at all, but had always been Japanese.

    Bill brought the convoy through with the supplies for the Chinese Army.

(All-Winners Squad: Band of Heroes I#2) - Later, the Fighting Yank was one of the first men to be assigned to the U.S. military's Crazy S.U.E.S., a squadron that combined costumed heroes with normal fighting men.

(Ant-Man: Last Days I#1) - Late in life, the Fighting Yank retired to Valhalla Villas, the retirement home in Miami, Florida run by Mary Morgenstern, the former Miss Patriot. Sensing the end of the world at hand, Mary used a magical Asgardian artifact to temporarily restore youth to all of the people at Valhalla Villas so they could enjoy one last day of adventures. The Fighting Yank saved a child from a burning building.

Comments: Created by an unidentified writer and unidentified artist.

    The best-known Golden Age hero called the Fighting Yank was published by Pines (also known as Better or Standard) and was created by Richard Hughes and Jon Blummer in Startling Comics I#10 (September, 1941). In the Marvel Universe, this Fighting Yank was a fictional character and appeared in Avengers I#92 in Rick Jones' memories of comic book heroes he'd read about. Pines' Fighting Yank is now a public domain character and has appeared mostly in Dynamite Entertainment's Project Superpowers comics.

    In U.S.Agent I#3, the name "Fighting Yank" appears in Domino's list of patriotic heroes -- but that doesn't fit Bill, who never wore a patriotic costume.

    This profile was completed on 03/06/2026 but its publication was delayed, as it was intended for the Appendix's 25th anniversary celebratory event.

Profile by Prime Eternal.

CLARIFICATIONS:
The Fighting Yank should not be confused with:

images: (without ads)
Captain America Comics I#17/4, page 1 (main)
Captain America Comics I#17/4, page 3, panel 1 (face)

Appearances:
Captain America Comics I#17/4 (August, 1942) - unidentified writer, unidentified artist, Stan Lee (editor)
All-Winners Squad: Band of Heroes I#2 (September, 2011) - Paul Jenkins (writer), Carmine Di Giandomenico (artist), Bill Rosemann (editor)
Ant-Man: Last Days I#1 (October, 2015) - Nick Spencer (writer), Ramon Rosanas (artist), Wil Moss (editor)

First posted: 09/20/2026
Last updated: 03/06/2026

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

Non-Marvel Copyright info
All other characters mentioned or pictured are ™ and © 1941-2099 Marvel Characters, Inc. All Rights Reserved. If you like this stuff, you should check out the real thing!
Please visit The Marvel Official Site at: http://www.marvel.com

Special Thanks to http://www.g-mart.com/ for hosting the Appendix, Master List, etc.!

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