CARL MASON

Real Name: Carl Mason

Identity/Class: Human (World War II era to post-World War II era) possibly unwitting magic user? (see comments)

Occupation: Former sailor, carnival knife thrower

Group Membership: None

Affiliations: Carmen Gonzales, Captain Grey, Nell Nelson

Enemies: Louie the Dip

Known Relatives: Carmen Gonzales (wife), Mr. Gonzales (father-in-law)

Aliases: Carl Smith, the Man in Black, the Mighty Mason

Base of Operations: Mobile around the world including USA and South America

First Appearance: Complete Mystery I#3 (December, 1948)

Powers/Abilities: Carl was an accomplished knife thrower and carried a number of knives on his person. He also had a gun. Carl's conscience took on physical form as the Man in Black. The Man in Black could follow Carl wherever he went and the two men could sense each other's presence. The Man in Black could heal injuries by touching afflicted people.

Height: Unrevealed (approximately 5'10")
Weight: Unrevealed (approximately 165 lbs.)
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Black with white streak

History:
(Complete Mystery I#3 (fb)) - Carl Mason was a carnival knife thrower who performed as "the Mighty Mason." During the 1930s, he began to glimpse a Man in Black that was following him to carnivals in the United States. One night in the 1940s, Carl became nervous before his performance, feeling certain the Man in Black was pursuing him again. Nell Nelson, a trapeze artist who was in love with Carl, tried to ask him about why he was upset but Carl claimed he didn't love her and brushed her off.

    As Carl entered the carnival tent with his female assistant, he continued to sense the Man in Black nearby. Finally spying him in the audience, he hurled one of his knives at him but the Man in Black quickly dodged the blade. Afraid, Carl fled the tent as the ringmaster told him he was fired. Fleeing into the tent where Nell was performing, with the Man in Black still in pursuit. Carl threw another knife at the Man in Black but his aim was horribly off. The knife soared up into the rafters and sliced through the rope on the trapeze bar. Nell fell from a great height and Carl used the opportunity to run away. The Man in Black touched Nell and her health made an immediate recovery.

    Carl snuck into a boxcar on a train as he attempted to escape the Man in Black. In the boxcar, he met a hobo and stabbed him with one of his knives so he could switch clothing with him. Exiting the train in New York City, he wandered into a bar and befriended Captain Grey, who was looking for sailors. Giving his name to the captain as "Carl Smith," Carl agreed to join Grey's crew, thinking he could evade the Man in Black by going overseas.

    Before boarding Grey's ship, Mason broke into a pawn shop to steal a gun, thinking he might need one later. Discovering the shop's proprietor was still on the premises, Carl beat him viciously then stole the shop's money and went to meet Captain Grey at the harbor. The Man in Black arrived at the pawn shop after Carl left and helped the injured proprietor.

    Carl boarded Captain Grey's ship, which was bound for South America. Unknown to him, the Man in Black also came aboard. Carl spied on two of the boat's passengers, a man and woman, and learned the woman carried a fortune in jewels in her purse. Covering his face with handkerchief, Carl clubbed the man from behind then stole the woman's purse. As he fled to place aboard the boat where he could examine his stolen goods, Carl was confronted by Louie the Dip, a sailor who had witnessed the robbery. Louie suggested the two of them should become partners in crime but Carl didn't want to share his earnings with anyone. Taking one of his knives, he stabbed Louie to death. Thinking quickly, Carl hid the pouch of jewels on the outside of the ship near a porthole. When Captain Grey and the first mate arrived, he claimed Louie was the thief and had thrown the jewels out the porthole when they fought. Captain Grey and the mate locked up Carl in a cell until a complete investigation could be made by the authorities.

    As Captain Grey's boat neared land, Carl retrieved the jewels and set a fire in his cell then broke free from the cell, knowing his disappearance could be easily affected during the confusion. As he prepared to leap from the burning ship, Carl saw the Man in Black again. Carl slipped and fell from the boat, falling unconscious.

    When Carl awoke, he found himself in South America under the care of a doctor and nurse Carmen Gonzales. The doctor and nurse informed Carl that he was the only survivor of the ship's fire. As Carl recovered under Carmen's care (still referring to himself as "Carl Smith"), he learned Carmen was the daughter of a millionaire plantation owner and she herself had a $500,000 life insurance policy. Carl pretended to be in love with Carmen but secretly started planning her death.

    Once he was released from the hospital, Carl asked Carmen to marry him. She agreed and they were soon wed. He took her on their honeymoon to a cabin atop Cardiff Cliff. As Carmen enthused over their romantic surroundings, Carl used chloroform to knock her unconscious then started a fire in the cabin.

(Complete Mystery I#3) - Fleeing the cabin, Carl was confronted by the Man in Black, who demanded Carl enter the burning cabin and save Carmen's life. Taking out his gun, Carl shot the Man in Black twice but to no effect. The Man in Black demanded Carl look fully upon his face. Carl finally realized the Man in Black was his twin; in fact, the Man in Black was the manifestation of Carl's own conscience. The Man in Black again demanded Carl save Carmen's life. Afraid of the Man in Black, Carl entered the burning cabin and brought Carmen out safely. The Man in Black took Carmen from Carl but Carl's own body had become engulfed in flames. He begged the Man in Black to spare him but the Man in Black refused. The fiery cabin collapsed on Carl, killing him. The Man in Black only regretted that he hadn't caught up to Carl sooner to prevent some of the harm Carl had caused. Now that Carl was dead, the Man in Black - as Carl's conscience - could finally rest. He faded from sight.

Comments: Created by Stan Lee and Carl Burgos.

    Carl's unusual pointed ears seemed to be there just as an artistic shorthand to inform the readers that he was a bad guy.
    ...or given his unusual ability to manifest his conscience in physical form as the Man in Black, perhaps the pointed ears are a sign that Carl was an early mutant? --Proto-Man
    --If anything, I'd say the Man in Black had a supernatural bend to his manifestations. He could be an unwitting magic user. --Prime Eternal

    This profile was completed on 11/21/2025 but its publication was delayed, as it was intended for the Appendix's 25th anniversary celebratory event.

Profile by Prime Eternal.

CLARIFICATIONS:
Carl Mason should not be confused with:

Carmen Gonzales

Carmen Gonzales was a nurse in South America who helped tend Carl Mason after he survived the fire he'd started at sea. Carmen's father was a millionaire that owned 5,000 acres of rubber tree plantations. Her father gave her a $500,000 life insurance policy. When Carl learned of her fortune, he married her then took her to a cabin atop Cardiff Cliff for their honeymoon. Carl knocked out Carmen with chloroform then set the cabin on fire but the Man in Black demanded Carl return inside and bring Carmen out safely. Carl did as the Man in Black demanded, saving Carmen's life.





--Complete Mystery I#3 (#3 (fb), #3,

Captain Grey

Captain Grey was a ship's captain. While in New York City in the 1940s, Captain Grey met Carl Mason in a bar and took an immediate liking to him. In need of sailors, Grey suggested Carl could sail on his ship. Wishing to get out of the United States, Carl agreed and gave his name to Captain Grey as "Carl Smith." After Carl killed Louie the Dip and claimed he had robbed two of the ship's passengers, Captain Grey and his first mate locked up Carl so that a thorough investigation could be made. As the boat neared South America, Carl set a fire aboard the ship, which caused the crew and passengers to evacuate. According to a doctor, Carl was the only person to survive the fire.





--Complete Mystery I#3 (fb)

Louie the Dip

Louie the Dip was a sailor aboard Captain Grey's ship. He witnessed Carl club and rob two of the ship's passengers. Confronting Carl with what he knew, he suggested the two of them should become partners. However, Carl had no interest in partnership and stabbed Louie to death.







--Complete Mystery I#3 (fb)

Nell Nelson

Nell Nelson was the trapeze artist at the same carnival as Carl Mason in the 1940s. She was in love with Carl but he claimed he didn't care about her. When Carl tried to kill the Man in Black with his knife, the blade soared up and sliced through the rope on Nell's trapeze bar. Nell fell to the floor of the tent but the Man in Black restored her health simply by touching her. Nell saw the Man in Black's face and immediately recognized him as Carl's twin.





--Complete Mystery I#3 (fb)

images: (without ads)
Complete Mystery I#3, page 12, panel 3 (Carl, main)
Complete Mystery I#3, page 3, panel 2 (Carl, face)
Complete Mystery I#3, page 24, panel 6 (Man in Black)
Complete Mystery I#3, page 20, panel 3 (Carmen)
Complete Mystery I#3, page 10, panel 1 (Grey)
Complete Mystery I#3, page 15, panel 3 (Louie)
Complete Mystery I#3, page 3, panel 5 (Nell)

Appearances:
Complete Mystery I#3 (December, 1948) - Stan Lee (writer, editor), Carl Burgos (artist)

First posted: 09/16/2026
Last updated: 11/21/2025

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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