THE ORDER OF THE HOOD

Membership: The Hood, unidentified others

Purpose: To promote terror and obtain cash

Affiliations: None

Enemies: Black Marvel (Dan Lyons)

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: A mountain base outside Los Angeles, California, USA

First Appearance: All-Winners Comics I#1 (Summer, 1941)

History: (All-Winners Comics I#1/2) - The Hood assembled the Order of the Hood at their mountain base and informed his men they would make themselves feared throughout the United States. Their first action would be to rob the 5th National Bank of Los Angeles. Boarding an armored truck, members of the Order drove to Los Angeles and plowed their truck through the front window of the bank. Emerging from the truck with guns drawn, the Order of the Hood ordered the bank staff to empty their vault. The bank guard drew his gun on them, but one of the Order shot him dead. Before long, the Order of the Hood had filled their truck with money from the vault.

    As they began to leave the bank, two police cars approached them. Starting up the armored truck, they drove directly at one of the police cars, wrecking the vehicle while their own remained intact. The truck sped away with the second police car in pursuit, but the Order opened up the back doors of the truck and fired a projectile weapon at the police car which destroyed it. The Order returned safely to their base with the money. In the month that followed, the Order of the Hood committed additional robberies in Los Angeles, each time evading the police in their armored truck. At least two more bank personnel were killed in their robberies.

    When the Star Reserve Bank was moving a shipment of gold, the Order of the Hood arrived to steal it. To their surprise, they found the bank defended by the costumed hero the Black Marvel, who threw a knife at their truck's tire, flattening it. The Order of the Hood emerged from the truck with guns drawn to fight the bank guards and the Black Marvel, but they were very quickly defeated. All the members of the Order of the Hood who were present were arrested.

    Outraged by the Black Marvel's interference, the Hood ordered his men to put him out of the way. To that end, members of the Order broke into the offices of the Daily Globe newspaper and had them print a false notice claiming there would be $50,000 in jewels on display at Jiffeny's. The Black Marvel responded to the ad, staking out Jiffeny's in expectation the Order would rob the store. One of the Order threw a billy club at him, stunning him, then dragged him into a roadster and drove him to their mountain base.

    The Black Marvel was led before the Hood, who took him to an underground chamber where they had a death-ray machine. The Hood planned to kill the Black Marvel while broadcasting his execution over television "so that the Americans may see their greatest defender die at the hands of the Hood!!" Once the Black Marvel was dead, the Hood intended to continue his crimes until the US government agreed not to prosecute the Order and instead pay them $1 million per year.

    As the Hood began the broadcast of the Black Marvel's intended death, the Black Marvel held the ropes binding him up into the path of the death-ray, freeing him from the bonds. The Black Marvel attacked the Order and easily defeated the gang and then pursued the Hood himself.

    The Hood fled from his base and climbed to the top of the mountain. Seeing the Black Marvel behind him, he hurled a boulder at him, but the hero dodged it. Next, he used a mirror to reflect sunlight into the Black Marvel's eyes to make him lose his footing, but the Black Marvel recovered and then began a fistfight atop the mountain. Their struggle caused an avalanche beneath their feet. The Black Marvel leaped to safety while the Hood was apparently crushed to death by rocks.

Comments: Created by Stan Lee, Al Avison and Al Gabriele.

    The Black Marvel doesn't normally carry a knife but it certainly came in handy.

    Okay, so Black Marvel's hands were tied while he was under the death-ray...but other than that, what was restraining him? I mean, why did he have to free his hands before he could walk out from under the death-ray? That is, how did that death-trap work without his willing cooperation?

    The Hood said he wanted the Americans to see their greatest defender die at his hands, but I didn't see Captain America anywhere in this story.

    Actually, this Hood is about as clever as Parker Robbins. "I have a master plan: you fellas go hit the good guys really hard then get arrested. I am smart." Heck, Robbins pretty much did get the US government to pay him off per "Dark Reign!"

    This profile was completed 05/06/2022, but its publication was delayed as it was intended for the Appendix 25th anniversary 's celebratory event.

Profile by Prime Eternal.

CLARIFICATIONS:
The Order of the Hood should not be confused with:


death-ray machine

    The death-ray machine was an instrument housed in the underground portion of the Order of the Hood's mountain stronghold. 

     The device initially emitted raybeams which were colored yellow, but when the color of the ray shifted to red, the beams became fatal to human life.

    The Black Marvel was subjected to the Death-Ray Machine after being captured by the Order of the Hood. The Hood intended to broadcast his death over television, but the Black Marvel held the ropes binding him up into the path of the beam, setting him free. 

    The Black Marvel appeared to wreck the machine as he fought his way out of the Order of the Hood's base.




--All-Winners Comics I#1/2

The Hood

    Appropriately, the leader of the Order of the Hood was named "The Hood." The Hood remained in his organization's mountain stronghold directing his subordinates in their criminal enterprises.

    The Hood successfully guided the Order through their string of robberies in Los Angeles until the Black Marvel halted their attempt to rob gold from the Star Reserve Bank, leading to the capture of several members of the Order. The Hood demanded that his men stop the Black Marvel. They soon captured him and brought him to the Hood.

    The Hood attempted to kill the Black Marvel with his Death-Ray Machine while broadcasting it over television, but the Black Marvel escaped the trap and engaged the Hood in battle on the side of the mountain. The Hood attempted to kill him with a boulder and disorient him by flashing sunlight into his eyes with a mirror, but the Black Marvel overcame him and as they fought until an avalanche erupted under their feet. The Black Marvel leaped to safety, but the Hood was apparently crushed to death by the rocks.

    The Hood's personal arsenal included a pocket mirror.



--All-Winners Comics I#1/2

images: (without ads)
All-Winners Comics I#1/2, page 3, panel 3 (main)
All-Winners Comics I#1/2, page 1, panel 2 (around a table)
 All-Winners Comics I#1/2, page 8, panel 3 (death-ray)
All-Winners Comics I#1/2, page 6, panel 5 (Hood)

Appearances:
All-Winners Comics I#1/2 (Summer, 1941) - Stan Lee (writer, editor), Al Avison (penciler), Al Gabriele (inker)

First posted: 09/05/2026
Last updated: 09/10/2022

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

Non-Marvel Copyright info
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