GRETL ANDERS

Real Name: Gretl Anders

Identity/Class: Human;
    citizen of the United States of America

Occupation: Unemployed

Group Membership: None

Affiliations: Tony Stark

Enemies: None

Known Relatives: Timothy Anders (son)

Aliases: "'Lousy drunk" (nickname used by gravedigger Sammy)

Base of Operations: New York City, New York

First Appearance: Iron Man I#178 (January, 1984)

Powers/Abilities: Gretl possessed no known superhuman abilities. Due to her addiction, her tolerance for alcohol was well above baseline human levels.

Height: Unrevealed; 5'7" (by approximation)
Weight: Unrevealed; 120 lbs. (by approximation)
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Strawberry blonde

History:
(Iron Man I#178 (fb) - BTS) - Under unrevealed circumstances the woman known as Gretl Anders developed an addiction to alcohol that caused her to spin out of control until she wound up homeless on the streets of New York.

(Iron Man I#179 (fb) - BTS) - Gretl received welfare checks which she used to support her addiction.

(Iron Man I#178 -  BTS) - Gretl met fellow drinker Ozzie J. Sanborn and invited him to the nearest bar for a few drinks.

(Iron Man I#178) - On the way there, Ozzie spotted the now homeless Tony Stark whom he had met in the hospital. Ozzie introduced Gretl to Stark who wondered if the name "Tony" was short for "Anthony." Ever friendly, Gretl wanted him to join them. When Tony refused, Gretl watched Ozzie go off on Stark for dissing them.

(Iron Man I#179 - BTS) - Gretl and Tony had further encounters and eventually wound up sharing a room in a Bowery flophouse. 

(Iron Man I#179 (fb) - BTS) - After cashing her latest welfare check, Gretl went down to the clinic where she learned she was pregnant.

(Iron Man I#179) - Gretl told Tony she was pregnant, calling it a "hoot" while she got drunk to celebrate.

(Iron Man I#179 - BTS) - Concerned for Gretl's well-being, Tony wanted to make sure she received top level medical care. He tried to access some of his personal fortune to set that up, but learned that Obadiah Stane had had all his assets frozen pending investigation.

(Iron Man I#179) - Gretl wasn't bothered when Tony told her he'd failed to get the money. After all, she still had four bucks left and that was enough to pay for their room and some more wine. Sharing a bed together, Gretl wondered if "Tones," as she called Stark, loved her the way he loved all those beautiful women he'd told her about. Drunk but tender, Tony hugged Gretl and assured her he did.

(Iron Man I#180 (fb) - BTS) - Months passed, and Gretl's due date swiftlyapproached. Her bond with Stark strengthened, but she grew quietly frustrated with his failure to deliver on his promises to make life better for her.

(Iron Man I#180) - In late December, the weather in New York grew ever colder. Tony promised to set Gretl up in one of the many houses and apartments he owned in the city. He took Gretl to five different buildings, but much to Stark's dismay that Stane had made sure he had lost them too. Depressed, Tony asked Gretl for wine only for her to explode with anger. Sick of his broken promises, she ran off and disappeared into the busy holiday crowd.

(Iron Man I#180 - BTS) - Desperate to find Gretl, Tony spent most of the day looking for her. People at the local soup kitchen hadn't seen her in days, and they were worried for her safety with a severe blizzard about to hit New York city.

(Iron Man I#181) - Gretl was in Joe's Bar having a drink when she got cramps. The bartender wondered if it meant the baby was coming, but Gretl assured him "the brat ain't due for a week yet" before asking for another drink. As she enjoyed her wine, she told the bartender how Tony said he loved her, but that she know knew he didn't mean it.

(Iron Man I#181 - BTS) - Growing concern over the coming blizzard drove Tony from the safety of the soup kitchen back to the streets where it had already started to snow. He passed by Joe's Bar without knowing how close he was to finding Gretl.

(Iron Man I#182) - Gretl was caught in the heart of the blizzard when her contractions began. As fate would have it, she ran into Tony who was so down about his life he had bought a final bottle of booze and planned to let the elements take him. Seeing Gretl made him think otherwise. Unable to get to a hospital, he took her to a nearby doorway to stay out of the wind. Stark offered the mother to have some alcohol, but she didn't want her child to be born drunk or end up like her. Huddling together for warmth, Tony assisted Gretl during the hours-long delivery. Exhausted, Gretl held her son in her arms and asked Tony to take care of him because it was the only kid she would ever have.
    Moments later, she perished.

(Iron Man I#182 - BTS) - Tony kept the newborn warm and safe, sitting to Gretl's dead body for the rest of the night. When the storm cleared, they were found by rescue workers and rushed to the hospital.

(Iron Man I#182) - Gretl's remains were buried by the city on a Hart Island pottersfield used for the homeless. One of her gravediggers called Gretl "just another stiff" and "a lousy drunk." 

(Iron Man I#500.3 (fb) - BTS) - Recounting his ongoing struggles with addiction at an AA meeting, Tony Stark talked about how Gretl's death proved to be a turning point for him.

Comments: Created by Denny O'Neil, Luke McDonnell, and Steve Mitchell.

    Gretl debuted during Assistant Editor's Month, though her story is anything but funny or light hearted.

    In her first appearance, Gretl wore bell bottoms and a cut off jeans jacket with a peace symbol, indicating she'd never really left the Summer of Love, not unlike the much lamented old hippie Ira 'Sunshine' Gross.

"In the morning... Tony Stark will be sober. Or dead." There's a lot you can say about the way the late Denny O'Neil wrote Stark's long descent into the bottle, but it definitely was heavy handed to the point of hilarity. There's nothing glamorous or noble about addiction, but O'Neil wrote Tony, Gretl and the other drunks in his life as one note PSA's with the subtlety of a sledgehammer. 

This profile was completed 4/06/2021, but its publication was delayed as it was intended for the Appendix 20^th anniversary 's celebratory event.

Profile by Norvo

CLARIFICATIONS:
Gretl Anders has no known connections to

• Joshua 'Richie' Anders @ Cage I#5
• Any other "Gretl" or "Anders" characters (except her son!)
  

images: (without ads)
Iron Man I#181, p5, pans2&3 (main image)
Iron Man I#178 p9, pan4&5 (first meeting with Tony)
Iron Man I#179, p3, pans2-3-4 (reveals she's pregnant)
Iron Man I#182 p10, pans5&6 (gives birth)
Iron Man I#500-1 p12, pan6 (remembered by Tony)

Appearances:
Iron Man I#178 (January, 1984) - Dennis O'Neil (writer), Luke McDonnell (pencils), Steve Mitchell (inks), Mike Carlin (editor)
Iron Man I#179 (February, 1984) - Dennis O'Neil (writer), Luke McDonnell (pencils), Steve Mitchell (inks), Mike Carlin (editor)
Iron Man I#180 (March, 1984) - Dennis O'Neil (writer), Luke McDonnell (pencils), Steve Mitchell (inks), Mike Carlin (editor)
Iron Man I#181 (April, 1984) - Dennis O'Neil (writer), Luke McDonnell (pencils), Steve Mitchell (inks), Mike Carlin (editor)
Iron Man I#182 (May, 1984) - Dennis O'Neil (writer), Luke McDonnell (pencils), Steve Mitchell (inks), Mike Carlin (editor)
Iron Man I#500.3 (April 2011) - Matt Fraction (writer), Salvador Larroca (pencils & inks), Alejandro Arbona (editor)

First Posted: 09/20/2021
Last Updated: 09/19/2021

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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