CHARLIE FEATHER

Real Name: Charlie Feather (see comments)

Identity/Class: Normal human (Native American, Old West era)

Occupation: Unrevealed

Group Membership: None

Affiliations: Unidentified cowboy

Enemies: Grizzly Pete

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: The Man Who Refused To Die

Base of Operations: Southern Texas

First Appearance: Kid Colt, Outlaw#9/6 (May 1950)

Powers/Abilities: Charlie Feather was a strong-willed individual, capable to forcing his body to keep going until he had completed his mission even after being multiple times in the chest. He was at least semi-skilled with knives.

 

 Height: 5'10" (by estimation)
Weight: 175 lbs. (by estimation)
Eyes: Unrevealed
Hair: Black

 

History:
(Kid Colt, Outlaw#9/6 (fb) - BTS) - Charlie Feather was a Native American who lived in a small Texas town. Quiet and dignified, for a number of years he calmly and stoically put up with being pushed around, made fun of and being the butt of various indignities inflicted on him by some of the town's more bigoted residents.

(Kid Colt, Outlaw#9/6) - Charlie was minding his own business smoking a pipe on the walkway outside the saloon when town ne'er-do-well Grizzly Pete came up and decided to taunt him. As Pete derisively asked Charlie why he wasn't out collecting scalps, Charlie did his best to ignore the jackass, but then Pete got physical, violently kicking Charlie over claiming the "low-down redskin" was blocking his path into the saloon. This proved to be the last straw for the previously restrained Charlie. Picking himself up once Pete had gone into the bar, Charlie angrily pulled out his knife and declared he would kill the "foul-mouthed paleface." A nearby cowboy tried to stop him, concerned Grizzly would kill Charlie and urging the Native to go home and forget the incident. However Charlie was too incensed, seeing the insult as a slur against his entire people and determined to avenge it.

   He stormed into the saloon and demanded Grizzly apologize or he would be killed. Pete laughed this off disparagingly, then declared he had never liked "redskins" anyway and pulled his pistol, telling the other patrons that they had witnessed Charlie's threat, so shooting the man would be self-defense. Ignoring another patron pointing out that the gunless Charlie had no chance, so it would be murder, Pete shot Charlie in the chest, then, as his victim fell to the floor, calmly turned back to the bar telling the shocked witnesses that drinks were on him. However, to everyone's shock, Charlie pulled himself back up of the ground, shaking and bleeding but declaring that only Grizzly's death would wipe out the insult to his people. Surprised, Grizzly declared that Charlie didn't know when to give in, and shot him twice more. Seeing Charlie continued to stagger towards him, Pete began to panic, declaring Charlie wasn't human. Emptying his entire gun into the slowly advancing Charlie, Pete called out for him to fall down, then with no bullets left and Charlie mere feet away, Pete cried out in terror, insisting that Charlie was dead. A determined Charlie responded that he couldn't die until the insult to his people was wiped out by Pete's demise, and as he finally reached his opponent Charlie thanked the Great Spirit for letting him live long enough to complete his task. As Pete screamed in denial, Charlie killed him with a single swipe of his knife, then collapsed atop his former tormentor, finally succumbing to his wounds.

   He was buried in a quiet churchyard with a tombstone that declared him "The Man Who Refused To Die."

 Comments: Created by Gene Colan.

   Charlie was a Native American based in an unidentified Texas town. Given he was buried "north of the Rio Grande," I'm assuming Southern Texas, though technically since the Rio Grande is pretty well at the bottom of Texas, that description could cover anywhere in the State. However, you don't say someone lives "north of Los Angeles" if you mean they live in Alaska; so I'm guessing Charlie lived somewhere only slightly north of the Rio Grande. His exact tribal background isn't divulged, and his clothing gives no real clues, being pretty much the generic look Native characters tended to be given in all media back in the 1950s.

  Charlie's three page story was reprinted in Western Thrillers#1 in November 1954, which is where the pictures on this page came from.

    This profile was completed 9/02/2021, but its publication was delayed as it was intended for the Appendix 20th anniversary 's celebratory event.

Profile by Loki.

CLARIFICATIONS:
Charlie Feather has no known connections to:

Unidentified concerned cowboy

  

When Charlie declared his intention to kill Grizzly Pete, a nearby cowboy tried to hold him back and reason with him, pointing out that the mean Grizzly would likely kill Charlie.

  

--Kid Colt, Outlaw#9/6

 

images: (without ads)
Western Thrillers#1, p1, pan1 (main image)
Western Thrillers#1, p2, pan2 (headshot)
Western Thrillers#1, p3, pan2 (being shot)
Western Thrillers#1, p3, pan6-8 (killing Pete, Charlie's death, Charlie's gravestone)
Western Thrillers#1, p2, pan1 (unidentified cowboy trying to restrain Charlie)

Appearances:
Kid Colt, Outlaw#9/6 (May 1950) - Gene Colan (pencils), Stan Lee (editor), other credits unknown

First Posted: 09/10/2021
Last updated: 09/07/2021

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 www.g-mart.com for hosting the Appendix, Master List, etc.!

Back to Characters