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Ratman IReal name: Marvin K. JacobsOccupation: Formerly millionaire industrialist, now vagrant Legal status: Citizen of the United States, officially deceased Identity: Secret Place of birth: Steel City, Michigan Marital status: Married, but officially deceased; his wife is legally considered a widow Known relatives: Delphi Danner Jacobs (widow) Group affiliation: Sometime member of the Miracle Men Base of operations: Steel City, Michigan First appearance: TALES FROM THE SEWERS #27 Origin: TALES FROM THE SEWERS #33, #47 History: Marvin Jacobs was an industrialist tycoon in his native Steel City, Michigan. In the early years of World War II of the European Theatre, Jacobs pledged much of his financial and industrial might behind Britain and France, assisting them in multiple ways through his assets. Because of this, he became a primary target for Nazi spies in the United States, who felt that eliminating him would weaken European opposition to Germany. Motivated by this, Nazi agents began a campaign of sabotage against Jacobs' factories in the United States. When only a few of his factories remained, Jacobs chose to make a stand against the saboteurs there. Confronting the Nazis, the industrialist was defeated and left tied up for dead, as bombs destroyed his factory around him. Jacobs was officially thought perished in the conflagration, but instead, the destruction had caved in the floor underneath him, causing him to fall into the sewers beneath Steel City. Due to a hit on his head, he spent several months amnesiac in the sewers, befriending other vagrants who lived there for warmth. After some time, Jacobs discovered a mysterious medallion in the sewers, which led him to a secretive society of Rat People living in a distant part of the sewers. The Rat People cured Jacobs of his amnesia, re-igniting his fire for life and his desire to avenge himself upon the Nazi saboteurs. With the supernatural medallion which granted him amazing powers, but made him unable to speak, he emerged from the sewers with a mission: to find and defeat the Nazis that had destroyed his factories. Waging a campaign against the Nazis, he defeated them on several occasions, enough for the Nazis to decide to eliminate this interloper, whom they did not recognize as the thought-dead Jacobs. One night the Nazis had two simultaneous missions - the destruction of Jacobs' last factory, and a kill mission in the sewers where the vagrants lived. With the one remaining factory, Jacobs might have been able to rebuild and return to his former financial glory. At the same time, if the Nazis in the sewers found the vagrants he had befriended, and killed them, he would never forgive himself. He had a choice to make between his factory and the vagrants, his old life and the new. Jacobs chose to pursue the Nazis in the sewers, stopping them just as they were about to exterminate the "subhuman" vagrants. However, at the same time, his last factory was destroyed aboveground, sealing his fate as forever destitute and part of the vagrants he had just saved. As he emerged from the sewers, he swore to find and bring to justice the Nazi ringleader with his famous quote, "The Ratzis are about to learn...that a man without a fortune...is a man without fear!" Indeed Jacobs, under his assumed guise of Ratman, ultimately put an end to the Nazi spies in Steel City, but that would never bring back his fortune. With a burning hatred for all things criminal, Ratman became the protector of Steel City, choosing to utilize his supernatural talents for combatting injustice wherever it occurred. Over time he battled several super-criminals such as Doctor Mann, the Sewer Slasher and Umbooto, the Rat Exile. He also obtained a companion in Ratgirl, one of the Rat People who was able to assume human-like shape. Despite Ratgirl's affection for him, Ratman never felt as though they could become romantically involved because the two of them were from different species, and he was already married (though he hadn't revealed to his wife that he remained alive). After the United States joined World War II, Ratman sometimes joined other superheroes as the Miracle Men to combat Nazi threats in several theatres of war. His final fate is unknown. Height: 5'11" Weight: 170 lbs. Eyes: Gray Hair: Black Skin: Caucasian Strength level: When not wearing his supernatural Rat Medallion, Marvin Jacobs possesses the normal human strength of a man of his age, height, and build who engages in intensive regular exercise. When he dons the medallion, he receives superhuman strength enabling him to lift (press) approximately 3 tons. Known superhuman powers: When wearing the Rat Medallion, Ratman has heightened strength, speed and agility that surpass athletes of Olympic caliber. His stamina is enhanced to an amazing degree, making him extremely resistant to toxic poisons, radiations and conventional physical damage, enabling him to remain on his feet through damage that would down ten men. He does not recover from damage faster than normal men, however. A chest wound would still take weeks, even months to heal, even though he can engage in strenuous activity for most of this time. Ratman is also able to track and identify individuals by scent when wearing the medallion. Abilities: Marvin Jacobs is a brilliant economist and a fair engineer. Limitations: When wearing the Rat Medallion, Ratman is mute. File last modified at Mon, 11 Sep 2006 22:15:54 -0600 | Click to enlarge
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