Captain America Vol 1 255

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Captain America #254	Captain America #256

Art by: Frank Miller, Joe Rubinstein and Rick Parker

Original Price

$0.50

Pages

32

In fact, I'm told the metal in the shield has some incredible properties. If only the metallurgical accident which produced it could be duplicated.

—Franklin Delano Roosevelt

Appearing in "The Living Legend"

Featured Characters:

⏴ Captain America (Steve Rogers) ⏵

(Appears in flashback)

Supporting Characters:

United States Government
- ⏴ President Roosevelt ⏵
  (Main story and recap)
Sarah Rogers (First appearance; dies) (Only in flashback)
United States Army (Only in flashback)
- Operation: Rebirth (Only in flashback)
  - General Phillips (Only in flashback)
  - Agent R (Only in flashback)
  - Dr. Anderson (Only in flashback)
  - "Professor Reinstein" / Dr. Abraham Erskine (Death)
    (Only in flashback)
  - ⏴ Under-Secretary Simms ⏵
    
    (Only in flashback)
- Colonel Henson
  (First appearance)
  
  (Only in flashback)

Antagonists:

Nazis (Only in flashback)
- Gestapo (Only in flashback)
  - "Special Agent Clemson" / Heinz Kruger (Death)
    (Only in flashback)
- Fifth Column
  (Only in flashback)
  - Herr Kleinschmidt (First appearance)
    
    (Only in flashback)
  - Several unnamed Fifth Columnists
    (Only in flashback)

Other Characters:

United States Congress (Referenced)
United States Department of the Army
- G-2
  - An unnamed courier
    (First appearance)
The Washington Post (Mentioned)
Joseph Rogers (Referenced)

(Deceased)
H.G. Wells (Mentioned)

(Only in flashback)
God (Yahweh) (Mentioned)

(Only in recap)
F.B.I. (Only in flashback)
- Agent McCloskey
  (Only in flashback)
- O'Brien
  (Behind the scenes)
  
  (Only in flashback)
- Two unnamed agents
  (Only in flashback)
⏴ Walter Jameson ⏵

(Only in flashback)
United States Army
(Only in recap)
- Sgt. Mike Duffy (Only in recap)
Invaders (Only in recap)
- Bucky (James Barnes) (Only in recap)
- Human Torch (Jim Hammond) (Only in recap)
- Sub-Mariner (Namor McKenzie) (Only in recap)
- Spitfire (Jacqueline Falsworth) (Only in recap)
- Union Jack (Brian Falsworth) (Only in recap)
Winston Churchill (Referenced)
Nazis
- Red Skull (Johann Schmidt) (Only in recap)
- Baron Blood (John Falsworth) (Only in recap)
- Adolf Hitler (Only in recap)
- Baron Zemo (Heinrich Zemo) (Only in recap)
- Master Man (Wilhelm Lohmer) (Only in recap)
- Warrior Woman (Julia Koenig) (Only in recap)
Avengers (Only in recap)
- Iron Man (Tony Stark) (Only in recap)
- Thor Odinson (Only in recap)
- Giant-Man (Hank Pym) (Only in recap)
- Wasp (Janet Van Dyne) (Only in recap)

Races and Species:

Humans (Main story and flashback)
Androids (Only in recap)
Atlantean-Human Hybrids (Only in recap)
Asgardians (Only in recap)

Locations:

Earth (Main story and flashback)
- North America (Main story and flashback)
  - United States of America (Main story and flashback)
    - Washington, D.C. (Main story and flashback)
      - White House (Main story and recap)
      - Operation Rebirth Curios Shop Facility (Only in flashback)
    - New York (Only in flashback)
      - New York City (Only in flashback)
        
        Manhattan (Only in flashback)
        
        Lower East Side (Only in flashback)
        
        U.S. Army Recruiting Center
        (Only in flashback)
        
        A Nazi Warehouse
        (First appearance)
        
        (Only in flashback)
        
        Midtown
        (Only in recap)
        
        United Nations Headquarters (Only in recap)
        
        Madison Square Garden (Mentioned)
        
        Brooklyn
        
        Brooklyn Heights
        
        569 Leaman Place
    - Maryland (Only in flashback)
    - Nevada (Only in flashback)
      - Boulder Dam (Only in flashback)
    - Virginia (Only in recap)
      - Camp Lehigh (Only in recap)
      - Pentagon (Referenced)
        
        (Only in recap)
- Europe (Only on screen as a static image or video record)
  
  (Only in flashback)
  - Germany (Only on screen as a static image or video record)
    
    (Only in flashback)
  - Poland (Mentioned)
    
    (Only in flashback)
  - Great Britain (Mentioned)
    
    (Only in flashback)
- Atlantic Ocean (Only in recap)

Items:

Super-Soldier Serum (Only in flashback)
Vita Rays (Only in recap)
Vita-Ray Chamber (Only in recap)
Captain America's Uniform
and
Shields (Main story and flashback)
Iron Man Armor Model 2 (Only in recap)
Giant-Man's Suit (Only in recap)
Wasp's Suit
and
Bio-Synthetic Wings (Only in recap)

Vehicles:

Captain America's Motorcycle (Only in flashback)

Events:

World War II
(Only in flashback)

Synopsis for "The Living Legend"

This is a 40th Anniversary special edition. It details the origin of Captain America and focuses on his early adventures in 1941-42.

Notes

Continuity Notes

This 40th Anniversary issue retells Captain America's origin story, trying to reconcile the several different accounts from Captain America Comics #1, Tales of Suspense #63, Captain America #109, Captain America #176, Giant-Size Invaders #1 and Captain America #215.
- Pag. 1 is an homage to Captain America Comics #1's cover, with Captain America punching Adolf Hitler.
- Steve Rogers is first given a full origin, with details from his life before being subjected to the Super-Soldier Serum.
- Steve Rogers' recruitment into Operation Rebirth by General Phillips was originally shown in Captain America #109.
- Steve's meeting with Operation Rebirth's Agent R and Dr. Abraham Erskine, originally shown in Captain America #109, has been expanded and re-interpreted in this issue, originating some minor inconsistences between the two accounts, like Steve meeting Erskine (or Professor Reinstein, as he was called in Captain America #109) at the U.S. Army recruiting center (Captain America #109) or inside the Operation Rebirth facility (this issue's account).
- General Phillips and President Roosevelt's meeting at White House was originally shown in Tales of Suspense #63 and Giant-Size Invaders #1.
- In this issue's account, when Phillips, Under-Secretary Simms and Dr. Anderson arrived at Operation Rebirth's facility, Nazi spy Heinz Kruger was already inside the complex, disguised as Special Agent Clemson. In Tales of Suspense #63, Kruger was first shown when he shot Dr. Erskine, immediately killing him, without specifying when he had arrived at the facility. Captain America #109 provided several other particulars, showing exactly how he killed Erskine and what exactly he said before being killed by Captain America. How Kruger obtained his disguise as Agent Clemson has been later explained in Marvels Project #4.
- This issue's account tries to reconcile the several ways by which Steve Rogers had received the Super-Soldier Serum. In Captain America Comics #1 he was subjected to an injection, while in Tales of Suspense #63 (as well as Giant-Size Invaders #1 and Captain America #215 which are recaps of TOS Vol 1 63), Steve assumed an oral form of the formula; in Captain America #109 have been introduced the Vita Rays, invisible rays which enhanced Steve's strength, while in Captain America #176 he both received the serum injection as well as being bombarded by the Vita Rays. In this issue's definitive account, Steve has first being injected the serum, then assumed the oral compound, finally being bombarded by the Vita Rays.
- Heinz Kruger originally shot Dr. Erskine breaking the observatory cabin's glass in Captain America Comics #1, later discredited in favor for a more Comics Code-acceptable version shown in Tales of Suspense #63, where he entered the experiment room using a door, later killing Erskine. In Captain America #109, Captain America #176 and Captain America #215, Kruger is shown as a member of the small group who was watching the experiment's execution, breaking the room's glass again. This account has been confirmed by this issue's definitive retelling.