Lizard
The Lizard, real name Dr. Curtis Connors, is an American surgeon, herpetologist, and former villain living in Florida. He is the husband of Martha and father of Billy Connors.
Biography
Origin
A young Curtis Connors served as a surgeon in the Korean War, and lost his right arm to an infection.[1] After the war, Connors became a herpetologist, particularly studying the ability of lizards to regrow limbs. He developed a serum that successfully replicated this phenomenon in small animals, and hastefully took it himself. The serum did regrow his arm in mere moments, but also transformed him into a humanoid, bipedal reptile. Connors stormed out of his home in terror; he returned the following day to try to develop an antidote, but his mind had been too damaged by the transformation. He took refuge in the swamps nearby, behaving aggressively and territorially to any who approached him. As a result of his transformation, Connors also gained superior strength and agility. Press across the United States gave this bizarre creature the moniker of the Lizard.[2]
Fighting Spider-Man
In late 1963, Lizard was accosted by the hero from New York City, Spider-Man. After attempting to fight him like any other villain, Spider-Man learned from Martha Connors of the Lizard's true identity. As Lizard's once-brilliant mind continued to shift into that of an aggressive reptile, he declared to Spider-Man his intention to use his serum on the native reptiles to form an unstoppable army of monsters. He stormed off, and Spider-Man tracked him down, fighting him and a group of alligators. Spider-Man had brought a serum of his own, an antidote that he had developed in Connors' lab. He poured it down Lizard's throat, transforming him back to his human self, missing arm and all. Dr. Connors returned home to see his wife and son, and burned his notes, vowing to never tamper with nature again.[2]
New York
By late 1965, Connors had moved to New York and continued his work there. He was visited one day by an anxious Spider-Man, who said that he had a "friend" who was suffering from radioactive deterioration of her blood. Connors knew of a substance called Iso-36, recently developed on the west coast, that could help. He ordered a batch to be delivered via jet that day, which Spider-Man paid for. The shipment was hijacked upon landing by the Master Planner's gang. Spider-Man retrieved the serum with much duress, and returned it to Connors' lab for testing. Connors phoned ahead to the hospital to allow Spider-Man to deliver the serum and have them administer it to his friend—in fact, his aunt May Parker. The treatment was a complete success, and May soon recovered.[3][4]
See also
References
- ↑ The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #6. (June 1983) Shooter, Jim (ed).
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 The Amazing Spider-Man #6: "Face-to-Face with the Lizard!" (November 1963) Lee, Stan (w), Ditko, Steve (art), Simek, Artie (let).
- ↑ The Amazing Spider-Man #32: "Man on a Rampage!" (January 1966) Lee, Stan (w), Ditko, Steve (art), Simek, Artie (let).
- ↑ The Amazing Spider-Man #33: "The Final Chapter!" (February 1966) Lee, Stan (w), Ditko, Steve (art), Simek, Artie (let).