Bee-Man is a fictional

supervillain A supervillain, supervillainess or supercriminal is a major antagonist and variant of the villainous stock character who possesses Superpower (ability), superpowers. The character type is sometimes found in comic books and is often the primary ...

turned

superhero A superhero or superheroine is a fictional character who typically possesses ''superpowers'' or abilities beyond those of ordinary people, is frequently costumed concealing their identity, and fits the role of the hero, typically using their ...

comic books A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...

published by

Harvey Comics Harvey Comics (also known as Harvey World Famous Comics, Harvey Publications, Harvey Comics Entertainment, Harvey Hits, Harvey Illustrated Humor, and Harvey Picture Magazines) was an American comic book publisher, founded in New York City by Alf ...

, who briefly appeared during the

Silver Age of Comic Books The Silver Age of Comic Books was a period of artistic advancement and widespread commercial success in mainstream American comic books, predominantly those featuring the superhero archetype. Following the Golden Age of Comic Books, the Silver A ...

. He was created by artist/writer/editor

Joe Simon Joseph Henry Simon (born Hymie Simon; October 11, 1913 – December 14, 2011) was an American comic book writer, artist, editor, and publisher. Simon created or co-created many important characters in the 1930s–1940s Golden Age of Comic Books ...

, writer

Otto Binder Otto Oscar Binder (; August 26, 1911 – October 13, 1974) was an American author of science fiction and non-fiction books and stories, and comic books. He is best known as the co-creator of Supergirl and for his many scripts for '' Captain Ma ...

, and artist

Bill Draut Bill Draut (August 14, 1921–March 3, 1993) was an American comic book artist best known for his work at Harvey Comics and DC Comics from the 1940s to the 1970s. Biography Bill Draut began his career as an artist in the 1940s by drawing the " ...

Publication history

Bee-Man appeared during a mid-1960s

fad that accompanied the rising popularity of

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is a New York City–based comic book publishing, publisher, a property of the Walt Disney Company since December 31, 2009, and a subsidiary of Disney Publishing Worldwide since March 2023. Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin G ...

and the success of the

campy Camp is an aesthetic and sensibility that regards something as appealing or amusing because of its heightened level of artifice, affectation and exaggeration, especially when there is also a playful or ironic element. ''Camp'' is historically ...

television series A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, and cable, or distributed digitally on streaming plat ...

Batman Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...

''. When

, which specialized in such children's characters as Richie Rich, Little Dot and

Casper the Friendly Ghost Casper the Friendly Ghost is a fictional character who serves as the protagonist of the Famous Studios theatrical animated cartoon series of the same name. He is a translucent ghost who is pleasant and personable, but often criticized by his thr ...

, entered the superhero field in 1966, it hired veteran comic-book artist, writer and editor

to create the

imprint Imprint or imprinting may refer to: Entertainment * ''Imprint'' (TV series), Canadian television series * "Imprint" (''Masters of Horror''), episode of TV show ''Masters of Horror'' * ''Imprint'' (film), a 2007 independent drama/thriller film ...

Harvey Thriller Harvey Thriller was a comic book imprint used by Harvey Comics for their brief foray into publishing super heroes and other non-'kiddie' comics in the mid-1960s. Overseen by Joe Simon, all the titles featured work by many well-known creators, incl ...

. This line included the titles ''Double-Dare Adventures'', ''Thrill-O-Rama'' and ''Unearthly Spectaculars'' and such superheroes and supervillains as Bee-Man,

Spyman Spyman is a fictional character, a short-lived comic book superhero published by Harvey Comics' Harvey Thriller imprint in the mid-1960s. He starred in three issues of his own comic, cover-dated September 1966 to February 1967. ''Spyman'' #1 cont ...

, Jigsaw, Magicmaster, Glowing Gladiator, Tiger Boy, and Jack Q Frost. Bee-Man, by

and writer

and artist

,Bee-Man
at

Don Markstein's Toonopedia Don Markstein's Toonopedia (subtitled A Vast Repository of Toonological Knowledge) is an online encyclopedia of print cartoons, comic strips and animation, initiated February 13, 2001. Donald D. Markstein, the sole writer and editor of Toonopedi ...

Archived
from the original on March 13, 2012. debuted as the cover feature of ''Double-Dare Adventures'' #1 (Dec. 1966).''Double-Dare Adventures''
at the

Grand Comics Database The Grand Comics Database (GCD) is an Internet-based project to build a database of comic book information through user contributions. The GCD project catalogues information on creator credits, story details, reprints, and other information use ...

His sole stories were the seven-page "The Origin of Bee-Man" in issue #1 and the 12-page "The Revolt of the Queen Bee", illustrated by

Dick Ayers Richard Bache Ayers (; April 28, 1924 – May 4, 2014) was an American comic book artist and cartoonist best known for his work as one of Jack Kirby's inkers during the late-1950s and 1960s period known as the Silver Age of Comics, including on s ...

, in issue #2 (March 1967), on which he was also the cover feature. Shortly afterward, the Harvey Thriller imprint ended. Despite his truncated career, the character - who in the origin story itself is referred to not as Bee-Man but as the Bee and in the second issue as B-Man - developed a small cult following amid fans of obscure 1960s

Silver Age The Ages of Man are the historical stages of human existence according to Greek mythology and its subsequent interpretatio romana, Roman interpretation. Both Hesiod and Ovid offered accounts of the successive ages of humanity, which tend to pr ...

superheroes.

Fictional character biography

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...

technician Barry E. Eames, feeling unappreciated because he was not picked to be an

astronaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a List of human spaceflight programs, human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member of a spa ...

, sabotaged a space probe returning from

Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun. It is also known as the "Red Planet", because of its orange-red appearance. Mars is a desert-like rocky planet with a tenuous carbon dioxide () atmosphere. At the average surface level the atmosph ...

, hoping to capitalize on whatever valuable commodity it might contain. After reprogramming it to land in an isolated desert ravine, he looked inside and found it contained a large

meteorite A meteorite is a rock (geology), rock that originated in outer space and has fallen to the surface of a planet or Natural satellite, moon. When the original object enters the atmosphere, various factors such as friction, pressure, and chemical ...

, which suddenly split open and released an angry swarm of giant alien

bees Bees are winged insects closely related to wasps and ants, known for their roles in pollination and, in the case of the best-known bee species, the western honey bee, for producing honey. Bees are a monophyletic lineage within the superfamil ...

. Stung over a thousand times, Eames was discovered days later wandering through the desert in a state of

delirium Delirium (formerly acute confusional state, an ambiguous term that is now discouraged) is a specific state of acute confusion attributable to the direct physiological consequence of a medical condition, effects of a psychoactive substance, or ...

and was taken to a hospital. The doctors who examined him discovered that the alien

venom Venom or zootoxin is a type of toxin produced by an animal that is actively delivered through a wound by means of a bite, sting, or similar action. The toxin is delivered through a specially evolved ''venom apparatus'', such as fangs or a sti ...

had changed his body chemistry completely, causing his heart to beat three times faster than normal and giving him superhuman strength and intelligence and the ability to heal rapidly. Escaping while still in a daze, Eames answered a strange mental summons and returned to the meteorite, where he was teleported to the Martian moon

Deimos Deimos, a Greek word for ''dread'', may refer to: In general * Deimos (deity), one of the sons of Ares and Aphrodite in Greek mythology * Deimos (moon), the smaller and outermost of Mars' two natural satellites Fictional characters * Deimos (comi ...

. There, he met antenna-headed humanoid aliens known as the "Bee People", who explained that the NASA probe had accidentally intercepted a shipment of their Martian mutant Worker Bees, which did all the physical labor in their satellite kingdom. The huge honeybees had merely reacted instinctively when they discovered the probe had been sent to the wrong destination, and their stings had given Eames strange apian powers like their own. The aliens told Eames that they themselves had no interest in Earth, claiming that humans would not understand them with their vastly superior intellect. However, they secretly plotted to conquer Earth, as they felt insects should rule the universe and enslave all other lifeforms. Feeling like a freak on Earth and appreciated on Deimos, Eames quickly adapted to the seemingly benevolent Bee People's way of life and became one of them, receiving a purple and gold suit of winged, jet-propelled body armor that allowed him to fly at

supersonic speed Supersonic speed is the speed of an object that exceeds the speed of sound (Mach number, Mach 1). For objects traveling in dry air of a temperature of 20 °C (68 °F) at sea level, this speed is approximately . Speeds greater tha ...

and a helmet that fired powerful sonic "buzz-blasts" from its metal antennas. He was also given bee bombs,

pollen Pollen is a powdery substance produced by most types of flowers of seed plants for the purpose of sexual reproduction. It consists of pollen grains (highly reduced Gametophyte#Heterospory, microgametophytes), which produce male gametes (sperm ...

grenades A grenade is a small explosive weapon typically thrown by hand (also called hand grenade), but can also refer to a shell (explosive projectile) shot from the muzzle of a rifle (as a rifle grenade) or a grenade launcher. A modern hand grenade g ...

, fast-drying liquid

beeswax Bee hive wax complex Beeswax (also known as cera alba) is a natural wax produced by honey bees of the genus ''Apis''. The wax is formed into scales by eight wax-producing glands in the abdominal segments of worker bees, which discard it in o ...

spray, and other bee-themed weapons. Deciding to both feed his greed and get revenge on the world that he felt had rejected him, Eames returned to Earth and went on a spectacular and seemingly unstoppable crime spree, stealing

gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

for his "honey pot" and creating his secret mountaintop "

Bee Hive A beehive is an enclosed structure which houses honey bees, subgenus '' Apis.'' Honey bees live in the beehive, raising their young and producing honey as part of their seasonal cycle. Though the word ''beehive'' is used to describe the nest of ...

" hideout to store it in. However, summoned back to Deimos by the Bee People's eternally young and beautiful Queen Bea, he discovered that they had captured

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

agent Roy Dunn and planned to use their bee venom to create another Bee-Man. This second one would be completely under their mental control, and Eames finally clued into their sinister scheme to enslave humans and turn them into their new Worker Bees. Horrified by the idea, Eames realized that while he might be a thief, he was not a traitor. He helped Dunn escape, and Dunn talked him into using his powers for good rather than his own selfish ends. After Eames returned everything he stole as a sign of good faith, government scientists helped cure him of the psychological condition that caused him to turn against humanity, but he needed to regularly consume special concentrated

honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several species of bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of pl ...

capsules in order to maintain his newly acquired mental stability, lest he return to his evil ways. After intensive training, Eames became a government agent and went to work for a newly created division of the FBI called the "F-Bee-I" ("Federal Bee Investigations") which had been set up to deal with the threat from space."The Revolt of the Queen Bee", ''Double-Dare Adventures'' #2 (March 1967)

Publication history

Fictional character biography

References

Further reading