Martha Connors is a fictional character appearing in

American comic book An American comic book is a thin periodical literature originating in the United States, commonly between 24 and 64 pages, containing comics. While the form originated in 1933, American comic books first gained popularity after the 1938 publ ...

s published by

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 ...

. She is usually depicted as a supporting character of

Spider-Man Spider-Man is a superhero in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, he first appearance, first appeared in the anthology comic book ''Amazing Fantasy'' #15 (August 1962) in ...

, and the wife of Dr. Curt Connors, also known as the Lizard. Much of her character's story revolves around her constant suffering, yet perseverance through her husband's constant transformations. Martha was later injected with Curt's Lizard Formula to cure her of a deadly virus, which also mutated her into an anthropomorphic lizard.

Publication history

The character was created by

Stan Lee Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber ; December 28, 1922 – November 12, 2018) was an American comic book author, writer, editor, publisher, and producer. He rose through the ranks of a family-run business called Timely Comics which later bec ...

and

Steve Ditko Stephen John Ditko. Page contains two reproductions from school yearbooks. A 1943 Garfield Junior High School yearbook excerpt lists "Stephen Ditko". A 1945 Johnstown High School yearbook excerpt lists "Stephen J. Ditko" under extracurricular ac ...

and first appeared in ''

The Amazing Spider-Man ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' is an ongoing American superhero American comic book, comic book series featuring the Marvel Comics superhero Spider-Man as its title character and main protagonist. Being in the Earth 616, mainstream continuity of t ...

'' #6 (November 1963).

Fictional character biography

Martha Connors is the wife of Curt Connors and the mother of

Billy Connors William Joseph Connors (November 2, 1941 – June 18, 2018) was an American player, coach and front office official in professional baseball. A pitcher born in Schenectady, New York, he threw and batted right-handed, stood tall and weighed i ...

. Despite Martha warning him about the potential consequences, Curt tests his lizard formula on himself and transforms into a lizard monster before Spider-Man cures him. In subsequent appearances, Martha is menaced by the Lizard and other villains before dying from cancer. Years later,

Ben Reilly Benjamin "Ben" Reilly (), also known as the Scarlet Spider, is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Grown in a lab by Jackal (Marvel Comics character), Miles Warren/Jackal, he is a Human cloning, clone of Spi ...

resurrects her and Billy in '' Dead No More: The Clone Conspiracy''. The two are later infected with the

Carrion Carrion (), also known as a carcass, is the decaying flesh of dead animals. Overview Carrion is an important food source for large carnivores and omnivores in most ecosystems. Examples of carrion-eaters (or scavengers) include crows, vultures ...

virus and turned into Lizards to save their lives. However, they remain on good terms with Spider-Man and

Mary Jane Watson Mary Jane "MJ" Watson is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, making her first appearance in ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #25 (June 1965), and subsequent ...

. Martha and Billy were later brought into the Sewer Enclave by

Miles Morales Spider-Man (Miles Gonzalo MoralesAhmed, Saladin (w), Garrón, Javier (a). ''Miles Morales: Spider-Man'' #1 (2018) Marvel Comics (New York). ) is a superhero and the third predominant Spider-Man to appear in American comic books published by M ...

' clone Shift.

Other versions

Newspaper Strips

In the Spider-Man newspaper strips, Martha is renamed Lydia Connors.

Ultimate Marvel

In the

Ultimate Marvel Ultimate Marvel, later known as Ultimate Comics, was an imprint of comic books published by Marvel Comics, featuring reimagined and modernized versions of the company's superhero characters from the Ultimate Marvel Universe, later known as the ...

Universe (Earth-1610), Martha is renamed Doris Connors and had long since divorced her husband due to his experiments. She receives a letter from her husband explaining his actions.

In other media

Television

* Martha Connors, referred to as "Mrs. Conner", appears in ''

'' (1967), voiced by

Peg Dixon Margaret Elizabeth Dixon (23 August 1923 – 26 October 2015), credited as Peg Dixon, was a Canadian actress. She was best known for her voice acting in ''Spider-Man''. She was married to Ed McNamara. She was also in an episode with Rob Paulse ...

. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information. * Martha Connors, renamed Margaret Connors, appears in '' Spider-Man: The Animated Series'', voiced by

Giselle Loren Giselle Loren is an American actress most known for her voice-over work in animation and video games. She voiced Adélie Chica in ''Happy Feet'', Stargirl in ''Justice League Unlimited'', and Martha Connors in '' Spider-Man: The Animated Series' ...

. * Martha Connors appears in ''

The Spectacular Spider-Man ''The Spectacular Spider-Man'' is a comic book and magazine series starring Spider-Man and published by Marvel Comics. Following the success of Spider-Man's original series, ''The Amazing Spider-Man'', Marvel felt the character could support ...

'', voiced by

Kath Soucie Kath Soucie (, ). is an American voice actress, known for voicing Phil, Lil and their mother Betty DeVille in '' Rugrats'', Lola Bunny in the ''Looney Tunes'' franchise, Fifi La Fume and Li'l Sneezer in ''Tiny Toon Adventures'', Maddie Fent ...

. This version is a

geneticist A geneticist is a biologist or physician who studies genetics, the science of genes, heredity, and variation of organisms. A geneticist can be employed as a scientist or a lecturer. Geneticists may perform general research on genetic process ...

who works with Curt Connors at

Empire State University Empire State University (SUNY Empire) is a public university headquartered in Saratoga Springs, New York. It is part of the State University of New York (SUNY) system. Empire State University is a multi-site institution offering associate, bac ...

(ESU) until they are forced out by Miles Warren.

Film

Martha Connors was meant to appear in ''

'', portrayed by

Annie Parisse Anne Marie Cancelmi (born July 31, 1975), known professionally as Annie Parisse, is an American actress. She portrayed Alexandra Borgia on the drama series ''Law & Order''. Parisse has also starred as Julia Snyder on the soap opera ''As the Wo ...

, before her scenes were cut from the final film.

Video games

Martha Connors makes a non-speaking cameo appearance in ''

Spider-Man 2 ''Spider-Man 2'' is a 2004 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character of Spider-Man. Directed by Sam Raimi and written by Alvin Sargent from a story conceived by Michael Chabon and the writing team of Alfred Gough and Miles ...

'' via a photograph.

References

External links

Martha Connors
at Marvel Wiki {{DEFAULTSORT:Connors, Martha, character Anthropomorphic lizards Characters created by Stan Lee Characters created by Steve Ditko Comics characters introduced in 1963 Fictional characters from Florida Fictional human–animal hybrids Fictional reptilians Marvel Comics animals Marvel Comics female characters Marvel Comics characters who can move at superhuman speeds Marvel Comics characters with accelerated healing Marvel Comics characters with superhuman durability or invulnerability Marvel Comics characters with superhuman strength Marvel Comics hybrids Marvel Comics mutates Spider-Man characters