The Psycho-Pirate is the name of two

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 ...

s 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

DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...

. Bob Frazer portrayed the character for his

live action Live action is a form of cinematography or videography that uses photography instead of animation. Some works combine live action with animation to create a live-action animated feature film. Live action is used to define film, video games o ...

debut during

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's 2018

Arrowverse The Arrowverse is an American Superhero fiction, superhero media franchise and shared universe that is centered on various interconnected television series based on DC Comics superhero characters, primarily airing on The CW as well as web series ...

crossover "

Elseworlds Elseworlds is the publication imprint (trade name), imprint for American comic books produced by DC Comics for stories that take place outside the DC Universe Canon (fictional), canon. Elseworlds publications are set in alternate realities that ...

". Additionally,

Armin Shimerman Armin Shimerman (born November 5, 1949) is an American actor known for his role as Quark (Star Trek), Quark the Ferengi in the ''Star Trek'' franchise, appearing as the character in all seven seasons of ''Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'' (1993–199 ...

and Geoffrey Arend have voiced Psycho-Pirate in animation.

Publication history

The Charles Halstead incarnation of Psycho-Pirate first appeared in ''

All-Star Comics ''All Star Comics'' is an American comic book series from All-American Publications, one of three companies that merged with National Periodical Publications to form the modern-day DC Comics. While the series' cover-logo trademark reads ''All St ...

'' #23 (December 1944), and was created by

Gardner Fox Gardner Francis Cooper Fox (May 20, 1911 – December 24, 1986) was an American writer known best for creating numerous comic book characters for DC Comics. He is estimated to have written more than 4,000 comics stories, including 1,500 for DC ...

and Joe Gallagher. The Roger Hayden incarnation of Psycho-Pirate first appeared in '' Showcase'' #56 (June 1965), and was created by Gardner Fox and

Murphy Anderson Murphy C. Anderson Jr. (July 9, 1926 – October 22, 2015) was an American comics artist, known as one of the premier inkers of his era, who worked for companies such as DC Comics for over fifty years, starting in the Golden Age of Comic Books in ...

Fictional character biography

Charles Halstead

Charles Halstead is a linotyper for the ''Daily Courier'' who is jealous of his boss's success and becomes the criminal mastermind Psycho-Pirate. He plans crimes based on emotions, hoping to ruin his boss. Halstead later shoots the

Atom Atoms are the basic particles of the chemical elements. An atom consists of a atomic nucleus, nucleus of protons and generally neutrons, surrounded by an electromagnetically bound swarm of electrons. The chemical elements are distinguished fr ...

, who works with the

Justice Society In its broadest sense, justice is the idea that individuals should be treated fairly. According to the ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', the most plausible candidate for a core definition comes from the ''Institutes'' of Justinian, a ...

to expose him. He is sentenced to a lengthy prison term and eventually dies in the 1960s.

Roger Hayden

Roger Hayden is a gangster and cellmate to Halstead on

Earth-Two Earth-Two (also Earth 2) is a setting for stories (a "fictional universe") appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. First appearing in ''The Flash'' #123 (1961), Earth-Two was created to explain differences between the original ...

who obtains the Medusa Mask, which enables him to manipulate emotions.'' Showcase'' #56 (June 1965)

Ultra-Humanite Ultra-Humanite (Gerard Shugel) is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He first appeared as a recurring adversary of Superman, and was among the first villains faced by him. He was designed to be the polar oppos ...

later recruits him into the

Secret Society of Super Villains Secret Society of Super Villains (SSoSV) is a DC Comics title that debuted in May–June 1976. The series presented a group of DC's supervillains, mostly foes of the Justice League, Justice League of America. The series was cancelled with issue #1 ...

before the group is imprisoned in

Limbo The unofficial term Limbo (, or , referring to the edge of Hell) is the afterlife condition in medieval Catholic theology, of those who die in original sin without being assigned to the Hell of the Damned. However, it has become the gene ...

. In ''

Crisis on Infinite Earths ''Crisis on Infinite Earths'' is a 1985 to 1986 American comic book fictional crossover, crossover series published by DC Comics. Written by Marv Wolfman and penciller, pencilled by George Pérez, it was first released as a 12-issue limited ser ...

'', Psycho-Pirate is kidnapped by the

Anti-Monitor The Anti-Monitor is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He served as the main antagonist of the 1985 DC Comics miniseries ''Crisis on Infinite Earths'' and later appears as an enemy to the Green Lantern Corps ...

and becomes his accomplice. After the

multiverse The multiverse is the hypothetical set of all universes. Together, these universes are presumed to comprise everything that exists: the entirety of space, time, matter, energy, information, and the physical laws and constants that describ ...

is destroyed, Psycho-Pirate is among the only beings who remember it. During the ''

Infinite Crisis "Infinite Crisis" is a 2005–2006 comic book storyline published by DC Comics, consisting of an eponymous, seven-issue comic book limited series written by Geoff Johns and illustrated by Phil Jimenez, George Pérez, Ivan Reis, and Jerry Ordway, ...

'' event, Psycho-Pirate is killed by

Black Adam Black Adam (Teth-Adam) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He was created by Otto Binder and C. C. Beck, and first appeared in the debut issue of Fawcett Comics' '' The Marvel Family'' comic book ...

. In ''

Blackest Night "Blackest Night" is a 2009–10 American comic book Fictional crossover, crossover storyline published by DC Comics, consisting of an eponymous central miniseries, written by Geoff Johns and penciled by Ivan Reis, along with a number of tie-in i ...

'', Psycho-Pirate is resurrected as a

Black Lantern The Black Lantern Corps is a fictional organization of wikt:corporeal, corporeal revenants (resembling intelligent zombies or jiangshi) appearing in comic books published by DC Comics, related to the emotional spectrum. The group is composed of d ...

before

Superboy Superboy is an identity used by several fictional superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. These characters have been featured in several eponymous comic series, in addition to ''Adventure Comics'' and other series ...

kills him.''Blackest Night: Superman'' #3 (December 2009) Psycho-Pirate is resurrected following ''

The New 52 The New 52 was the 2011 revamp and relaunch by DC Comics of its entire Line (comics), line of ongoing monthly superhero American comic books, comic books. Following the conclusion of the "Flashpoint (comics), Flashpoint" Fictional crossover, cros ...

'' continuity reboot and depicted as having gained his psychic abilities from a virus created by Brainiac.

Powers and abilities

The Charles Halstead incarnation of Psycho-Pirate has no superhuman powers; however, he is a brilliant

criminal In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definiti ...

mind knowledgeable in psychology and emotions. The Roger Hayden incarnation of Psycho-Pirate can manipulate, drain, and amplify the emotions of others using the Medusa Mask. Furthermore, he can fly and create psychic constructs and illusions.

Other versions

* An alternate universe variant of Charles Halstead / Psycho-Pirate from the '' Flashpoint'' timeline appears in ''

Flashpoint Beyond ''Flashpoint Beyond'' is an American comic book published by DC Comics. The seven-issue limited series—written by Geoff Johns, Jeremy Adams and Tim Sheridan and illustrated by Eduardo Risso, Xermánico and Mikel Janín—began its monthly pub ...

'', where he is killed by the Joker. * An alternate universe variant of Charles Halstead / Psycho-Pirate appears in '' JSA: The Golden Age'' as a member of the

Injustice Society The Injustice Society (a.k.a. the Injustice Society of the World) is a group of supervillains in the . They are the main antagonists of the Justice Society of America. The Injustice Society first appears in '' All Star Comics'' #37 (October 1947 ...

In other media

Television

* The Roger Hayden incarnation of Psycho-Pirate makes non-speaking cameo appearances in ''

Justice League Unlimited ''Justice League Unlimited'' (''JLU'') is an American superhero animated series that was produced by Warner Bros. Animation with DC Comics in season 3 and aired on Cartoon Network. Featuring a wide array of superheroes from the DC Universe, and ...

'' as a member of

Gorilla Grodd Gorilla Grodd is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by John Broome and Carmine Infantino, the character first appeared in ''The Flash'' #106 (May 1959). He is an evil, super-intelligent gorilla who ...

Secret Society A secret society is an organization about which the activities, events, inner functioning, or membership are concealed. The society may or may not attempt to conceal its existence. The term usually excludes covert groups, such as intelligence ag ...

. * The Roger Hayden incarnation of Psycho-Pirate appears in '' Batman: The Brave and the Bold'', voiced by

. 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. * The Roger Hayden incarnation of Psycho-Pirate appears in the

crossover "

", portrayed by Bob Frazer. * The Psycho-Pirate appears in the seventh season of ''

The Flash The Flash is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Harry Lampert, the original Flash first appeared in ''Flash Comics'' #1 (cover date, cover-dated Jan ...

'' via

Cecile Horton Hackett Hackett is a former pilot of the Royal Air Force who later became a henchman of the heroin manufacturer China White. Decades prior, he manipulated Oliver Queen into investing in illegal offshore accounts. Hackett in other media Two char ...

(portrayed by

Danielle Nicolet Danielle Nicolet (born Danielle Diggs; November 24, 1973) is an American actress known for roles on ''3rd Rock from the Sun'' (1996–2001), '' Second Time Around'' (2004–05), '' The Starter Wife'' (2008), ''Family Tools'' (2013), '' Born Agai ...

Film

The Charles Halstead incarnation of Psycho-Pirate appears films set in the

Tomorrowverse The DC Animated Movie Universe (DCAMU) is an American media franchise and shared universe of animated films distributed between 2013 and 2024 by Warner Bros. Animation and DC Entertainment. Based on characters from the DC Universe (DC Comics) ...

, voiced by Geoffrey Arend. An alternate universe incarnation of Halstead named the Advisor appears in '' Justice Society: World War II'', while the main universe incarnation appears in '' Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths''.

Video games

* The Roger Hayden incarnation of Psycho-Pirate and the Medusa Mask appear in '' Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure''. * The Roger Hayden incarnation of Psycho-Pirate appears as a playable character in ''

Lego DC Super-Villains ''Lego DC Super-Villains'' is a Lego-themed action-adventure platform video game developed by Traveller's Tales. The fourth installment in the ''Lego Batman'' series of games, it is a spin-off that focuses entirely on villains of the DC Univers ...

'', voiced again by Armin Shimerman. This version is a member of the

Legion of Doom The Legion of Doom is a group of supervillains who originated in '' Challenge of the Superfriends'', an animated series from Hanna-Barbera based on DC Comics' Justice League. The Legion of Doom has since been incorporated into the main DC Univers ...

Miscellaneous

* The Roger Hayden incarnation of Psycho-Pirate appears in ''

Justice League Adventures While Batman and Superman had their own animated series and comic book follow-ups, the rest of the characters in the appeared in the following comics often. ''The Batman Adventures'' ''The Batman Adventures'' was created as a comic book tie-in ...

'' #20. This version is a former

psychiatrist A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in psychiatry. Psychiatrists are physicians who evaluate patients to determine whether their symptoms are the result of a physical illness, a combination of physical and mental ailments or strictly ...

who was suspended for malpractice and lost his wife and son during an alien attack in

Metropolis A metropolis () is a large city or conurbation which is a significant economic, political, and cultural area for a country or region, and an important hub for regional or international connections, commerce, and communications. A big city b ...

. * The Roger Hayden incarnation of Psycho-Pirate appears in a special one-shot ''

Young Justice Young Justice is a fictional DC Comics superhero team consisting of teenaged heroes. The team was formed in 1998 when DC's usual teen hero group, the Teen Titans, had become adults and changed their name to the Titans. Like the original ''Teen T ...

'' issue published for

Free Comic Book Day Free Comic Book Day (FCBD) is an annual promotional effort by the North American comic book industry to attract new readers to independent comic book stores. It usually takes place on the first Saturday of May and has historically been cross ...

References

External links

Fanpage about the Psycho-Pirate (both Halstead and Hayden)
{{Gardner Fox Characters created by Gardner Fox Characters created by Murphy Anderson Comics characters introduced in 1944 Comics characters introduced in 1965 DC Comics characters with accelerated healing DC Comics male supervillains DC Comics psychics DC Comics telekinetics DC Comics telepaths Earth-Two Fictional characters with energy-manipulation abilities Fictional empaths Golden Age supervillains Vampire supervillains