| Ka-Zar | |
|---|---|
 | |
|
Real Name |
David Rand |
|
First Appearance |
Ka-Zar #1 (October 1936) |
|
Original Publisher |
Manvis Publishing |
|
Created by |
Bob Byrd |
Origin[]
Ka-Zar Issue #2 Cover Art.
Born in South Africa in 1918, three-year-old David Rand accompanied his British parents John and Constance on a flight to Cairo to visit his grandfather. Unfortunately, their plane crashed in the Congo jungle. Constance died in the crash and John was driven mad. Living in the jungle with his father, isolated from the local tribes, David grew under the jungle's hardships into an unusually powerful youth and developed strong empathy with wildlife, notably rescuing Zar the Lion from quicksand.
Ka-Zar Issue #3 Cover Art.
When a criminal named Paul de Kraft discovered emeralds in Congo, John died opposing him only for Zar to scare Paul de Kraft off. With the support of Zar, David became the jungle's leading warrior within a few years challenging different animals like Bardak the Ape and N'Jaga the Leopard. Considered to be "god-like" by the natives, David Rand ended up named Ka-Zar (native for "Brother of Zar"). When Paul de Kraft returned to seize the emerald deposits, Ka-Zar killed him, thus avenging his father.
Public Domain Literary Appearances[]
- Ka-Zar (1936) #1-3
Notes[]
- Ka-Zar #1-3 are in the public domain because they were published in the United States between 1929 and 1963 and the copyright was not renewed.
- In the 1960s, Marvel Comics reintroduced a Ka-Zar character (named Kevin Reginald, Lord Plunder) into their universe of superhero characters, who still appears in their comics today. This version is still protected by copyright.