Origin[]
When the evil Dr. Sivana sent his hired cronies to capture Billy Batson, all three came back with the wrong boy. One of them was known as "Tall" Billy because of his height, another as "Fat" Billy because of his weight and the last as "Hill" Billy because he was from the South. Along with the other boys, he had learned from the real Billy that he was actually Captain Marvel and suggests they become the Billy Batson Club.
Tricking the real Billy into coming to his hideout by threatening his namesakes, Sivana bound and gagged the boys, leaving them to their fate by tying them to a log sawmill. Billy managed to get his gag off by placing his head just close enough to the saw. However, his words were drowned out by the machinery. Releasing the other Billies, they all shouted "Shazam!" and all four of them became Captain Marvel!
The new three agreed that there was only one real Captain Marvel and they would act as his Lieutenants in Captain Marvel's Squadron of Justice!
Powers and Abilities[]
By shouting "Shazam!" the three Billy Batsons are transformed into the Lieutenant Marvels. In this form, they each have the powers of Captain Marvel: the wisdom of Solomon, the strength of Hercules, the stamina of Atlas, the power of Zeus, the courage of Achilles, and the speed of Mercury. They could only change if all three said the magic word at the same time along with the real Billy however, since they have to share the power, they are each only one-third as powerful as Captain Marvel.
Public Domain Appearances[]
- Whiz Comics #21, 29, 34, 40
- Captain Marvel Adventures #4
Notes[]
- The physical appearances of the three characters were based on three real-life members of the Fawcett Comics staff: Paul Peck (Tall Billy), Ed Hamilton (Hill Billy), and Frank Taggart (Fat Billy).
- Marvel Comics owns the trademark for the name Captain Marvel. DC comics owns trademarks for the names Shazam, Billy Batson, & Squadron of Justice. In order to use any of these names, they must be used in the interior of the story, the same way DC does to avoid Marvel's trademark on the name.