Jay Garrick is a fictional character, a superhero in the DC Comics universe and the first to use the name Flash. DC Comics is one of the largest American companies in comic book and related media publishing. ... In comic books, first appearance refers to first comic book to feature a character. ... The Golden Age Flash as created by Gardner Fox & Harry Lampert The Flash is a DC Comics superhero possessing super-speed. ... Gardner Francis Fox (May 20, 1911, Brooklyn, New York – December 24, 1986) was an American writer best known for writing comic books and co-creating numerous comics characters, especially for DC Comics. ... Harry Lampert seen at Motor City Comic-Con 2002 Harry Lampert (November 3, 1916 in New York - November 13, 2004 in Boca Raton, Florida) was a cartoonist and author. ... The Justice Society of America, or JSA, is a DC Comics superhero group, the first team of superheroes in comic book history. ... The All-Star Squadron was an American comic book (1981-1987) created by Roy Thomas and published by DC Comics about the adventures of a large team of superheroes which comprised of most of the feature characters owned by the company that appeared in the Golden Age of Comic Books... The Justice League, sometimes called the Justice League of America or JLA for short, is a fictional DC Universe superhero team. ... The speed of sound is a term used to describe the speed of sound waves passing through an elastic medium. ... Alice, a fictional character from the work of Lewis Carroll. ... For the Aqua Teen Hunger Force episode, see Super Hero (Aqua Teen Hunger Force episode). ... DC Comics is one of the largest American companies in comic book and related media publishing. ... Cover to the History of the DC Universe trade paperback. ... The Flash is a name shared by several DC Comics superheroes. ...

Fictional character biography

The Flash

Jason Peter Garrick^[1] is a college student prior to 1940 (retconned from 1938) who accidentally inhales hard water vapors after falling asleep in his laboratory where he had been working (later stories would change this to heavy water vapors). As a result, he finds that he can run at superhuman speed and has similarly fast reflexes (retcons imply the inhalation simply activated a latent metagene). After a brief career as a college football star, he dons a red shirt with a lightning bolt and a stylized metal helmet with wings (based on images of the Roman god Mercury) and begins to fight crime as the Flash. The helmet belonged to Jay's father, Joseph, who fought during World War I. Retroactive continuity – commonly contracted to the portmanteau word retcon – refers to the act of changing previously established details of a fictional setting, often without providing an explanation for the changes within the context of that setting. ... Hard water is water that has a high mineral content (water with a low mineral content is known as soft water). ... Heavy water is dideuterium oxide, or D2O or 2H2O. It is chemically the same as normal water, H2O, but the hydrogen atoms are of the heavy isotope deuterium, in which the nucleus contains a neutron in addition to the proton found in the nucleus of any hydrogen atom. ... Metahuman is a term to describe superhumans in the DC Universe. ... A college football game between Colorado State University and the Air Force Academy. ... A sculpture of the Roman god Mercury by 17th-century Flemish artist Artus Quellinus. ... Combatants Allied Powers: Russian Empire France British Empire Italy United States Central Powers: Austria-Hungary German Empire Ottoman Empire Bulgaria Commanders Nikolay II Aleksey Brusilov Georges Clemenceau Joseph Joffre Ferdinand Foch Robert Nivelle Herbert H. Asquith D. Lloyd George Sir Douglas Haig Sir John Jellicoe Victor Emmanuel III Luigi Cadorna...

His first case involves battling the Faultless Four, a group of blackmailers. In the early stories, it seems to be widely known that Garrick was the Flash. It is later explained that Jay keeps his identity secret without a mask by continually vibrating his body while in public so that any photograph of his face would be blurred.

Justice Society of America

The Flash soon becomes one of the best-known of the Golden Age of superheroes. He is a founding member of the Justice Society of America and serves as its first chairman beginning with All Star Comics #3 (Winter 1940). He is based in the fictional Keystone City. He leaves the JSA after issue #6, but returns several years later (issue #24, Spring 1945) and has a distinguished career as a crimefighter during the 1940s. Superman, catalyst of the Golden Age: Superman #14 (Feb. ... The Justice Society of America, or JSA, is a DC Comics superhero group, the first team of superheroes in comic book history. ... This article is about the 1940s comic book series. ... Keystone City is a fictional city featured in stories of the Flash published by DC Comics. ...

Several pieces of retroactive continuity fill out early Garrick history. A story explaining the retirement of the JSA members, including the Flash, explained that in 1951, the JSA is investigated by the House Un-American Activities Committee for possible Communist sympathies and asked to reveal their identities. The JSA decline, and Garrick, who recently married his longtime girlfriend Joan, retired from superheroic life. A trained scientist, he ran an experimental laboratory for several decades. All-Star Squadron Annual #3 states that the JSA fight a being named Ian Karkull who imbues them with energy that retards their aging, allowing Garrick and many others - as well as their girlfriends and sidekicks - to remain active into the late 20th century without infirmity. The 1990s Starman series notes that the Shade prompted Garrick to come out of retirement in the 1950s, but the details of his activities during this time are hazy at best. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... HUAC hearings House Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC or HCUA) (1938–1975) was an investigative committee of the United States House of Representatives. ... This article is about communism as a form of society and as a political movement. ... The All-Star Squadron was an American comic book (1981-1987) created by Roy Thomas and published by DC Comics about the adventures of a large team of superheroes which comprised of most of the feature characters owned by the company that appeared in the Golden Age of Comic Books... Starman VII is Jack Knight, a comic book superhero in the DC Comics universe, and a member of the Justice Society of America. ... The Shade, as painted by Tony Harris on the cover of Starman #6 (1995) The Shade is a DC Comics character, a villain created in the 1940s who would fight against two generations of superheroes, most notably the Golden Age and Silver Age Flashes. ...

Earth-Two

First appearance in Flash Comics #1 (Jan 1940). Cover art by Sheldon Moldoff.

Garrick emerges from retirement in 1961 to meet the Silver Age Flash, Barry Allen, from a parallel world. Garrick's world is dubbed Earth-Two, while Allen's is Earth-One. The rest of the JSA soon join the Flash, although their activities during the 1960s (other than their annual meeting with Earth-One's Justice League of America) are unrecorded. That he and Green Lantern (Alan Scott) are good friends is clear, however. Image File history File links Flash Comics #1 - First appearance of the Golden Age Flash, art by Harry Lampert. ... Image File history File links Flash Comics #1 - First appearance of the Golden Age Flash, art by Harry Lampert. ... Sheldon Shelly Moldoff (born April 14, 1920, New York City, New York) is an American comic book artist best known for co-creating such DC Comics characters as Hawkgirl and Poison Ivy, and as one of Bob Kanes primary ghost artists (uncredited collaborators) on the superhero Batman. ... Showcase #4 (Oct. ... Barry Allen is a fictional character, a superhero in the DC Comics universe and the second Flash. ... Parallel universe or alternate reality in science fiction and fantasy is a self-contained separate reality coexisting with our own. ... The Earths of the Multiverse and the different variations of The Flash inhabiting each one. ... The Earths of the Multiverse and the different variations of The Flash inhabiting each one. ... The Justice League, sometimes called the Justice League of America or JLA for short, is a fictional DC Universe superhero team. ... Alan Scott is a fictional hero from the DC Comics universe and the first superhero to bear the name Green Lantern. ...

Garrick is a key member of the JSA's 1970s adventures (as chronicled in All-Star Comics and Adventure Comics), as well as helping to launch the careers of Infinity Inc. Following the Crisis on Infinite Earths, all the parallel worlds are merged into one, and Keystone City becomes the twin city across the river from Allen's Central City (one story suggests that Keystone in this merged world was rendered invisible and wiped from the memories of the world for many years through the actions of several supervillains). Adventure Comics #296 Adventure Comics is a comic book series published by DC Comics from 1935 to 1983. ... Infinity Inc. ... Crisis on Infinite Earths was a 12-issue comic book limited series (identified as a 12 part maxi-series) and crossover event, produced by DC Comics in 1985 in order to simplify their fifty-year-old continuity. ... Central City is a fictional city that appears in stories published by DC Comics, and is the home of the Silver Age version of the Flash, Barry Allen. ... Doctor Doom, one of the most archetypal supervillains and his arch-enemies The Fantastic Four (in background). ...

21st century

In the early 21st century, many of Garrick's JSA cohorts have retired or died, but Garrick remains active with the latest incarnation of the group. He is physically about 50 years old thanks to the effects of several accidental anti-aging treatments, but his chronological age is closer to 90. Of the three original JSA members still on the team (along with Alan Scott and Wildcat), Jay takes a more fatherly approach towards his teammates and the DC superhero community in general. After eating lunch with Wally West and Nightwing (Dick Grayson) in one issue of The Flash, Grayson remarks that he "wants to be like [Garrick] when he grows up". Alan Scott is a fictional hero from the DC Comics universe and the first superhero to bear the name Green Lantern. ... Wildcat is the name of four DC Comics characters, three of them superheroes. ... Nightwing is a name used by at least six fictional characters in the DC Comics Universe. ... Dick Grayson is a fictional superhero in the DC Comics Universe. ...

Infinite Crisis and "One Year Later"

Main article: Infinite Crisis

Jay and his wife Joan currently have guardianship of Bart Allen after Max Mercury's disappearance. During the events of Infinite Crisis Jay states that the Speed Force is gone after a battle in which many speedsters, living and dead, wrestle Superboy-Prime into the Speed Force and disappear. Jay is left behind when he reaches his limit and cannot follow. Bart Allen returns, aged several years, and had absorbed the entire Speed Force during his pursuit of the escaped Superboy-Prime. Jay claims that without the Speed Force, his own power is less than before: like Wally West in the Crisis on Infinite Earths aftermath, he can only run close to the speed of sound. He also stated that as the Speed Force is no longer retarding his aging, his speed is diminishing with time. After Bart left Keystone City for Los Angeles, Jay once again is the city's sole guardian. Infinite Crisis was a seven-issue limited series of comic books published by DC Comics, beginning in October of 2005. ... Bartholemew Bart Allen II is a fictional character in the DC Comics Universe. ... Max Mercury is the name of a superhero in the DC Comics universe. ... The Speed Force is a concept presented in various issues of The Flash published by DC Comics. ... Superboy-Prime is a fictional superhero turned supervillain in the DC Universe. ... Superboy-Prime is a fictional superhero turned supervillain in the DC Universe. ... Wally West is a fictional character, a superhero in the DC Comics Universe, the first Kid Flash and the third Flash. ... Crisis on Infinite Earths was a 12-issue comic book limited series (identified as a 12 part maxi-series) and crossover event, produced by DC Comics in 1985 in order to simplify their fifty-year-old continuity. ... The speed of sound is a term used to describe the speed of sound waves passing through an elastic medium. ...

Main article: One Year Later

Recently, in the Outsiders: One Year Later story arc, a clone of Garrick appears as an antagonist, created by the Brotherhood of Evil. He appears to be in his late 20s or early 30s and is brainwashed into working for a Malinese dictator. The clone is defeated by the combined efforts of the Outsiders. He possesses Jay Garrick's super-speed, but none of his memories or expertise. His unconscious body is placed in the custody of Alan Scott, Checkmate's White King. One Year Later event logo. ... The Outsiders are fictional characters, a DC Comics superhero group. ... The Brotherhood of Evil is a group of DC Comics supervillains, arch-enemies of the original Doom Patrol and the Teen Titans. ... Checkmate is a covert operations agency within the DC Comics universe. ...

Powers and abilities

As the Flash, Jay can run and move his limbs at superhuman speeds, and possesses superhuman reflexes. He also has an aura that prevents air friction from affecting his body and clothes while moving. Unlike Barry, Jay is a metahuman and while he has a connection to the Speed Force, it was on the level of the other Flashes. Jay possesses the ability to 'steal speed' from other speedsters. Since the Speed Force disappeared following Infinite Crisis, Jay's top speed is the speed of sound. The Speed Force is a concept presented in various issues of The Flash published by DC Comics. ... Infinite Crisis was a seven-issue limited series of comic books published by DC Comics, beginning in October of 2005. ...

Jay's status as a metahuman with natural speed may be a retcon. During the "Dead Heat" miniseries, Jay's connection to the Speed Force is disrupted by the villain Savitar, and he, along with many of the other speedsters, is totally powerless. However, Jay's words in Infinite Crisis #7 imply that his metagene was always there, but inactive until the Speed Force is 'destroyed' or perhaps until the formation of New Earth took place. Savitar is a DC Comics supervillain and an enemy to The Flash (Wally West). ...

Other versions

In the Elseworlds book JSA: The Unholy Three, Jay Garrick is portrayed as a post-WW2 United States intelligence agent stationed in Russia, working under the code-name Mercury. He is instrumental in bringing down the story's rogue Superman. Elseworlds logo. ...

Other media

• In the Justice League episode "Legends", the creators chose to use an analog called The Streak rather than Garrick, who wore a football-style helmet rather than a WWI helmet.
• Jay's helmet appears in the Flash museum, in the Justice League Unlimited episode, "Flash And Substance."
• Jay appears in comic book animated form in Justice League Unlimited #12 to help Wally/Flash and the other JL members against Mirror Master.
• On the 1990s Flash live action TV series, the villain The Trickster paints a statue of Mercury red and yellow as a way to mock the Flash (Barry Allen). The statue resembles Jay Garrick's costume.
• On Smallville, one of the aliases used by Bart Allen is Jay Garrick.
• Also on the Flash live action series, Barry Allen's brother, whose murder in the pilot inspired Flash's career, was named Jay, likely in homage to Jay Garrick. Further, a street sign in that show's Central City showed the name Garrick.
• An alternate costume for The Flash on the video game Justice League Heroes is Jay Garrick.

Justice League is an American animated television series about a team of superheroes which ran from 2001 to 2004 on Cartoon Network. ... Justice League Unlimited (or JLU) was an American animated television series produced by and aired on Cartoon Network. ... Mirror Master is a fictional character, a recurring foe of the Flash with large technical knowledge and skills involving the use of mirrors. ... Smallville is an American television series that follows the adventures of a young Clark Kent (Tom Welling), as a teenager living in Smallville, Kansas, during the years before he becomes Superman. ... The Flash. ... Justice League Heroes is a console game released in the fourth quarter of 2006 across 3 different platforms. ...

References

1. ^ JSA #87, Sept. 2006

External links

• Flash (Jay Garrick) entry on DCDatabaseProject
• Alan Kistler's Profile On: The Flash - An analysis of the history of the Flash by comic book historian Alan Kistler.
• Golden Age Flash Toonopedia entry
• The Flash: Those Who Ride The Lightning - Fan site with information about the super-speed characters of the DC Universe.
• The Unofficial Flash Biography
• A comprehensive index of Jay Garricks (Flash of Earth-2) appearances through the COIE