The Shadow (Street & Smith)

The Shadow
Biographical Information
Real Name	Kent Allard
Aliases	Fritz Lamont Cranston Monk Thurman George Clarendon
Home country	United States of America
Homeworld	Earth
Physical Information
Species	Human
Gender	Male
Eye colour	Blue
Skin colour	Caucasian
Hair colour	Black
Unusual features	Eyes like burning coals Prominent nose
Chronological / Political Information
Affiliation(s)	The Seventh Star Claude Fellows Harry Vincent Clyde Burke
Base of Operations	The Shadow's Sanctum, New York City, New York
Occupation(s)	Aviator Spy Vigilante
Fictional Information
Created by	Walter B. Gibson
First Appearance	The Living Shadow, April 1st 1931, by Walter Gibson
Final Appearance	Blackmail Bay, short story by Walter Gibson, featured in The Duende History of The Shadow Magazine, 1980

Kent Allard was an American World War I flying ace and intelligence officer who became known as the Black Eagle. After the war, Allard crash-landed in Guatemala and became a god to the Xinca tribe, before going to New York City, setting up a private spy network and numerous aliases, and taking on the name of the Shadow. He became a feared and mythical figure in the United States criminal underworld, operating a private network of spies and operatives of varying backgrounds in his war on crime.

Weapons and Abilities

Skills

• Aviation
• Disguise
• Escapology
• Marksmanship
• Polyglotism
• Stealth: The Shadow was able to silently paddle a canoe with ease and speed. (PROSE: The North Woods Mystery)

Notes

Behind the Scenes

• The Shadow was originally conceived as a radio announcer character who narrated Street & Smith's stories on the radio. Audience demand for a non-existent magazine led the company to develop "The Shadow Magazine", with the task of developing the character and his first appearance falling to Walter Gibson.
• Gibson went on to describe the character as, "A weird crime fighter who invariably emerged from the blackness of the night to pluck helpless victims of black-hearted villains from the brink of doom," also referring to the character as "nebulous as the swirling fog."
• The Shadow went on to inspire many pulp imitators, such as the Spider, Wu Fang, Operator 5, and the Phantom Detective. Gibson didn't care about them, referring to them as interchangeable. Comic book characters Superman and Batman were also directly influenced by the Shadow. Gibson considered Batman a "clowned-up version" of the Shadow.
• Film editor and writer of Dynamite Entertainment's "Altered States: The Shadow" David Avallone said of the character, "it’s not the guns... but his keen intellect that makes The Shadow so dangerous."
• An individual claiming to be the vigilante widely known as the "Bromley Batman" asked to be referred to as the Shadow, stating he had enjoyed stories of the character as a child.

Appearances

• The Shadow Magazine
  • The Living Shadow (first appearance)
• Blackmail Bay (final appearance)

See also

• The Phantom
• Batman
• Moon Knight