NaPodPoMo Day 27: Mandrake The Magician - Lesser Known Geek Hall Of Fame

Day 27 of National Podcast Post Month brings us another inductee into the Lesser Known Geek Hall Of Fame. Join Seth and Train as they talk about another character that can be considered one of the very first superheroes.







2:45 – Real World History



Mandrake The Magician was created by Lee Falk, who also famously created The Phantom. Like The Shadow, Mandrake’s main power is the ability to hypnotize (The Shadow would call it “cloud minds”). But Mandrake has shown true magic abilities that defy physics.



While Mandrake officially first appeared in newspaper strips in 1934, Falk actually created the character a few years earlier as a teenager. Since The Phantom debuted in 1936, many historians consider Mandrake to be the first superhero.



Like The Phantom, the bulk of Mandrake’s adventures were told by Falk in daily comic strips by King Features Syndicate. Falk wrote all the stories up until his death in 1999. Artist Fred Fredericks took over writing and did double-duty until his retirement in 2013.



Mandrake’s strips were reprinted in Magic Comics, an anthology comic book title published by David McKay Company. That title would also feature Dagwood of Blondie fame on the cover



12:55 – The Origin



Mandrake’s origin has been retconned several times over the years. Mainly to add details or layers to his history. For the longest time, the story was that Mandrake and his brother had attended The College Of Magic in Tibet under the tutelage of Theron, a powerful magician and that Mandrake was sent there by his father, Basil The Great.



In reality, Theron was his father, and Basil The Great was thought to be his father. Theron handed Mandrake and Derek to Basil shortly after birth because their mother had died. Theron only revealed this when he was on his believed deathbed.



23:0 – Leon Mandrake (1911-1993)



A real-life stage musician also went by the name Mandrake. His appearance strongly resembled the comic strip counterpart, so much so some believed Falk based the character on him. Others believed he merely adopted the look after the character was published. Unfortunately, little, if any, evidence conclusively shows which came first. But since copyright laws and intellectual property



29:00 – The Heroes



Mandrake – The title character has had his origin rewritten a few times. But through it all, he trained in a College of Magic in Tibet for several years (between 7-10). By day he is an in-demand practicing stage magician who uses illusions and hypnosis. He keeps his most powerful magic a secret as he uses it to combat evil. While his stage shows have the usual “Hide the bird in the hat” type illusions, his crime-fighting tricks are much stronger. He has been able to make himself invisible, project visions of events, and made people see monsters and giant serpents.



Lothar – Mandrake’s trusted friend Lothar is an African Prince, originally prince of Seven Nations (later Twelve Nations) in Africa. He has been called The Strongest Man In The World. He has shown feats of strength such as lifting large animals. Lothar is one of, if not THE first black superheroes. His stature as an African prince/King is also the link between Mandrake and Falk’s other major creation, The Phantom!