Guardian (DC Comics)

Guardian
The Guardian and the Newsboy Legion. Art by Jack Kirby.
Publication information
Publisher	DC Comics
First appearance	Star-Spangled Comics #7 (April, 1942)
Created by	Joe Simon (writer) Jack Kirby (artist)
In-story information
Alter ego	James Jacob "Jim" Harper
Species	Human
Place of origin	Earth
Team affiliations	Science Police Project Cadmus All-Star Squadron Newsboy Legion Justice League
Notable aliases	(Clone): Golden Guardian
Abilities	(Original): Exceptional hand to hand combatant and tactician Excellent gymnast Carries golden helmet and shield Use of customized motorcycle and a set of video-cameras (Clone): Enhanced strength and reflexes Accelerated healing factor Access to the Whiz Wagon

Guardian (James Jacob "Jim" Harper) is a DC Comics superhero.

Guardian resembles an earlier Kirby and Simon character Captain America (first published in March 1941 by Marvel Comics) in that he had no super powers and carried an indestructible shield.

He first appeared in Star-Spangled Comics #7 (April 1942) and was created by Jack Kirby and Joe Simon.

Jim Harper is a police officer in Metropolis' Suicide Slum who became a vigilante to catch crooks that the law could not prosecute, describing himself as guarding society from criminals. He was trained to fighting condition by ex-boxer Joe Morgan (the same man who trained two other mystery men, Wildcat and the first Atom). He was aided by a group of boys known as the Newsboy Legion, to whom he was, literally, a guardian, having volunteered to take them in rather than allowing them to be sent to prison; he did so on the grounds that they were basically good kids who just needed a chance. The Legion grew up to become the heads of the Cadmus Project, subsequently saving Harper's life by transferring his mind from his old, dying body into a younger clone of himself.

It was later revealed that Jim Harper was the great-uncle of Roy Harper, who became Green Arrow's sidekick under the name of "Speedy".

Other relatives include his niece Roberta "Famous Bobby" Harper, who was briefly a member of the second Newsboy Legion and Jamie Harper, his grandniece working for the Gotham City Police Department. She worked as Robin's personal contact in the GCPD, similar to the role Commissioner James Gordon plays for Batman. After helping Robin and Jason Bard expose two dirty cops in the GCPD, Jamie Harper was promoted to Detective Specialist and has since transferred to the Metropolis Science Police.