Masked Marvel (Centaur Publications)

The Masked Marvel (Nightmask I)
Cover art for The Masked Marvel #2.
Publication information
Publisher	Centaur Publications;
First appearance	Keen Detective Funnies #7 (March, 1939)
In-story information
Alter ego	(Centaur Publications) Unknown (Malibu Comics) Philip Reinhart
Team affiliations	ZL, ZR, and ZY; (Malibu Comics) The Protectors
Partnerships	(Malibu Comics) Richard Reinhart (son)
Notable aliases	Philip Reinhart
Abilities	Skilled fighter, Inventor and user of gadgets.

The Masked Marvel is a fictional superhero originally published by Centaur Publications. He debuted in 1939, on the pages of Keen Detective Funnies #7. The character continued to appear as the feature in Keen Detective Funnies until the 24th issue, as well as in his own title, which lasted three issues.

When Centaur Comics went out of business, he became dormant, until he was revived by Malibu Comics, where he acted as director of the government-run superhero team known as Protectors. His son, who took up his father's identity, became part of the team. Fearing the lawsuit by Marvel Comics, the writers changed Masked Marvel's name to Nightmask (apparently unaware of the irony that Marvel had already created a superhero by that name, as part of their New Universe imprint, six years earlier). Both Nightmasks remained prominent parts of the cast until the title's cancellation. A short time later, Malibu Comics was acquired by Marvel. Since then, Masked Marvel has not appeared aside from occasional appearances in crowd scenes in AC Comics' Femforce.

The original Masked Marvel was a non-powered scarlet-suited hero whose secret identity (if any) was never revealed. He fought crime with the help of a trio of assistants known as ZL, ZR, and ZY. He operated out of a glass-domed mountaintop headquarters. He had a number of gadgets and weapons, such as an amphibious airplane, a paralyzing ray gun and a televisor, a video device which let him see anywhere in the world.

This version was essentially identical to the original. However, his back story was fleshed out and expanded. He was revealed to be Philip Reinhart, a young prodigy who already had established a successful business at the age of 20. However, his success only left him longing for more. Inspired by The Clock, he became a crime-fighter known as Nightmask. Eventually, the two men met and formed a lasting friendship. When World War II broke out, they decided to give up crime-fighting and enlist, both out of the sense of duty and the feeling that the proliferation of super-powered heroes made them increasingly irrelevant. After the war, Phillip decided to focus on business endeavors. During this time, he was briefly married to Erika Blaine and fathered a son, Richard.

In 1988, the Clock became president in his civilian guise. At the former's request, Phillip became head of the project designed to track various super-powered beings, just in case the government should need their services. That proved to be a prudent measure, as the increasing supervillain activity made the need for a team of super-powered heroes starkly clear. In 1992, Phillip used the intelligence he gathered to form a super-powered team known as The Protectors. He acted as the team's director, charting the overall course of the team while delegating field decisions to Man of War.