Prez (comics)

Prez
Prez #1, the first appearance of Prez Rickard (Aug 1973). Art by Jerry Grandenetti.
Publication information
Publisher	DC Comics
First appearance	Prez: First Teen President #1 (August–September 1973)
Created by	Joe Simon, Jerry Grandenetti
In-story information
Alter ego	Prez Rickard

"Prez" is the name of fictional characters appearing in comics published by DC Comics. The original was Prez Rickard, the first teenage president of the United States of America, who appeared in a short-lived comic series by writer Joe Simon and artist Jerry Grandenetti in 1973 and 1974. Similar characters have appeared since then, revisiting the concept or paying homage to the original character. In 2015 DC launched a limited series under the title Prez about a teenage girl named Beth Ross who is elected president via Twitter in the year 2036.

Prez: First Teen President followed the adventures of a teenage boy whose election had been made possible by a Constitutional amendment lowering the age of eligibility to accommodate the then-influential youth culture of the baby boom. The nickname 'Prez' is bestowed by his mother Martha, in the hope of his election to presidency. Having synchronized the clocks of his town of Steadfast, Prez was hired as a for shady businessman Boss Smiley (a political boss with a smiley face) to run for United States Senator; but did so in a position against that of Smiley. With 45% of voters under 30, Congress lowered the eligibility age for the presidency and Senator Rickard was elected president; whereupon he appointed his mother Vice President and made his sister his secretary. Prez was aided by Eagle Free, a young Native American amateur naturalist, whom Prez appointed director of the FBI, and who trained Prez in multiple fighting techniques (this was never shown, but cited at their use). As President, Prez fought legless vampires, a right-wing militia led by the great-great-great-great-great-grandnephew of George Washington, "Boss Smiley", and evil chess players. He was attacked for his stance on gun control, and survived an assassination attempt during that controversy.