prankster

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The Prankster (real name: Oswald Hubert Loomis) is a fictional character and villain who appears in Superman stories published by DC Comics. The Prankster's first appearance was in Action Comics #51 in 1942.

The Prankster's particular gimmick was the use of various practical jokes and gags in committing his crimes. This, coupled with his cartoonish appearance, caused many to write him off as a "joke villain", until the early 2000s, when writers improved upon the character by giving him a more svelte appearance, as well as high tech weaponry that made him a more serious threat.

History

Golden and Silver Age versions

Modern Age Version

Comedian Oswald Loomis had his own sitcom called "Uncle Oswald", which was specifically tailored for his brand of comedy. Though successful for many years, the ratings eventually fell, leading to the show's cancellation. Due to typecasting, he found it difficult to find new employment. Angered and bitter that his gravy train had come to an end, Loomis sought revenge on the network executives that were responsible for his show's cancellation (including Morgan Edge), but was foiled by Superman.

He was eventually given a younger, more athletic body presumably by Lord Satanus. His personality was changed as well, no longer an inept goofball, he was now a manic trickster seeking to unleash his twisted brand of laughter upon the world. By this time, Metropolis had been upgraded by Brainiac 13. The Prankster took advantage of the new technology, creating high tech gadgets and weaponry, which retained a comical theme. He quickly challenged Superman again. Superman was suffering from kryptonite poisoning during the battle, and was hospitalized in S.T.A.R. Labs shortly thereafter.

During the Critical Condition storyline, scientists learned that the cause of Superman's illness was a nanovirus carrying a small grain of kryptonite. They proposed to shrink Steel, Superboy, and Supergirl to microscopic size, and send them into Superman's bloodstream to destroy the virus. However, the Prankster subdued Steel, stole his armor, and attempted to sabotage their efforts. Though he failed, he escaped with Steel's armor still in his possession. He used the armor to attack a temporarily powerless Superboy before Steel arrived on the scene, taking control of his hammer via a remote failsafe and damaging the armour due to his knowledge of its weaknesses.

The Prankster was later hired by Lord Satanus to kidnap metahumans with dual personalities, particularly those with a light/dark duality. Satanus had hoped to gain strength by drawing power from the darker personalities of these individuals. Superman foiled this scheme, and the Prankster disappeared after Satanus was defeated. Later on, when Manchester Black revealed Superman's identity, the Prankster was one of many villains involved in the campaign to destroy Superman's life, though he forgot Superman's identity when Black was defeated.

In a One Year Later storyline, the Prankster is hired by Lex Luthor to wreak havoc in Metropolis. While Green Lantern and Hawkgirl bring down Loomis and his army of traffic-light-men, his rampage is just a distraction while Luthor breaks Kryptonite Man out of prison. (See Superman #651)

Apprentally inspired by his turn working for Luthor, Prankster has taken on a new persona as a distraction-for-hire. Rather than pull off crimes himself, he is now hired by criminals to distract Superman and the police with his pranks while they commit crimes. He offers a discount to any client whose plans include Superman, as he sees the Man of Steel's involvement as "the best kind of free advertising." His new venture has apprentally proven quite lucrative, as he is able to afford a high-tech lair. Above it sits a seemingly normal joke shop called 'Uncle Oley's Sure Fire Joke Shop'. It is not normal, for it includes a moveable trapdoor. The Prankster also has about a half-dozen beautiful female assistants, who do many things for him, such as monitoring Metropolis or serving him breakfast. Though the Prankster goads them to commit pranks on him, they do not always do so, for they fear his retaliation. He insists on never sharing his high-tech gadgets with clients, considering himself "an artist, not an armorer." (See Superman #660)

Other media

The Prankster appeared in the animated series The New Adventures of Superman.

The Prankster also appeared in the 1988 animated series of Superman. His look and modus-operandi were taken straight from the comics. In the story he organized a base-ball game of professional players against Superman alone.

The Prankster was portrayed by Bronson Pinchot in two episodes of Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman. Here his name was Kyle Griffin, a man who was sent to jail five years earlier due to one of Lois Lane's articles. In the first episode titled The Prankster he breaks out of prison and goes after Lois posing as her secret admirer. The Prankster's comic book identity was referenced when Lois suspected the admirer was an old school acquaintance named Loomis.

He returned later in the season, with light ray capable of paralyzing people (including Superman). He attempted to use this device to kidnap the President of the United States, who was visiting Metropolis.

See Also

• List of Superman enemies

External links

• Supermanica entry on the pre-Crisis Prankster

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