Silvermane is a fictional Marvel Comics character. He is a supervillain and a prominent figure in the Maggia, a fictional organized crime syndicate that is analogous to the Mafia, and has been a long-time nemesis of Spider-Man.
Publication history
He first appeared in
In 1975, writer Gerry Conway and artists Don Heck and Vince Colletta created Silvermane's son Joseph Manfredi.
Fictional character biography
Silvio Manfredi, nicknamed "Silvermane" for his near-white hair, is a professional criminal originally from Corleone, Sicily that started his criminal career as a racketeer in an organized crime group called the Maggia, eventually becoming a criminal organizer and mastermind.
In his first appearance, he forced Dr. Curt Connors into making a mystical youth potion from an ancient clay tablet. He first crossed paths with the Lizard and Spider-Man during this scheme. Drinking the serum made Silvermane younger, but its effect unintentionally led to him becoming a child and then reached the point before the age of birth and disappearing completely. Silvermane eventually reappeared, revealing that he had mystically aged to his forties. He climbed through the ranks and became head of the crime family; he eventually formed an alliance with HYDRA, a worldwide organization determined to take over the world and became their Supreme Hydra. He was defeated by Daredevil, Nick Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D.. Silvermane reappeared in New York in an attempt to unite all of New York's gangs under his leadership and take over the criminal underworld, but his plans were complicated by the return of the Green Goblin (Bart Hamilton). Green Goblin opposed him, and during a confrontation between Green Goblin, Silvermane and Spider-Man, Silvermane fell from a great height but survived.
Silvermane has hired many criminals, such as Hammerhead, and he has also been known to be a rival of the Kingpin. Silvermane once attempted to assassinate an amnesiac Kingpin. His former partner Dominic Tyrone assumed the identity of the Rapier and sought vengeance against Silvermane's betrayal by attempting to slay him. A flashback one-shot focused heavily on Silvermane's lifetime of corruption. The framework was the reporter Ben Urich investigating the Mafia. He found Silvermane was a legendary Mafia figure for decades; mothers would even warn their children to behave or 'One-Eye' would get them.
In his old age, Silvermane's injuries resulted in undoing the effects of the rejuvenation serum. Though bedridden, he continued to run his criminal empire until Dagger nearly killed him. Silvermane attempted to prolong his life by transforming himself into a cyborg. Kingpin gained control of his cyborg body until Dagger restored his life energy to him. His cyborg body was badly damaged by the first Jack O'Lantern during a gang war between Hammerhead and the Kingpin. Silvermane used a remote-controlled android doppelganger to battle Spider-Man. This was part of an attempt to boost the power of his remaining organic parts by harvesting parts from the superhuman body of his nemesis, Spider-Man. He attempted to drain Spider-Man's radioactive blood to mobilize a new stronger cyborg body. Silvermane confronted Deathlok and the Punisher while setting up a major drug operation outside a grammar school. He is still an active member of the Maggia.
Silvermane attempted to take part in a meetup of various criminal warlords, during a time when Wilson Fisk had fallen from power. The meeting's goal was to divide up Fisk's resources, but it did not go well. Silvermane was caught in the crossfire between Secret Empire forces and the Punisher. This was purely by coincidence as he was simply staying at the same motel as the Punisher was. Silvermane used the resources of his semi and the cyborg bodies stored within to battle his way through the attackers and leave.
It was revealed some time later that Silvermane was killed during a shootout against Owl's gang at a New York City scrap yard. He was picked up by a magnet and dropped into a garbage compactor, crushing him to death and leaving the already troubled Maggia crime syndicate without a leader. Months later, he apparently returns along with various other deceased members during the Maggia's losing battle with the forces of Mister Negative. However this is later revealed to be a ruse by Maggia member Carmine. This Silvermane is actually a robot controlled by a hired Mysterio in order to secretly give Carmine more influence in the syndicate's decision-making. The tables are turned on Carmine when Mysterio uses the robot to murder him, seemingly as a plot to take over the Maggia himself.
Silvermane's head was still alive as it was found by a young boy when he traveled into the scrap yard. His head is the possession of the boy who is currently building a robot.
Powers and abilities
Silvermane was once a normal human being with no superhuman abilities. He was a superb hand-to-hand combatant, an excellent marksman, and a brilliant strategist and organizer. He is typically armed with various handguns and a Thompson .45 caliber machine gun.
Later, Silvermane's brain, vital organs, and head were transplanted into a cyborg body, increasing his physical abilities and giving him superhuman strength and senses. However, Silvermane's organic body parts are those of a frail 80 year old man, and hence quite vulnerable.
Other versions
Ultimate Marvel
The Ultimate Marvel version of Silvermane had a brief cameo in Ultimate Spider-Man. With Wilson Fisk lying low due to legal problems, Silvermane decided to work with Hammerhead to wrestle him out of the seat of power. He told Hammerhead that all he needed was a little 'up here' (referring to his intelligence). Hammerhead, however, wanted it all to himself. He smashes Silvermane's head, saying "I think I got enough up here already."
He was also mentioned as a leader of a mob which included Hammerhead in Ultimate X-Men. It is stated that he owes a debt to Nathaniel Essex.
Also, the Ultimate incarnation's real name is shown in the Daily Bugle as Allan Silvermane, though later in the same comic Fisk refers to him as Silvio Manfredi. Due to his status as a high-ranking crime lord, it is likely one or both of these names are aliases.
House of M
Silvermane appeared in the House of M reality as a younger crime boss on the many families captured by the Brotherhood.
In other media
Television
- Silvermane appeared in the 1981 Spider-Man cartoon, voiced by Paul Winchell. In the episode "Wrath of the Sub-Mariner", he and Man Mountain Marko arrive in New York to call a truce with the Kingpin when his scientist Dr. Everett has developed a powerful dissolvent fluid capable of eating through anything. Prior to this, Spider-Man intercepted them but couldn't be brought in since most of his crimes are in the West Coast. He is webbed by Spider-Man in the end.
- Silvermane appears in Spider-Man: The Animated Series, voiced by Jeff Corey (old man), Townsend Coleman (adult), Matthew McCurley (child) and Cannon Young (baby). Although he is an enemy of Spider-Man, this version doesn't see eye-to-eye with Spidey's other foes, is a hated rival of crime lord Wilson Fisk (Kingpin), and is the father of Alisha Silvers. He first appeared in the Insidious Six arc, where in he has Hammerhead hired to capture Spider-Man. In the end of the Insidious Six's battle, he was rescued by Spider-Man from Kingpin who tried to kidnap him. Silvermane never enjoyed a normal childhood, as he grew into old age, he became obsessed with finding the secrets to youth and immortality. He heard legends of an ancient tablet which allegedly was inscribed with the formula to rejuvenate and individuals youth, The Tablet of Time. When the tablet was unearthed and brought to the United States he arranged for Tombstone to steal the tablet and kidnap Dr. Curt Connors studying its powers. Even with Spider-Man's intervention, Silvermane was able to kidnap Connors's wife and force Connors to activate the tablet. In the comic book the formula is for a potion. Conners prepares the potion for him, while the lives of Connors's family was used as a motivator for him to successfully decipher the tablet. Spider-Man saved Connors but Silvermane took the potion anyway despite Connors's warnings of it being unstable. In the animated version of the story, Silvermane was transformed into a baby instead of being mildly rejuvenated. There, the tablet focuses the suns rays into lasers which produce a greenish glow. Silvermane is initially turned into a young man, "fights" the Lizard then transforms further into a baby while Lizard is bombarded by the rays and mutates back to human form. Connors concludes that they might by able to use the tablet to stabilize Spider-Man's mutations, but the tablet is stolen by Hammerhead working for Kingpin. Fisk, dismayed that his wife left him, orders Hammerhead to get rid of the tablet. Hammerhead sells the tablet to an elderly man, presumably the Vulture to use the Tablet to temporarily restore youth to himself. He is unable to remain youthful for an expended period of time, transforming back and forth uncontrolably. In the later episode "Partners", baby Silvermane was seen to have retained his adult intellect. He and Alisha got the cyborg Alistair Smythe to kidnap the Black Cat (Felicia Hardy), blackmailing Spider-Man to apprehend the Scorpion. Silvermane believes that he can use Scorpion's genetic structure with that of a scorpion to swap bodies with Spider-Man. Scorpion meanwhile in an attempt to go straight, was living with Vulture. Vulture, one of the originators of the Neogenic technology, believes he himself can use Silvermane's lab to make himself permanently youthful. During the neogenic transfer, Vulture intervenes, allowing Spider-Man, Black Cat & Scorpion to escape. Silvermane and Vulture exchange energys in the neogenic transfer allowing Vulture to become semi-permanently young again and reverting Silvermane into an old man.
- Silvermane appears in The Spectacular Spider-Man, voiced by Miguel Ferrer. In the episode "Gangland", he appears as a rival mob boss to the Big Man (Tombstone) and Doctor Octopus. In the episode "Accomplices", it is revealed that he was arrested and jailed twelve years beforehand after Frederick Foswell exposed Silvermane's criminal activities. After his empire fell, his territory was taken over by Big Man while his daughter Silver Sable (Sable Manfredi) has been running the remnants of his empire in his absence. When Hammerhead instigates a fight a summit held between Silvermane, Tombstone and Doctor Octopus by drugging Silver Sable, Silvermane uses a hidden hydraulic exoskeleton which provides him with superstrength and energy blasts to fight with. When Spider-Man interferes, Silvermane attempts to crush him, only for the webslinger to rip out his suit's hydraulic cables, leaving him helpless. He was taken into custody. In the episode "Opening Night", Silvermane was seen as an inmate of the Vault who was among the prisoners released by the Green Goblin. He rounds up the Enforcers, a robot duplicate of Mysterio, and other prisoners to take down Spider-Man. He and the other inmates are knocked out by gas released by Walter Hardy.
Video games
- Slivermane appears in the beta versions of the SNES and Sega Genesis, Spider-Man Animated Series video games. He was replaced with a robot in the final versions.
- Silvermane is an exclusive villain in the Nintendo DS version of Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions, voiced by Steven Blum. Silvermane fights the Spider-Man of the year 2099. It is explained by Madame Web that he's still alive in the year 2099 is because of his cyborg status and plans on using his fragment of the Tablet of Order and Chaos to become immortal. Spider-Man takes down Silvermane by avoiding his missile and bomb attacks, thus wearing him down.
References
External links
- Silvermane at Marvel.com
- Silvermane's entry at Spiderfan.org
