The Unofficial Biography of...

The Flash

The Golden Age Flash was created by Gardner Fox and Harry Lampert

Alter Ego: Jason Peter "Jay" Garrick
Occupation: research scientist, semi-retired
Marital Status: married
Known Relatives: Joan Garrick ( wife ), Major Arthur Williams,ret.(presumed deceased )
Group Affiliation: Justice Society of America, All-Star Squadron, Justice League America
Base of Operations: Keystone City, KS
Current Status: semi-active
Height: 5'11" Weight: 179 lbs. ( now 165 lbs )
Eye Color: blue Hair Color: brown, now grey at temples
First Appearance: Flash Comics# 1, January, 1940.

History

.....Jay Garrick was an average child of the early 20th Century, filling his head with the tales of Whip Whirlwind; the speedster from the dime novels that he read. His dreams of speed filled his days on the football field, even at Midwestern University, where he majored in Physics and Chemistry while trying to hold onto his place on the team. His coach's nickname for him "Leadfoot", showed no promise for him, but this didn't matter to the girl he was trying to impress, Joan Williams.

.....After another hard day of being the receiving end of Coach's terror and classes, Jay was burning the midnight oil in the chemistry labs, hoping to analyze a new "heavy water" compound. Weariness and the fumes from the chemicals overtook him, and Jay passed out, only to be exposed to the "heavy water" compounds and other chemicals. Rescued by his friend Elliot, Jay lay in a coma for more than three weeks as his body altered to utilize the energies that it could tap. When he awoke, he found that he could move at terrific speeds. At his next ( and final ) game, "Leadfoot" Garrick set collegete records for receiving and touchdowns scored in a single quarter. He knew that these abilities could be used for a greater good than just athletics, so after transferring to Keystone University to receive his Masters degree in Chemistry and Physics ( his reading speed had also increased ), Jay Garrick set out to aid humanity as the red and blue blur known as...The Flash!

.....After graduation, he landed a job as a researcher at Keystone Labs in Keystone City, KS. With his girlfriend ( and fiance'), Joan Williams, fought crime beginning in late 1939. Two years later, The Flash met first another hero, The Green Lantern and then several others as a founding member of the JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA. The Flash was the first chairman of the group, and later in 1941, the first to take a honorary membership as his duties in Keystone City began to take up more of his time. He nominated the likable, but often-confused, Johnny Thunder as his replacement. The Flash, along with the other members of the JSA, were bathed in "chronal radiations" that served to keep them vital in the coming decades. When he was captured along with the active JSA members, he and the others were also charter members of the ALL-STAR SQUADRON.

.....After the War, The Flash returned to active membership in the Justice society, but did not return to the role of chairman. Serving with the group until the early 1950's, when the US government demanded that he reveal his ID to them in order to be "above suspiscion", Jay took a leave from his heroic identity and married Joan Williams. A little more than a year later, though, he began to be semi-active in and around Keystone City, and occassionaly doing covert work for the govenment. In his private life, Jay and Joan purchased Keysotne Labs and renaming it Garrick Laboratories, began to delve into pure research as time allowed.

.....Over two decades ago, Jay revealed his true identity to the general public However, three of the Flash's enemies, The Thinker, The Shade and The Fiddler, combined their knowledge and created a way of removing Keystone City from the realms and memories of humanity. Trapped along with the population of Keystone and aging at a slightly slower pace, the populace remained trapped until freed by another speedster who had taken up the name of Flash. Freeing Jay and aiding him in defeating the three villains and returning Keystone City to its rightful dimension. Jay soon afterwards teamed up with his old friends in the JSA and began to fight crime at least semi-actively in Keystone City. Jay and the new Flash, Barry Allen, began a friendship that lasted until Barry's death during The Crisis. Soon afterwards, nearly all the JSA members were trapped in a Norse God's counterfit gotterdamerung doomed, it seemed to be re-enacting the final battle of the gods for all time.

.....After being freed, Jay and several other members began adventuring on a semi-regular basis, with Jay being asked to lead the unorganized Justice League America for a short time to instill in them the concepts of teamwork and leadership.

.....After the devestating loss of four members of the JSA during the Zero Hour Crisis, Jay and the others felt that maybe their time had passed, but after helping out the "Flash Family", and seeing a third generation of heroes needing their guidence, Jay and the still-active members of the Justice Society reformed, admitting in their legacies and continuing to fight the good fight.

Powers and Abilities

.....The first Flash was able to speed at multiples of the speed of light, had control of his molecular vibration ( which he could alter its alignment by vibrating at super-speeds ) where he could pass through solid objects and keep his head slightly out of phase to hid his identity. He had an invisible aura that extended past his body that protected him from the increased heat that would accompany travel at high speeds. These powers, unknown to him at the time, were due to his connection with the Speed Force, an other-dimesional, nearly sentient energy field that powers all superspeedsters. At the height of his abilities, he could timetravel and dimentionally transport unaided, by speeding up and controlling the vibration speed of his molocules.

.....As Jay aged, he began to slow, so now he can only timetravel with mechanical aids or with another higher powered speedster.

Chronological Listing of Comic Book Appearances

Secret Origins(v3)# 9/2//Flash Comics(v1)# 1-7 November '38 thru mid '39
All-Star Comics(v1)# 1
Flash# 8-10
All-Star(v1)#2
Flash# 11-13
DC Special# 29/Secret Origins(v3)# 31 November 7, '40
All-Star# 3-4/All-Star Squadron# 67 November 22-27, '41
Flash# 14-18
All-Flash Comics# 1
Flash# 19
All-Star# 5
Flash# 20-21
All-Star# 6
Impulse:Bart Saves the Universe
All-Flash# 2
Flash# 22-23
All-Star# 7 thru June 28, '41
All-Star Squadron Annual# 3
DC 2000# 1-2 thru July 3, '41
Flash# 24-25
All-Flash# 3
Flash# 26-28
Justice League(v1)# 193/All-Star Squadron# 1-4 December 6-9, '41
All-Star Squadron Annual# 1January 11, '42
All-Flash# 4
All-Star Squadron# 26, Annual# 2, 27 thru February 12, '42
All-Star Squadron# 31-32 February 22-23, '42
Flash# 29-31
All-Flash# 5
Flash# 32-34
All-Flash# 6
Flash# 35-36
All-Flash# 7
Flash# 37
Comic Cavalcade# 1
Flash# 38
All-Flash# 8
Flash# 39-40
All-Flash# 9
CC# 2
Flash# 41-42
All-Flash# 10
Flash# 43
CC# 3
Flash# 44
All-Flash# 11
Flash# 45-46
All-Flash# 12
CC# 4
Flash# 47-49
All-Flash# 13
CC# 5
Flash# 50-52
All-Flash# 14 ( teams with Green Lantern )
CC# 6
Flash# 53-55
All-Flash# 15
CC# 7
Flash# 56-58
All-Flash# 16
CC# 8
Green Lantern: Brightest Day/Blackest Night
Flash# 59-60
Big All-American Comics# 1
Flash# 61
All-Flash# 17
CC# 9
Flash# 62-64
All-Star# 24
All-Star(v2)# 1 early February, '45
National Comics(v2)# 1
All-Star(v2)# 2 late February, '45
All-Flash# 18
CC# 10
Flash# 65
All-Star# 25
All-Flash# 19
CC# 11
Flash# 66
All-Star# 26
All-Flash# 20
CC# 12
Flash# 67-68
All-Star# 27
All-Flash# 21
CC# 13
Flash# 69-71
All-Star# 28
All-Flash# 22
CC# 14
Flash# 72-73
All-Star# 29
All-Flash# 23
CC# 15
Flash# 74-75
All-Star# 30
All-Flash# 24
CC# 16
Flash# 76-77
All-Star# 31
All-Flash# 25
CC# 17
Flash# 78-79
All-Star# 32
All-Flash# 26
CC# 18
Flash# 80-81
All-Star# 33
All-Flash# 27
CC# 19
Flash# 82-83
All-Star# 34
All-Flash# 28
CC# 20
Flash# 84-85
All-Star# 35
All-Flash# 29
CC# 21
Flash# 86-87
All-Star# 36
All-Flash# 30
CC# 22
Flash# 88-89
All-Star# 37
All-Flash# 31
CC# 23
Flash# 90-91
All-Star# 38
All-Flash# 32
CC# 24
Flash# 92-93
All-Star# 39
CC# 25
Flash# 94-95
All-Star# 40
CC# 26
Flash# 96-97
All-Star# 41
CC# 27
Flash# 98-99
All-Star# 42
CC# 28
Flash# 100-101
All-Star# 43
CC# 29
Flash# 102-103
All-Star# 44
Flash# 104
Flash(v3)# 161 '49
All-Star# 45-53
Justice Society(v1)# 1, 4, 6-8 September '50
Flash 50th Anniversery Special# 1
All-Star# 54-57
Adventure Comics(v1)# 466 ( flashback ) February 21, '51
The Shade# 3 '51
Secret Origins(v3)# 50 ( flashback ) '56
Infinity Inc# 33 ( flashback ) May not be in continuity for this character
Flash(v2)# 123 June 26, Eleven years ago
Flash 80pg Giant(v2)# 2/1
Flash(v2)# 129, 137
Justice League(v1)# 21-22, 29-30
Flash(v2)# 151
201, 215, 229, 305
Justice League(v1)# 37-38 JLA:Incarnations# 1
Flash(v2)# 170, 173
Justice League(v1)# 64-65, 82-83, 91-92, 100-102, 107-108, 113
Flash(v2)# 235-236
All-Star# 58-59
Justice League(v1)# 135-137
All-Star# 60-68
Justice League(v1)# 147-148
All-Star# 69-70
Green Lantern(v2)# 108
Showcase# 99
All-Star# 72
Justice League(v1)# 166 ( flashback ), 159-160
All-Star# 73-74
Adventure Comics(v1)# 461-463, 465
Justice League(v1)# 171-172
Spectre(v3)# 54 ( flashback )
Adventure# 466
Justice League(v1)# 183-185, 195-197, 219-220
Infinity Inc#1-12 December 25, Eight years ago
America Vs The Justice Society# 1-4 of 4 no longer in continuity
IInc# 19/Justice League(v1)# 244
IInc# 21-22, 27, 33, Ann# 1 July 22, Seven years ago
Crisis On Infinite Earths# 5-7, 9-12
The Last Days of the Justice Society# 1
Armegeddon: Inferno# 4
Flash(v3)# 75-78, 92, 96-101, 109-111, 114, 127
Impulse# 10-11
Justice Society(v2)# 1-
Justice League Europe# 48-50
Justice Society(v2)# -10
Wonder Woman (v1)# 291 no longer in continuity
Spectre (v3)# 20
Zero Hour# 3, 2 of 5
Superman (v2)# 57
Guy Gardner: Warrior# 29
JLA(v3)# -
JSA Secret Files and Origins# 1
JSA(v3)# 1-

This Page was Created November 30, 1999.
This Page was last Updated May 1, 2001.