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White Tiger (Hector Ayala)
Encyclopedia
White Tiger is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe
, and was created by Bill Mantlo
and George Pérez
. First appearing in Deadly Hands of Kung Fu
#19 (December 1975), he is the first Puerto Rican
superhero in the history of comics, and Marvel's first superhero of Hispanic
descent.
White Tiger received an entry in the original Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe
#14. He appeared as part of the "Sons of the Tiger" entry in the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Deluxe Edition #12. White Tiger received his own entry in the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Master Edition #11.
. As a college student at New York's Empire State University
, he discovered the tiger amulets that were formerly worn and thrown away by the Sons of the Tiger
. Donning all three amulets, he transformed into the superhuman White Tiger. He discovered that wearing all the pendants at once increased his strength and gave him nearly superhuman skill in the martial arts.
In his alter-ego, Ayala went into action for the first time against a street gang. He then battled the Prowler
, who believed him to be a murderer. The White Tiger battled the Jack of Hearts
who also believed him to be behind his father's murder. The White Tiger fought off unnamed costumed assailants of the Corporation
crime cartel, who were threatening his sister and Jack of Hearts. Alongside Jack of Hearts, Shang-Chi
, and Iron Fist, the White Tiger fought Stryke and other agents of the Corporation, and learned his brother Filippo was attempting to find employment with Fu Manchu. Hector then encountered the Sons of the Tiger.
Ayala was impersonated by Professor Vasquez, and battled Spider-Man
in the confusion. Ayala's secret identity was later publicly exposed by the villainous Lightmaster
. Alongside Spider-Man and Daredevil
, he then battled the Masked Marauder, Darter, and Carrion
. Ayala was later gunned down by Gideon Mace and nearly killed. He was operated upon to remove the bullets, and recovered. Having gained an unhealthy psychological and physical addiction to the tiger amulets, Hector abandoned his identity as the White Tiger. He gave the amulets to a private detective nicknamed Blackbyrd, who returned them to the Sons of the Tiger. Hector then moved out west with his girlfriend Holly Gillis.
After a while, the call to don the amulets and fight evil became too strong and Hector once again became the White Tiger. Soon after, Hector was wrongly accused of murder and convicted despite the efforts of his lawyer, Matt Murdock (a.k.a. Daredevil). Ayala was shot dead trying to escape, shortly before evidence emerged that belatedly proved his innocence.
, Hector's niece and an FBI agent, inherited the Jade Tiger amulets. Angela quit the FBI to understand the amulets, and was trained in the use of their powers by Daredevil, becoming the latest person to assume the White Tiger identity before being killed by the Hand and resurrected as their servant. Having been healed by Black Tarantula
, she joined Daredevil
in the Hand
.
Hector's teenaged sister Ava Ayala later appeared as the new White Tiger.
, which were originally worn by the Sons of the Tiger
(Abe Brown
, Bob Diamond
, and Lin Sun
). When wearing the amulets, Hector's physical strength, speed, stamina, agility, dexterity, reflexes & reactions, coordination, balance, and endurance were all enhanced. The amulet also conferred on him the experience and abilities of a master martial artist. The White Tiger only possessed his enhanced abilities when wearing all three mystical tiger amulets.
Marvel Universe
The Marvel Universe is the shared fictional universe where most comic book titles and other media published by Marvel Entertainment take place, including those featuring Marvel's most familiar characters, such as Spider-Man, the Hulk, the X-Men, and the Avengers.The Marvel Universe is further...
, and was created by Bill Mantlo
Bill Mantlo
Bill Mantlo is an American comic-book writer, primarily at Marvel Comics, best known for his work on two licensed toy properties whose adventures occurred in the Marvel Universe: the Eagle Award-winning Micronauts and the long-running Rom. An attorney, he also worked as a public defender...
and George Pérez
George Pérez
George Pérez is a Puerto Rican-American writer and illustrator of comic books, known for his work on various titles, including Avengers, Teen Titans and Wonder Woman.-Biography:...
. First appearing in Deadly Hands of Kung Fu
Deadly Hands of Kung Fu
Deadly Hands of Kung Fu is a martial arts comic book magazine published by Curtis Magazines, a short-lived imprint of Marvel Comics. There were a total of 33 issues published, plus one "Special Album Edition," before the series was cancelled.-Overview:...
#19 (December 1975), he is the first Puerto Rican
Puerto Rican people
A Puerto Rican is a person who was born in Puerto Rico.Puerto Ricans born and raised in the continental United States are also sometimes referred to as Puerto Ricans, although they were not born in Puerto Rico...
superhero in the history of comics, and Marvel's first superhero of Hispanic
Hispanic
Hispanic is a term that originally denoted a relationship to Hispania, which is to say the Iberian Peninsula: Andorra, Gibraltar, Portugal and Spain. During the Modern Era, Hispanic sometimes takes on a more limited meaning, particularly in the United States, where the term means a person of ...
descent.
Publication history
Following his debut in Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #19, the character subsequently appears in The Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #20-24 (January-May 1976), #26-27 (July-August 1976), #29-32 (October 1976-January 1977), The Spectacular Spider-Man #9-10 (August-September 1977), Human Fly #8-9 (April-May 1978), The Spectacular Spider-Man #18-21 (May-August 1978), The Defenders #62-64 (August-October 1978), The Spectacular Spider-Man #22-23 (September-October 1978), #25-26 (December 1978-January 1979), #29-31 (April-June 1979), #51-52 (February-March 1981), Spidey Super Stories #57 (March 1982), Daredevil #38-40 (December 2002-February 2003), and Daredevil #69 (March 2005).White Tiger received an entry in the original Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe
Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe
The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe is an encyclopedic guide which details the fictional universe featured in Marvel Comics publications...
#14. He appeared as part of the "Sons of the Tiger" entry in the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Deluxe Edition #12. White Tiger received his own entry in the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Master Edition #11.
Fictional character biography
Hector Ayala was born in San Juan, Puerto RicoSan Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan , officially Municipio de la Ciudad Capital San Juan Bautista , is the capital and most populous municipality in Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 395,326 making it the 46th-largest city under the jurisdiction of...
. As a college student at New York's Empire State University
Empire State University
Empire State University is a fictional university in the Marvel Comics Universe, a mixture of New York University and Columbia University . It is located somewhere in New York City, in Greenwich Village near the site of New York University...
, he discovered the tiger amulets that were formerly worn and thrown away by the Sons of the Tiger
Sons of the Tiger
The Sons of the Tiger were three martial arts heroes featured in comic books published by Curtis Magazines called the Deadly Hands of Kung Fu...
. Donning all three amulets, he transformed into the superhuman White Tiger. He discovered that wearing all the pendants at once increased his strength and gave him nearly superhuman skill in the martial arts.
In his alter-ego, Ayala went into action for the first time against a street gang. He then battled the Prowler
Prowler (comics)
The Prowler is the name of three fictional characters owned by Marvel Comics.-Publication history:The original Prowler character was a criminal-turned-superhero named Hobie Brown. He debuted in The Amazing Spider-Man #78...
, who believed him to be a murderer. The White Tiger battled the Jack of Hearts
Jack of Hearts
Jack of Hearts is a fictional character, a superhero in the Marvel Comics universe.-Publication history:Jack of Hearts first appeared in the black & white magazine Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #22 , and was created by writer Bill Mantlo and illustrator Keith Giffen...
who also believed him to be behind his father's murder. The White Tiger fought off unnamed costumed assailants of the Corporation
Corporation (comics)
-Publication history:The Corporation first appeared in Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #23-24 , and was created by Bill Mantlo and Gil Kane....
crime cartel, who were threatening his sister and Jack of Hearts. Alongside Jack of Hearts, Shang-Chi
Shang-Chi
Shang-Chi is a Marvel Comics character, often called the "Master of Kung Fu". He was created by writer Steve Englehart and artist Jim Starlin....
, and Iron Fist, the White Tiger fought Stryke and other agents of the Corporation, and learned his brother Filippo was attempting to find employment with Fu Manchu. Hector then encountered the Sons of the Tiger.
Ayala was impersonated by Professor Vasquez, and battled Spider-Man
Spider-Man
Spider-Man is a fictional Marvel Comics superhero. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and writer-artist Steve Ditko. He first appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15...
in the confusion. Ayala's secret identity was later publicly exposed by the villainous Lightmaster
Lightmaster
Lightmaster is a fictional character, a supervillain in the Marvel Comics universe.-Fictional character biography:Edward Lansky was born in New York City...
. Alongside Spider-Man and Daredevil
Daredevil (Marvel Comics)
Daredevil is a fictional character, a superhero in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Bill Everett, with an unspecified amount of input from Jack Kirby, and first appeared in Daredevil #1 .Living in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood...
, he then battled the Masked Marauder, Darter, and Carrion
Carrion (comics)
Carrion is a fictional character, a supervillain appearing in the Marvel Comics universe, in which he is an enemy of Spider-Man. He first appeared in The Spectacular Spider-Man #25....
. Ayala was later gunned down by Gideon Mace and nearly killed. He was operated upon to remove the bullets, and recovered. Having gained an unhealthy psychological and physical addiction to the tiger amulets, Hector abandoned his identity as the White Tiger. He gave the amulets to a private detective nicknamed Blackbyrd, who returned them to the Sons of the Tiger. Hector then moved out west with his girlfriend Holly Gillis.
After a while, the call to don the amulets and fight evil became too strong and Hector once again became the White Tiger. Soon after, Hector was wrongly accused of murder and convicted despite the efforts of his lawyer, Matt Murdock (a.k.a. Daredevil). Ayala was shot dead trying to escape, shortly before evidence emerged that belatedly proved his innocence.
Family legacy
Angela Del ToroAngela Del Toro
Angela Del Toro is the fourth fictional character to use the name White Tiger in the comic book series published by Marvel Comics. Angela is the niece of the original White Tiger Hector Ayala and exists in Marvel's main shared universe, known as the Marvel Universe...
, Hector's niece and an FBI agent, inherited the Jade Tiger amulets. Angela quit the FBI to understand the amulets, and was trained in the use of their powers by Daredevil, becoming the latest person to assume the White Tiger identity before being killed by the Hand and resurrected as their servant. Having been healed by Black Tarantula
Black Tarantula
Black Tarantula is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appears as an unseen character in The Amazing Spider-Man #419 , and makes his first full appearance in Amazing Spider-Man #432...
, she joined Daredevil
Daredevil (Marvel Comics)
Daredevil is a fictional character, a superhero in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Bill Everett, with an unspecified amount of input from Jack Kirby, and first appeared in Daredevil #1 .Living in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood...
in the Hand
Hand (comics)
The Hand is a fictional supervillainous organization in the Marvel Comics universe.The Hand is an order of evil mystical ninja who are heavily involved in organized crime and mercenary activities such as assassination plots. The Hand covets power above all other objectives. They are primarily based...
.
Hector's teenaged sister Ava Ayala later appeared as the new White Tiger.
Powers and abilities
As the White Tiger, Hector wore the three mystical tiger amulets (a head and two paws) from the extra-dimensional realm of K'un-L'unK'un-L'un
K'un-L'un is a fictional location in the Marvel Comics Universe usually associated with Iron Fist.-Publication history:K'un-L'un first appeared in Marvel Premiere #15 , and was created by Roy Thomas and Gil Kane....
, which were originally worn by the Sons of the Tiger
Sons of the Tiger
The Sons of the Tiger were three martial arts heroes featured in comic books published by Curtis Magazines called the Deadly Hands of Kung Fu...
(Abe Brown
Abe Brown
Abraham "Abe" Brown is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe.-Publication history:Abe Brown first appeared in Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #1 in April 1974...
, Bob Diamond
Bob Diamond (comics)
Robert "Bob" Diamond is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe.-Publication history:Bob Diamond first appeared in Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #1 and was created by Steve Englehart and Jim Starlin....
, and Lin Sun
Lin Sun
Lin Sun is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe.-Publication history:Lin Sun first appeared in Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #1 , and was created by Steve Englehart and Jim Starlin....
). When wearing the amulets, Hector's physical strength, speed, stamina, agility, dexterity, reflexes & reactions, coordination, balance, and endurance were all enhanced. The amulet also conferred on him the experience and abilities of a master martial artist. The White Tiger only possessed his enhanced abilities when wearing all three mystical tiger amulets.