***”FANTASY ETHNIC COLLECTION” (1994)***
*************”HISTORY”*************
**Since 1982, Richwell Trading Ltd has had the exclusive Philippine distribution rights of Mattel toys.
*From 1991 to 2003, this company produced Barbie dolls that were distributed exclusively in the Philippines.

*Most of the dolls were “Filipina”, with a darker complexion and specially-rooted black/brown hair, and wore Philippine ethnic or traditional-inspired fashions.
*These were usually of limited edition (from 500 to 22,000).
Richwell also produced Caucasian Barbie dolls for exclusive distribution in the Philippines and Asia.

*Furbys can communicate with one another via a heart-shaped infrared port. Furbys start out speaking entirely Furbish, a language with short words, simple syllables, and various other sounds, but are programmed to speak less and less Furbish and more and more English as they

**”Alice and the Brady Family”**

*As the years passed, Alice quietly watched as each and every member of the Brady family grew up and moved on with their own lives. But age and distance never mattered to Alice. For whenever one the Brady’s needed some advice or a friendly shoulder to cry on, Alice was always there to lend a hand, no matter what time of day or night a problem arose. Especially the night in 1988 when Mr. Brady got trapped in a construction site building collapse. Alice and the family were never closer that holiday eve. Thankfully, Mike was rescued and everyone spent a very special Brady Christmas together.

*What happened to the Bradys? Well, Mike Brady retired and got elected to the City Council [with 13,119 votes]. (For a short time in the late 1970s Mike Brady moved the family to a beachfront home and gave up his career as an architect so that the family could star in their own TV variety show.) Carol earned a living as a real estate agent [working for Willowbrook Realty and Advantage Properties]. The oldest son, Greg became a doctor, married Nora, a nurse and had a child named Kevin. Jan followed in her father

The Birth of Betty..
*The first appearance of Betty Boop was in the 6th Talkartoon starring Bimbo, entitled “Dizzy Dishes” (1930.). Grim Natwick was the first animator to draw Betty, who had not yet been officially named. He took inspiration for Betty’s spit curls from a song sheet of Helen Kane, commonly called the “Boop Oop a Doop Girl”. Betty started out being designed as a human-like dog, only her black button nose and floppy ears hinting at her canine nature. These ears later became her round earrings, in part due to the fact that the Fleischer animators had a tendency to change animating styles and features of characters from cartoon to cartoon, and sometimes within the same cartoon. (In “Bum Bandit”-1931- Betty’s nose changes from black to white and then back again in the same cartoon.) Her high baby voice, like her spit curls, were in imitation of singer Helen Kane. Her first starring role was in “Betty Coed” (1931), which also marked the first time the name Betty was connected with the character. In “Any Rags” (1932), Betty became completely human, and her ears permanently became earrings. As for her famous garter, Betty started out with two, then early drawings showing her still with ears show the garter on her right leg. When she became a regular, however, and her features were officially set, the garter moved to her left leg, and stayed there.
Betty’s Return

*Betty’s series ended in 1939 with “Yip Yip Yippy”. In the years to follow, she would appear in clumsily colored re-releases (1970) on television, but her real revival came about during the late 60’s and early 70’s, when her cartoons began to appear in late night showings at college town theaters, as well as part of psychedelic light shows. Since then she has remained popular, with a fan following that becomes larger every day. The 90’s celebration of her 60th anniversary brought her back into the public eye even more. To commemorate the event, A&E did a Biography special on her and on the Fleischers, and the American Movie Classics channel (AMC) has shown several of her cartoons. Her cartoons are now available to the general public in an 8 tape set from Republic Pictures.

Betty’s Strip..
*In 1934, Betty began appearing in comic strips drawn by Bud Counihan (though they were signed with Max Fleischer’s name.) The daily strip ran for one year (1934-1935), then was released only on Sundays until 1937. Appearing with Betty in the strips were a whole cast of regulars, who never made it to the big screen. Several were caricatures of male stars of the time, including Van Twinkle (A dark haired man with a cane and a fancy cigarette holder. Van Twinkle had a baby brother named Percy who was the same age as Billy, Betty’s little brother.), Van Arsdale (a moustached star), Van Hart (a blonde), and Val Velour were a few. More regularly appearing were Von Script (Betty’s director), Aunt Tillie (A large woman with a quick and violent temper, and tattoos of anchors on her forearms) and Betty’s baby brother called Billy or, (when he lost the baby bonnet and grew a little hair) Bubby or Bobby.

*The plotlines in general followed Betty’s adventures as an actress, as well as her dealings with her temperamental little brother and his acting career. Another character featured in the strips, never seen but often mentioned, was “The Chief”, from whom Betty and her director took their orders. Pudgy appeared in several strips as a generic dog, or “Hugo” or “Spunky”, but never Pudgy. Also shown during contract disputes were Betty’s lawyers, a group of four double chinned and balding, bespectacled men. (These collected strips are available in Betty Boop’s Hollywood Chronicles, Avon Books, New York.)

Betty’s Friends..
*In 1932 Betty took over as the Fleischer star, and Bimbo was relegated to the role of her companion. He didn’t seem to mind, even when she stopped being a dog and became human. Other regular co-stars included Ko-Ko the clown, who had been retired for some years from his previous cartoon series, and Pudgy, her faithful puppy companion (created by Myron Waldman). Also seen in many cartoons with Betty were Grampy (who appeared in over 10 Betty cartoons), and the pretty boy Freddy, her sometime love interest, as well as a host of other personified animals (most of whom disappeared after 1934).

*Only appearing once with Betty were Henry, the Little King and Little Jimmy, all adopted from other cartoon strips. As for romantic connection, she was seen not only with Freddy, but also with Bimbo on a regular basis, and Ko-Ko, with slightly less regularity. Ko-Ko was occasionally given the singing voice and dance moves of Cab Calloway during his guest appearances.

Betty’s Voice..
*Among those who provided Betty’s voice were Margie Hines, Kate Wright, Bonnie Poe, Mae Questel and Annabel Little. Ann was the first to be chosen, and made a few cartoons before taking Betty on the road in a vaudeville act.

*Mae Questel was in her teens when she won a Helen Kane look alike contest, and was hired by Paramount, who had Kane’s contract, to appear in the RKO chain of theaters for publicity. In 1931, Max Fleischer saw Mae and invited her to do Betty’s voice, which she did until the series ended in 1939. Many other star voices appeared in Betty cartoons, among them Rudy Vallee (Rudy Valee Memories), Louis Armstrong (“I’ll Be Glad When You’re Dead, You Rascal You”) and Cab Calloway (“Minnie The Moocher”, “Snow White” and “Old Man of the Mountain”) .

Betty’s Sex Appeal..
*Unlike Disney, Fleischer Studios’ only real competitor at the time, Fleischer allowed several racy images and scenarios to enter his cartoons. In several cartoons, Betty loses the top of her dress (“Any Rags”-1932 and “Poor Cinderella”-1934), exposing a frilly strapless bra, and in others her skirt flies up (“Dizzy Red Riding Hood”-1931 and “Barnacle Bill”-1930.) You can even catch a glimpse of her breast in “Betty Boop’s Rise To Fame”, while she changes into her hula outfit, but only if you look quickly (The scene lasts only 1/24th of a second.)

*In the same picture, she performs the hula dance with only a strategically placed flower lei to cover her chest. In a couple of cartoons (“Mysterious Mose”-1930 and “The Old Man of the Mountain”-1933), Betty loses her dress completely, but is conveniently hidden behind a tree or in her bed. Very often Betty’s curved silhouette could be seen through her clothing as she passed before a fire or other light. By 1935, in the era where sitcom married couples slept in separate beds, Betty was toned down. Her skirt was lengthened and her strapless dress given a top and short sleeves. Thankfully, today censors are not so strict, and Betty has returned to her former self.

Betty’s Legal Troubles..
*All was not wine and roses for Betty. In April 1934, Helen Kane, whose popularity had waned since her debut in 1929, filed suit against Max Fleischer, Fleischer Studios and Paramount Pictures for $250,000. She claimed that Betty Boop had stolen her fans. Max Fleischer gave testimony that Betty Boop was not based on Helen Kane (which was untrue – Kane was one of the main inspirations for Betty, though she developed other features on her own as the years progressed.)

*Five of the women who had been the voice for Betty Boop appeared in court to deny that they had attempted to imitate Kane’s voice. The judge even watched and compared several of Betty’s cartoons with some of Helen Kane’s films. There was testimony that the “Boop Oop a Doop” phrase came long before Kane’s popularity, as one witness claimed to have heard the phrase uttered in an Edith Griffith song. And on May 2nd, Paramount Pictures was able to locate a film clip of another singer, Baby Esther, who used the same phrase in a song in 1928.

Betty Today..
*The first Boopabelia hit the stores in 1934, decorating such items as coats, tea sets, cards, dolls and watches with her now familiar image. Today, you can find anything from t-shirts and shower curtains, to personalized checks and nail polish, each bearing Betty’s charming likeness.

*A new line of Betty Boop dolls from Precious Kids has just been released, including some talking dolls. Her cartoons have been released and re-released, and her complete set of cartoons is now available in an 8 tape set, celebrating her 60th year, (available at any major movie retailer, and Amazon.com.) She remains popular in Europe and in Mexico, as well as other places around the world. With her round wide eyes and her pouty mouth, she has boop-oop-a-dooped her way into the hearts of hundreds, or even thousands.

PERSONAL DATA

Born July 18, 1921 in Cambridge, Ohio. Married to the former Anna Margaret Castor of New Concord, Ohio. They have two grown children and two grandchildren.

EDUCATION

Glenn attended primary and secondary schools in New Concord, Ohio. He attended Muskingum College in New Concord and received a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering. Muskingum College also awarded him an honorary Doctor of Science degree in engineering. He has received honorary doctoral degrees from nine colleges or universities.

SPECIAL HONORS

Glenn has been awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross on six occasions, and holds the Air Medal with 18 Clusters for his service during World War II and Korea. Glenn also holds the Navy Unit Commendation for service in Korea, the Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, the American Campaign Medal, the World War II Victory Medal, the China Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the Korean Presidential Unit Citation, the Navy’s Astronaut Wings, the Marine Corps’ Astronaut Medal, the NASA Distinguished Service Medal, and the Congressional Space Medal of Honor. On March 1, 1999, NASA renamed its Cleveland center the “John H. Glenn Research Center at Lewis Field” in his honor.

EXPERIENCE

He entered the Naval Aviation Cadet Program in March 1942 and was graduated from this program and commissioned in the Marine Corps in 1943. After advanced training, he joined Marine Fighter Squadron 155 and spent a year flying F-4U fighters in the Marshall Islands.

During his World War II service, he flew 59 combat missions. After the war, he was a member of Marine Fighter Squadron 218 on the North China patrol and served on Guam. From June 1948 to December 1950 Glenn was an instructor in advanced flight training at Corpus Christi, Texas. He then attended Amphibious Warfare Training at Quantico, Virginia. In Korea he flew 63 missions with Marine Fighter Squadron 311. As an exchange pilot with the Air Force Glenn flew 27 missions in the F-86 Sabrejet. In the last nine days of fighting in Korea Glenn downed three MIG’s in combat along the Yalu River.

After Korea, Glenn attended Test Pilot School at the Naval Air Test Center, Patuxent River, Maryland. After graduation, he was project officer on a number of aircraft. He was assigned to the Fighter Design Branch of the Navy Bureau of Aeronautics (now Bureau of Naval Weapons) in Washington from November 1956 to April 1959, during which time he also attended the University of Maryland.

In July 1957, while project officer of the F8U Crusader, he set a transcontinental speed record from Los Angeles to New York, spanning the country in 3 hours and 23 minutes. This was the first transcontinental flight to average supersonic speed. Glenn has nearly 9,000 hours of flying time, with approximately 3,000 hours in jet aircraft.

NASA EXPERIENCE

Glenn was assigned to the NASA Space Task Group at Langley Research Center, Hampton, Virginia, in April 1959 after his selection as a Project Mercury Astronaut. The Space Task Group was moved to Houston and became part of the NASA Manned Spacecraft Center (now Johnson Space Center) in 1962. Glenn flew on Mercury-6 (February 20, 1962) and STS-95 (October 29 to November 7, 1998), and has logged over 218 hours in space. Prior to his first flight, Glenn had served as backup pilot for Astronauts Shepard and Grissom. When astronauts were given special assignments to ensure pilot input into the design and development of spacecraft, Glenn specialized in cockpit layout and control functioning, including some of the early designs for the Apollo Project. Glenn resigned from the Manned Spacecraft Center on January 16, 1964. He was promoted to the rank of Colonel in October 1964 and retired from the Marine Corps on January 1, 1965. He was a business executive from 1965 until his election to the United States Senate in November 1974. Glenn retired from the U.S. Senate in January 1999.

SPACE FLIGHT EXPERIENCE

On February 20, 1962, Glenn piloted the Mercury-Atlas 6 “Friendship 7” spacecraft on the first manned orbital mission of the United States. Launched from Cape Canaveral (Florida) Launch Complex 14, he completed a successful three-orbit mission around the earth, reaching a maximum altitude (apogee) of approximately 162 statute miles and an orbital velocity of approximately 17,500 miles per hour. Glenn’s “Friendship 7” Mercury spacecraft landed approximately 800 miles southeast of Cape Canaveral in the vicinity of Grand Turk Island. Mission duration from launch to impact was 4 hours, 55 minutes, and 23 seconds.

STS-95 Discovery (October 29 to November 7, 1998) was a 9-day mission during which the crew supported a variety of research payloads including deployment of the Spartan solar-observing spacecraft, the Hubble Space Telescope Orbital Systems Test Platform, and investigations on space flight and the aging process. The mission was accomplished in 134 Earth orbits, traveling 3.6 million miles in 213 hours and 44 minutes.

June 19, 1997

“HOT WHEELS”
**ANOTHER SUCCESS FROM JPL’S TECHNOLOGY AFFILIATES PROGRAM**

It rocks, it rolls, it boogies. Mattel Inc.’s Hot Wheels JPL Sojourner Mars Rover Action Pack Set, a toy version of Sojourner, a mini-rover destined to traverse the Martian soil starting July 4, recreates the real robot’s distinctive, six-wheeled, “rocker- bogie” locomotion system. The toy, now available nationwide, is but one example of how the Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s Technology Affiliates Program works cooperatively with industry.

Through this program, corporations form strategic alliances with JPL either to license intellectual property, as was the case with Mattel, or to gain access to JPL’s engineers and scientists to help solve a range of technological problems. To date, more than 120 companies, large and small, have utilized the program to solve upwards of 200 specific technology challenges.

In short, the program provides a streamlined way for JPL, one of 10 NASA centers around the country, to do business with the private sector. The payoff: technologies developed for the space program prove beneficial back on Earth and, in the case of the Mattel toy, help educate and enthuse the public about the space program.

“We are pleased to have forged an alliance with Mattel through our Technology Affiliates Program,” says Merle McKenzie, manager of JPL’s Commercial Technology Office. “Who could help but become intrigued by the Mars Pathfinder mission, scheduled to land on Mars on July 4 and set Sojourner free to explore the red planet, after seeing this intricately accurate mini-version of the mission’s mini-rover?”

She adds, “When Mattel first approached us in 1995 with the idea of creating a toy based on Sojourner, the Technology Affiliates Program significantly streamlined the process of licensing this technology. The program is designed precisely to cut red tape and get things moving along swiftly.”

JPL is managed by the California Institute of Technology, which serves as the party of record on all patents developed at JPL and works closely with JPL on Technology Affiliates Program agreements.

Mars Pathfinder is one of the first missions in a new, decade-long NASA program of robotic exploration to expand scientists’ knowledge of Mars. The unifying theme throughout the decade is the search for water, which is a key requirement for life. Sojourner, the first rover ever to explore the Martian surface, will not only take close-up images of the Martian terrain but also will measure the composition of the rocks and surface soil, determining their mineralogy.

Sojourner’s many innovations include miniature electronics and the ability to decide on its own whether to climb over rocks up to its own height of 0.3 meters (one foot) or to circumnavigate larger ones. Its “rocker-bogie” suspension is unique in that it does not use springs. Rather, its joints bend and conform to the contour of the ground, providing the greatest degree of stability for traversing rocky, uneven surfaces. A six- wheeled chassis was chosen over a four-wheeled design because it provides greater stability.

Many of these fascinating features have been captured in the Mattel toy. “We hope this does indeed turn out to be a big hit,” says McKenzie. “After all, what better way to inform the public about the space program and get everyone enthused about the marvelous technology it has inspired?”

“The Black Cat is an expert thief”!!!

“Fictional character biography”

The Black Cat’s first appearance, on Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 1 #194. Cover art by Keith Pollard.Felicia Hardy was born in Queens, New York. Her father Walter was a world-renowned cat burglar who, before his arrest, encouraged her to never settle for second best. If she loved basketball, she should work to become a basketball player and not just a cheerleader.

*During her freshman year in college, Felicia was date raped by her boyfriend Ryan. Hating the idea of being a victim, she decided that despite the consequences she would murder her rapist. She put aside her studies and began training in various fighting styles and acrobatics. Finally, after months of preparing, she set out for revenge, but before she could find him, Ryan was killed in a drunk-driving accident.

*Furious that she was denied the chance to steal the life of the man who had stolen hers, and feeling reckless, Hardy decided to utilize her new skills to follow in the footsteps of her father. After amassing a fortune in stolen items, Felicia chose to adopt a costume identity.

*She first donned the Black Cat costume in order to break her father out of prison. On the same night, she met Spider-Man. Unfortunately for Felicia, her father died, and she then faked her own death. Despite her antipathy towards men, Felicia felt a kinship with this lone hero; Spider-Man was the first man she felt she could trust and she grew to believe herself in love with him. Felicia looked for a way to earn his trust and continued with the Black Cat persona as a misguided attempt to attract his affection. Seeing the good in Felicia, Spider-Man made every attempt to have her criminal record expunged.

*Felicia had been placed in a mental institution, but escaped. She joined forces with Spider-Man against the Maggia. She was granted conditional amnesty, and again convinced Spider-Man that she had died.

*The Black Cat finally found the opportunity to prove herself after learning the Kingpin controlled an incredibly powerful detonator. The Owl planned to use the weapon to hold New York City hostage. Meanwhile, Doctor Octopus planned to use the weapon to destroy the city altogether. However, the Black Cat was able to use her abilities to steal the item first and protect it from all parties. She gave the detonator to Spider-Man and became the target of Doctor Octopus’s revenge. Although Spider-Man was able to tear off his mechanical appendages, Octopus was still able to mentally control them and hold the Black Cat still while his men opened fire. Spider-Man barely got her to the hospital in time and as they operated on the dozens of bullet and knife wounds, Peter realized just how much he cared for Felicia.

*After she recovered, they began a relationship and soon Peter revealed his identity to her. Felicia had great difficulty accepting the fact that Peter was just a man beneath the mask and couldn’t understand his need for a civilian life. Peter was hurt, but continued the relationship since it was the first time he didn’t need to hide his life as Spider-Man from someone.

*Initially, the “accidents” which seemed to befall those who crossed the Black Cat’s path were merely well-planned stunts and traps. After her near-death experience, Felicia feared her lack of superpowers made her a liability for Spider-Man. She was terrified that his overwhelming need to protect her would eventually kill him. So, Felicia sought a way to make herself Spider-Man’s equal. After learning Tony Stark was missing, Henry Pym wouldn’t return her calls, and being rejected by the Avengers and the Fantastic Four, Felicia was offered an opportunity to undergo the same process that was used to create the Scorpion and the Fly.

*The Kingpin chose to use it on the Black Cat as payback for a theft she committed. Scared and ashamed of being empowered by the Kingpin of crime, she decided to keep her new abilities a secret from Peter. While Spider-Man was gone during the “Secret Wars”, Felicia searched for him at Avengers Mansion; Vision offered her the chance to join the Avengers, which she declined, being interested solely in Spider-Man. Upon his return, her ‘bad luck’ power turned out to be infectious, and began to jinx Spider-Man, which was exactly the Kingpin’s intent. Feeling a wall of secrets growing between them, Spider-Man broke up with Felicia. Felicia then began a “Robin Hood crusade,” stealing from the rich to give to the poor.

*Peter soon realized something was amiss with his own luck and enlisted the aid of Doctor Strange to remove the “hex” on him. By doing so, he altered the hex’s source and changed the Black Cat’s powers in the process. She soon found she had heightened strength, agility, balance, vision, and retractable claws. While burglarizing the mercenary known as the Foreigner, Black Cat was attacked by Sabretooth, the Foreigner’s hit man; Spider-Man saved her life.

*The Black Cat updated her look and her attitude and rekindled her relationship with Spider-Man. She made peace with his need for a normal life as Peter Parker and stood by him while he was being accused of murder as Spider-Man. Together, they tracked down the source of the elaborate scheme to frame him and fought the Foreigner.

*Eventually, just as his life seemed to be falling apart, Spider-Man came home to discover Black Cat discussing her plans to ruin his life. He followed her to find she had never forgiven him for breaking up with her and in revenge became the Foreigner’s lover. She then battled and defeated Sabretooth. Her apartment was fire-bombed by the Foreigner’s hit man Blaze, and she began living with Peter Parker. During her ruse against Peter and despite her anger, Felicia began to fall back onto her desire to love Peter. She soon donned another new costume. Spider-Man then discovered her association with the Foreigner. She cleared Spider-Man of a murder charge. In the end, the Black Cat double crossed the Foreigner and left for Paris to find a new life, which unexpectedly pushed Peter to find support and a new relationship with Mary Jane Watson.

*Years later, the Black Cat returned to America, and went “shopping” with Dagger.
She returned to her original costume, went to seek out Peter Parker, and fought Venom. She was devastated when Venom informed her that Peter had married Mary Jane Watson. Angry and jealous, Felicia began harassing the couple, taunting Peter as she dated his friend Flash Thompson. She began physically threatening Mary Jane, confronting her and swearing to ruin their marriage.

*She saved a powerless Spider-Man from the Scorpion, but then all her powers were rendered inert by one of the Chameleon’s devices. She began to believe that she sincerely cared for Thompson, but he eventually broke up with her when he found out her secret. The Black Cat eventually moved past her feelings of anger and jealousy, and became friends with both Spider-Man and Mary Jane. She was one of the few to stand with Spider-Man and Venom against Carnage and his “brood” in the Maximum Carnage arc. Originally she sided with Venom’s belief that the only way to defeat Carnage was to kill him, but at the end, she fought along side Spider-Man in his effort to battle the chaos with compassion.

*After Spider-Man used a device to remove his superhuman abilities, the Black Cat aided him in finding the device again in order to restore them. In the process, the Black Cat’s cat-like abilities were completely erased. She subsequently purchased equipment from the Tinkerer to incorporate into her costume in order to compensate for her lost abilities, and occasionally teams up with Spider-Man.

*After Spider-Man unmasked himself, the Black Cat was disappointed, because she had felt that they shared a bond over knowing his identity, which she described as “sexy”. Though she is currently dating Thomas Fireheart (a.k.a. Puma), her new sexual interest notes that Felicia may still have some romantic inclinations toward Peter. After the events of One More Day in the Spider-Man comic books, it is stated that no one knows that Peter Parker is Spider-Man, but whether or not this applies to Felicia is unclear at this point.

Civil War/The Initiative…
*The Black Cat is a member of the new Heroes For Hire during the on-going Civil War although Misty Knight implied that Felicia was just there for the money.

Personality…
*Originally portrayed as an unstable young woman obsessed with Spider-Man, Felicia Hardy evolved into a strong-willed and clever foil to the Webslinger. When the two began dating, her personality was very superficial (when Peter Parker revealed his identity to Felicia, she begged him to put his mask back on — she couldn’t deal with the thought of Spider-Man as an average guy.) Felicia is a loyal friend, resourceful fighter, and, appropriately enough, catty.

Associates and enemies…
*Spider-Man (Peter Parker) – Originally on opposite sides of the law, Peter and Felicia fell into an intense (and primarily physical) romance when she reformed. However, since her initial attraction was towards Spider-Man rather than Peter Parker, their relationship failed. After a short period of animosity, they became close friends who help each other out on a regular basis. Felicia realizes now that breaking up with Peter was a mistake and that she is in fact “crushing on” Spider-Man and Peter Parker now, whom she considers “the best guy I’ve ever known.” She is also the only person in the Marvel Universe who calls Spider-Man by the nickname “Spider”, as opposed to the common “Spidey”.

*Mary Jane Watson-Parker – Peter’s wife and erstwhile rival for his affections. Initially mutually hostile, as Felicia believed Mary Jane “stole” Peter away from her, the two women have grown quite close and friendly, similar to Veronica Lodge and Betty Cooper in the Archie Comics. Nevertheless, Felicia is not above referring to Peter’s wife as “Mary Plain” when arguing with Peter about their previous relationship.
Flash Thompson – A friend of the Parkers, Felicia began a relationship with him in order to dump him to get back at Peter for marrying Mary Jane. Ironically, she actually came to love Flash and was dumped by him instead. This relationship took a different path in the MC2 Universe.

*Puma – After teaming up together during the storyline “Feral”, they begin a romantic relationship.
*Tinkerer – A business acquaintance of Felicia who crafted much of her current equipment.
*Wolverine – The Black Cat and Wolverine teamed up in the Marvel Knights miniseries “Claws.” They go on a date afterward.

*She also teamed up with Captain America, Cloak and Dagger, Deathlok, Firestar, Iron Fist, Morbius, Nightwatch, and Venom during Maximum Carnage.
Her teammates among the New Heroes For Hire are Misty Knight, Colleen Wing, Tarantula, Shang-Chi, Paladin, American Samurai, Orka, and the Humbug.

Powers and abilities…
Initially, the Black Cat had no superhuman abilities. It was later revealed that she had a latent mutant psionic ability to affect probability fields. This ability was activated through genetic alteration by scientists employed by the Kingpin. The “bad luck” power entails that under stress she is subconsciously able to cause anyone in her immediate vicinity that she perceives as a threat to be susceptible to freak accidents, like guns jamming and exploding, or tripping on objects, etc.

*This ability also had the side effect of eventually causing problems for anyone spending long periods of time around her. Doctor Strange eventually tampered with her powers removing that unwanted side-effect. However, this magical tampering temporarily endowed her with cat-like abilities, giving her retractable talons in her fingertips, superhuman speed and strength, agility, and endurance, proportionate to a cat, and infrared vision and the sensory acuity of a cat. She lost these abilities as the magic faded. In the third issue of the Claws mini-series, she states that she can smell pheromones, meaning that she may still retain some animal-like sense of smell.

*The Black Cat has reflexes, agility, and stamina of an Olympic level acrobat. She is physically very strong and athletic and has great physical endurance. She is an excellent street fighter capable of taking on several armed assailants and incapacitating them without being injured herself. Her strength and, when pushed too far, ferocity in battle has proven to be overwhelming enough to defeat the mutant assassin known as Sabretooth. She is trained in several martial arts styles.

*The Black Cat has also acquired several devices from the Tinkerer that increase her agility and heighten her strength. She wears earrings that interact with the balance centers of her brain to grant her enhanced agility. She has contact lenses that let her see in various ranges of the electromagnetic spectrum, such as infra-red and ultraviolet. Her costume contains micro-servos that enhance her strength above normal human levels.

*The gloves of her costume contain steel micro-filaments, which form retractable claws at the fingertips when she flexes her fingers (triggering a magnetic surge which condenses the filaments into polarized talons) which enable her to tear through most surfaces and easily scale walls. In addition, the costume is extremely distracting and provocative (due to its skin-tight shape and plunging v-neck that exposes her cleavage), which can make it difficult for a male assailant to concentrate on what he is doing. Using this equipment, the Black Cat has been able to successfully best enemies who have superhuman abilities.

*The Black Cat has a miniature grappling hook device hidden in the “fur” of each glove, designed by her father Walter Hardy, which enables her to swing from buildings in a manner similar to Spider-Man, though not quite as fast. She can also use the cable from this device as a tightrope, wall scaling device, or as a weapon in combat. Or she can use it as a swing-line.

**”The Black Cat is an expert thief.”**

*Historical significance*

*Storm was one of the first black comic book characters, and the first black female, to play either a major or supporting role in the big two comic book houses, Marvel Comics and DC Comics. Within these two companies, her 1975 debut was only preceded by a few male black characters.

*In Marvel Comics, preceding characters were Gabe Jones (debuted in 1963), Black Panther (1966), Bill Foster (1966), Spider-Man supporting characters Joe Robertson (1967) and his son Randy (1968) and Hobie Brown, The Falcon (1969), Luke Cage (1972), Blade (1973) and Abe Brown (1974). In DC Comics, she was preceded by Teen Titans member Mal Duncan who debuted in 1970, Green Lantern wielder John Stewart (1971), and Mister Miracle prot

*Lorna Dane was orphaned only weeks after her birth when her parents supposedly died in a plane crash. She was adopted by the Danes, a couple who claimed to be her mother’s sister and brother-in-law, and did not learn of her adoption or the fate of her birth parents until she was nearly twenty years old.
*Lorna had been born with green hair, which she always kept dyed brown so that she would not be seen as “different.” Lorna

*The argument that children are not seriously affected by what they watch on television received a damaging blow on Dec 16, 1997 when hundreds of children across Japan suffered fits and convulsions while watching their favorite cartoon program. After inquiries, the culprit was found to be a series of strobe-style flashing colored lights during a cartoon character’ transformance scene. The number of victims had been increased by the fact that the incident had occurred during the most popular cartoon series in recent years, Pocket Monsters.

*Pocket Monsters, or “Pokemon,” began life as a Nintendo game in Feb 1996, based on every child’s obsession – monsters, and lots of them. One hundred and fifty of them to be exact, all nurtured by the owners of the tiny gameboy devices. The marketing ploy that led to Pokemon’s initial success was that the gameboys were sold in two different sets. By linking up the different gameboys with a special lead, children could swap monsters and pit them against each other in arena-style battles – like the trading card system, only better. Also, the monsters were not designed to frighten but to appeal. These were cuddly, cute, peculiarly Japanese monsters that you would quite happily take home under your coat if you found one in real life.

*Impressive sales garnered a lot of industry attention and in April 1997 Pokemon debuted on Japanese TV as a children’s anime series. One monster in particular became the series mascot, embedding itself in the nation’s consciousness alongside Godzilla and Ultraman. This was the small, yellow, rodent-like creature known as Pikachu. This rosy-cheeked little devil now appears across the nation in the form of soft toys, key rings, snack foods, candy boxes, not to mention being scrawled in the back of every pre-adolescent’s schoolbook. The anime show also introduced some human characters, such as the young boy Satoshi, whose dream is to become the world’s greatest trainer of fighting monsters. Conflict is provided by the villains, Musashi and Koliro, who are always trying to spoil Satoshi’s dreams and steal the glory for themselves.

*The “Pokemon Shock Incident” (as it was dubbed by the tabloids) led to the suspension of the program and a public apology from the chairman of TV Tokyo. However, nothing stands in the way of profit and the series returned to the small screen in April 1998, more popular than ever.

*Having conquered the domestic market, the Pokemon masters are now setting their sights on the rest of the world. Since Sept 1997, the program has been aired on TV stations across the US with phenomenal success. The Summit Media Group, which markets the program in the States, reported that it was “spreading like wildfire” among American children. It has also been shown in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Shogakkan Production Co., the program’s overseas agents, are currently negotiating with mainland China, Italy and Germany. Masakazu Kubo, a senior executive at Shogakkan, has stated that they intend to turn Pikachu into a global icon as ubiquitous as Mickey Mouse.

*Watch out! That loud thump you hear could well be the sound of thousands of Western kids hitting the floor – their brains failing to cope with the overdose of cuteness.