Jerome Beechman

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The Mandrill
Aliases:	Mandrill
Continuity:	Marvel Universe
Notability:	Antagonist
Type:	Supervillain
Gender:	Male
Race:	Mutant
Location:	Mobile
Relatives:	Frederic Beechman (father); Emily Beechman (mother)
Status:	Alive
Born:	1944
First:	Shanna, the She-Devil #4

The Mandrill is a fictional supervillain featured in comic books published by Marvel Comics. He is classically considered a foe of Daredevil and Shanna the She-Devil. The character was created by writer Steve Gerber and artist Ross Andru and first appeared in Shanna, the She-Devil #4, cover-dated June, 1973. The Mandrill is a mutant who possesses an ape-like body and has the ability to mentally enslave women. Partnered with the albino mutant Nekra, he has initiated several ambitious plots to overthrow existing governments in order to create his own ideal of a Utopian society.

Biography

Origin

Baby Mandrill.

Jerome Beechman was born in the year 1944. His father, Frederic Beechman, was a scientist who had worked on the Manhattan Project. One evening, an electrical fire caused an explosion of a small nuclear stockpile buried beneath the facility. The blast wasn't strong enough to be lethal, but both Beechman and a cleaning woman named Gemma Sinclair were exposed to low levels of atomic radiation.

The radiation from Jerome's father had a mutagenic effect on him. He was born with dark brown skin, in contrast to his father's caucasian features, and tufts of hair all over his body. As he grew older, he continued to mutate, taking on the characteristics of a primate. As such, Jerome was often the subject of jeers and taunts from other boys his age. When he turned ten, his father could no longer deal with having a mutant son and he abandoned him.

Jerome handled the rejection as any child might, with seething rage. He swore that he would hunt down and kill his father, and journeyed out into the deserts seeking him out. It was at this time that Jerome met Nekra Sinclair. Coincidentally, Nekra was the daughter of the cleaning woman who worked at the same laboratory as Jerome's father. Like him, she too was a mutant.

The two decided to run away together and lived by hopping box cars and stealing what they needed to survive. They educated themselves by creeping outside school house windows and listening to the teacher giving instructions to the class. This went on for quite some time, but eventually they were found out. A mob discovered them and one of their number recognized Jerome and Nekra whom they had spotted near a school. The mob attacked and it was at this time that both Jerome and Nekra discovered their mutant powers. Using his enhanced strength, Jerome fought back, killing several members of the mob. He also discovered that he had mental powers as well. He had the ability to mentally enslave any woman, including Nekra.

The Mandrill

As years went on, Jerome and Nekra continued to work together and Beechman took on the identity of the Mandrill. Their first scheme involved toppling three West African nations with the intent of transforming them into a Utopian society. Such lofty measures often come with great cost however, and even greater resistance. They encountered the jungle adventurer Shana the She-Devil, who thwarted their scemes, though both the Mandrill and Nekra managed to escape.

The Mandrill was also responsible for murdering Gerald O'Hara, father of Shanna, the She-Devil.

The Mandrill went on to form a terrorist organization known as Black Spectre. Donning a dark hood and costume, he labored as the mysterious leader of the outfit, using mind-control female slaves as his henchmen. His goal was to overthrow the United States government.

His first attack in New York was aboard his personal zeppelin wherein he crossed swords with Daredevil and the Thing of the Fantastic Four. The heroes boarded the air-ship and while Daredevil dealt with Nekra and her henchwomen, the Thing tried to take down Mandrill himself. He tore away his mask, but suddenly lost all control over his body. Content with successfully defeating the heroes, he had them both put upon the Fantastic Four's Fantasticar and dumped from the zeppelin.

The Mandrill then used his power to enslave the costumed heroine Black Widow. Daredevil fought up against more of the Mandrill's Black Spectre thugs and tracked his partner back to the organization's lair. The Mandrill revealed himself to Daredevil and told him that he had the Widow completely under his control.

Powers

• Pheromone control: The Mandrill secretes powerful pheromones that cause members of the female gender to become his unwilling slaves. This power does not work on males however, though it is unclear as to why this is.
• Superhuman strength: The Mandrill's primate physiology gives him enhanced strength. He can lift and/or press a maximum of 2,500 lbs.
• Superhuman durability: The Mandrill can withstand physical pressures greater than that of the average human. He can also operate at peak efficiency in dangerous climates. The Mandrill's body can withstand great impact forces. He can withstand impacts, such as falling from several stories or being repeatedly struck by a superhumanly strong opponent, that would severely injure or kill a normal human with little to no injury to himself. However, he can be injured by bullets or bladed weapons composed of conventional material as easily as normal humans.
• Superhuman stamina: The Mandrill's superior musculature produces less fatigue toxins during physical activity than the musculature of a normal human. At his peak, he can exert himself for a period of several hours before the build up of fatigue toxins in his blood begins to impair him.
• Super-speed: The Mandrill's powerful leg muscles enable him to run at speeds far in excess to that of a normal human being. His maximum rate of speed is 40 miles per hour, but this can only be maintained for short sprints.
• Superhuman agility: The Mandrill had the agility, balance, and bodily coordination of a great ape. His agility is beyond the natural physical limits of the finest human athlete.

Notes & Trivia

• The character of Jerome Beechman was created by writer Steve Gerber and artists Ross Andru and Vince Colletta.

• An alternate version of the Mandrill made a brief cameo appearance in the "Days of Present Past" story from New Warriors, Volume 1 #11. This version originated from an alternate timeline.

• The Mandrill has also made appearances in the animated series Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes. The character is voiced by Fred Tatasciore.

• His female enforcers in Black Spectre were made to wear makeup similar to that of the Mandrill's facial markings.

Profiles

• Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe 7

See also

• The Mandrill appearances

External Links

• The Mandrill at MDP
• The Mandrill at IMDB
• The Mandrill at Comic Vine
• The Mandrill at the Marvel Universe
• The Mandrill at the Marvel Directory

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