Radioactive Man (character)

"Up and Atom!"

- Radioactive Man's catchphrase

Radioactive Man is a comic book superhero who acquired his powers after surviving an atomic bomb explosion. His sidekick is Fallout Boy.

Publication and media history


Radioactive Man made his début in  #1 in 1952 and alongside comic books, he starred in a sponsored by Laramie Cigarettes. The serials featured Dirk Richter as Radioactive Man and Buddy Hodges as Fallout Boy. Richter was later killed in a bordello.

In the sixties and seventies, a based on Radioactive Man was shown, notable for being more camp than previous portrayals. It also starred Dirk Richter. One of the villains in this series was The Scoutmaster. A based on it was released in 1967.

In the 1980s, Troy McClure starred as Radioactive Man in a film trilogy, consisting of:
 * Radioactive Man
 * Radioactive Man II: Bring On The Sequel
 * Radioactive Man III: Oh God, Not Again

Radioactive Man III starred Krusty the Clown as the main villain Krusto the Evil Clown and original Fallout Boy, Buddy Hodges as Fallout Boy's great grandfather.

A Hollywood studio attempted to film a Radioactive Man movie in Springfield. The movie starred Rainier Wolfcastle as Radioactive Man. The role of Fallout Boy was cast from local children. It went to Milhouse Van Houten. Krusty the Clown was cast as villains Dr. Clownius and Silly Sailor. Wolfcastle was incapable of saying the "Up and Atom!" catchphrase correctly, pronouncing it "Up and at zem," on account of his German accent. The movie was never completed due to budget overruns caused by constant price-gouging by Springfield vendors, and Milhouse snapping from the pressure of the role, and refusing to continue to portray Fallout Boy - former child actor attempted to take over the role, but the film was shelved.

Fictional history
Although it varies slightly in different comics, when millionaire layabout playboy Claude Kane III was caught up in a nuclear explosion, he gained super powers and became Radioactive Man. The explosion lodged a lightning bolt-shaped piece of metal in his head, which helped him survive.

Radioactive Man first met Fallout Boy in issue #9.

In Radioactive Man #72, he marries one of his enemies, Larva Girl. However, this story is just an imaginary tale. Radioactive Man died at the hands of The Fossil Fuel Four, but got rebooted in a new issue.

Comic bibliography

 * Radioactive Man #1
 * Radioactive Man #7
 * Radioactive Man #72
 * Radioactive Man meets the Kansas City Royals
 * Radioactive Man vs. Muhammed Ali
 * Radioactive Man vs. Restless Leg Syndrome
 * Radioactive Man vs. Restless Leg Syndrome

Behind the Laughter

 * There is a Marvel Comics villain who temporarily became a hero named Radioactive Man; he is unrelated to The Simpsons character.
 * Radioactive Man's origin story is similar to the Hulk's.
 * Radioactive Man's billionaire secret identity mirrors Batman and Iron Man.