Doctor Mid-Nite or Doctor Midnight is the name of multiple fictional

superhero A superhero or superheroine is a stock character that typically possesses ''superpowers'', abilities beyond those of ordinary people, and fits the role of the hero, typically using his or her powers to help the world become a better place, ...

es in

DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...

. The figure has been represented in the comics by three different individuals,

Charles McNider Charles McNider (the original Doctor Mid-Nite and a bearer of the name Starman) is a fictional superhero in DC Comics. The character appeared for the first time in '' All-American Comics'' #25 (April 1941). Like many Golden Age heroic character ...

Beth Chapel Beth Chapel (also known as Doctor Midnight) is the name of a fictional superhero in DC Comics. Being a successor of the original Doctor Mid-Nite, Charles McNider. Beth Chapel is portrayed by Anjelika Washington in '' Stargirl''. Fictional chara ...

, and Pieter Anton Cross. Dr. Mid-Nite was originally created by writer Charles Reizenstein and artist Stanley Josephs Aschmeier in 1941. The hero, represented first by Charles McNider, appeared for the first time in ''

All-American Comics ''All-American Comics'' was a comics anthology and the flagship title of comic book publisher All-American Publications, one of the forerunners of DC Comics. It ran for 102 issues from 1939 to 1948. Characters created for the title, including Green ...

'' #25 (April 1941). He continued in ''All-American Comics'' until issue #102 (Oct 1948). Like many

Golden Age The term Golden Age comes from Greek mythology, particularly the ''Works and Days'' of Hesiod, and is part of the description of temporal decline of the state of peoples through five Ages of Man, Ages, Gold being the first and the one during ...

heroic characters, the original Doctor Mid-Nite appeared as a member of DC's

Justice Society of America The Justice Society of America (JSA, or Justice Society (JS)) is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team was conceived by editor Sheldon Mayer and writer Gardner Fox during the Golden Age of Comic ...

. His two successors were also represented as members of the group or an offshoot. Doctor Mid-Nite has never appeared as the solo

protagonist A protagonist () is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot, primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a st ...

of a regular title magazine, but the figure has been the subject of an

anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors. In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically categ ...

and a mini-series. All three versions of Doctor Mid-Nite have exhibited the same basic features: a cowled costume featuring a crescent moon symbol, keen ability to see in the darkness at the cost of near or total blindness in sunlight, the use of special visors and “blackout” smoke bombs to gain tactical advantage in combat, a high degree of skill in martial arts, and jobs as physicians serving both normal human beings and "

metahuman In DC Comics' DC Universe, a metahuman is a human with superpowers. The term is roughly synonymous with both ''mutant'' and ''mutate'' in the Marvel Universe and '' posthuman'' in the Wildstorm and Ultimate Marvel Universes. In DC Comics, the term ...

" superheroes. Additionally, two of the doctors have been accompanied by sidekick owls. As a blind character, Doctor Mid-Nite is widely regarded as the first superhero in comics to exhibit a physical impairment, pre-dating the creation of Daredevil of Marvel Comics by more than twenty years. Charles McNider made his live-action debut in the

second The second (symbol: s) is the unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally to 60 seconds ...

season of ''

Legends of Tomorrow ''DC's Legends of Tomorrow'', or simply ''Legends of Tomorrow'', is an American Time travel in fiction, time travel superhero fiction, superhero television series developed by Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim, Andrew Kreisberg, and Phil Klem ...

'' played by Kwesi Ameyaw. Charles McNider also appears in '' Stargirl'', portrayed by

Henry Thomas Henry Jackson Thomas Jr. (born September 9, 1971) is an American actor. He began his career as a child actor and had a lead role in the film '' E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' (1982), for which he won a Young Artist Award and received Golden Globe ...

in season one and Alex Collins in season two, alongside Beth Chapel, portrayed by Anjelika Washington.

Fictional character biographies

Charles McNider

Charles McNider is the original Doctor Mid-Nite appearing in ''

All American Comics ''All-American Comics'' was a comics anthology and the flagship title of comic book publisher All-American Publications, one of the forerunners of DC Comics. It ran for 102 issues from 1939 to 1948. Characters created for the title, including Green ...

'' #25 (April 1941) in the

Golden Age of Comic Books The Golden Age of Comic Books describes an era of American comic books from 1938 to 1956. During this time, modern comic books were first published and rapidly increased in popularity. The superhero archetype was created and many well-known char ...

and is a common member of the

. McNider, a young surgeon, was blinded when a grenade went off in front of him caused by gangster "Killer" Maroni, but he found that he could see in the dark. He made special goggles that allowed him to see in the daylight, and decided to use his special power to fight crime. In his civilian identity, he pretends to be a helpless blind man.

Beth Chapel

As the aging McNider spent less time in action, Beth Chapel, a medical doctor, stepped into the role of Doctor Midnight. She was an occasionally a member of

Infinity, Inc Infinity, Inc. is a team of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The first incarnation is mostly composed of the children and heirs of the Justice Society of America (JSA), making them the Society's analogue to t ...

Pieter Cross

Pieter Cross first appeared in ''Doctor Mid-Nite'' #1. He is a doctor who develops the same abilities as Charles McNider after being drugged by enforcers from Praeda Industries and being in a car accident.

Owls of Doctor Mid-Nite

Both Charles McNider and Pieter Anton Cross train

owl Owls are birds from the order Strigiformes (), which includes over 200 species of mostly solitary and nocturnal birds of prey typified by an upright stance, a large, broad head, binocular vision, binaural hearing, sharp talons, and feathers a ...

s as

sidekick A sidekick is a slang expression for a close companion or colleague (not necessarily in fiction) who is, or is generally regarded as, subordinate to the one they accompany. Some well-known fictional sidekicks are Don Quixote's Sancho Panza, ...

s. McNider trains the same owl which crashes through his window, an event that leads to the discovery of his powers. This owl named "Hooty" (sometimes "Hootie") shares many adventures during the Golden Age. Cross keeps company with an owl named "Charlie". The bird is named after the original Doctor Mid-Nite Charles McNider. Charlie keeps a mini-camera around his neck that can feed video directly to a display in Cross's goggles.

Enemies

Each incarnation of Doctor Mid-Nite has fought different enemies: * "Gallows" Gallagher - A gangster who had his brother take his place in prison with help from a corrupt prison warden. * "Hands" Hannigan - A gangster who wanted to take advantage of Regis Morgan's telescopic vision and make him a lookout for his gang. * "Killer" Maroni - A gangster who was responsible for the grenade that blinded Charles McNider and became Doctor Mid-Nite's first opponent. * Banshee - * Big Mouth - The leader of a gang who worked with Jasper to set up hallucinations to frighten Japser's aunt Martha Yates and his uncle Ambrose Yates. * Doctor Light - A villain who uses light technology. * Dr. Gamwell - A man who used a home for the blind as a front for his criminal activities. *

Fisherman A fisher or fisherman is someone who captures fish and other animals from a body of water, or gathers shellfish. Worldwide, there are about 38 million commercial and subsistence fishers and fish farmers. Fishers may be professional or recreati ...

- Kurt Hartmann is a

fisherman A fisher or fisherman is someone who captures fish and other animals from a body of water, or gathers shellfish. Worldwide, there are about 38 million commercial and subsistence fishers and fish farmers. Fishers may be professional or recreati ...

-themed criminal. * Hans - A Nazi demolition diver. * Herman Gherkin - A Nazi general. * Ice Ingram - * King Cobra - A hooded gangster. * Madame Zara - A criminal who operated as a psychic. * Malcolm Mumm - An inventor who invented a sound-nullifying device and operated as the self-proclaimed Master of Silence. He used his invention to cover up the sounds related to his bank vault robberies. * Mister Nitro - * Slim - A mobster that planned to sabotage the games of the Yellow Jackets football team. *

Tarantula Tarantulas comprise a group of large and often hairy spiders of the family Theraphosidae. , 1,040 species have been identified, with 156 genera. The term "tarantula" is usually used to describe members of the family Theraphosidae, although ...

- A crime lord whose minion Logger suspected that Charles McNider and Doctor Mid-Nite are the same people. *

Terrible Trio The Terrible Trio is a group of Supervillain, supervillains appearing in comic books published by DC Comics, first appearing in ''Detective Comics'' #253 (March 1958). Individually known as Fox, Vulture, and Shark, their respective real names wer ...

- The members in the aliases of Fisk, Shackley, and Volper run Praeda Industries.

Other versions

In 1965, DC Comics had no plans to revive Doctor Mid-Nite. DC editor

Julius Schwartz Julius "Julie" Schwartz (; June 19, 1915 – February 8, 2004) was a comic book editor, and a science fiction agent and prominent fan. He was born in The Bronx, New York. He is best known as a longtime editor at DC Comics, where at various t ...

gave

M.I.T. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the m ...

student and comic book

letterhack A letterhack is a fan who is regularly published in magazine and American comic book letter columns. Origin The term comes from fanspeak, the slang of science fiction fans, and originally referred to prolific writers of letters to fanzines and pr ...

Rick Norwood permission to publish a Dr. Midnite story in his fanzine, ''Five''. The story written by Norwood and illustrated by Steve Sabo features a doctor named Tom Benson who is blinded in battle. He discovers that his other senses are super-sensitive and dons the Doctor Midnite costume to fight crime. Another version of the character was shown in Dan Jolley and Tony Harris' '' JSA: The Liberty File'' as a World War II United States intelligence agent code-named the Owl. This character, though a playboy, resembles other Doctor Mid-Nite representations. Though derided for his dalliances with the ladies, McNider was trusted as a valued field operative. In the ''

Tangent In geometry, the tangent line (or simply tangent) to a plane curve at a given point is the straight line that "just touches" the curve at that point. Leibniz defined it as the line through a pair of infinitely close points on the curve. More ...

: Superman's Reign'' series, a version of Doctor Mid-Nite his body completely covered by a black cloak is briefly seen. In the new Earth-2 created in the wake of ''

Infinite Crisis "Infinite Crisis" is a 2005–2006 comic book storyline published by DC Comics, consisting of an eponymous, seven-issue comic book limited series written by Geoff Johns and illustrated by Phil Jimenez, George Pérez, Ivan Reis, and Jerry Ordway, a ...

'' and 52, a version of Beth Chapel is shown to be a member of the Justice Society Infinity.

In other media

Television

* An unidentified Doctor Mid-Nite appears in the ''

Smallville ''Smallville'' is an American superhero television series developed by writer-producers Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, based on the DC Comics character Superman created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. The series was produced by Millar Gough ...

'' two-part episode "Absolute Justice", in a painting depicting the Justice Society of America. * The Charles McNider incarnation of Doctor Mid-Nite makes brief non-speaking appearances in ''

Justice League Unlimited ''Justice League Unlimited'' (''JLU'') is a 2004–2006 American superhero animated television series that was produced by Warner Bros. Animation and aired on Cartoon Network. Featuring a wide array of superheroes from the DC Comics universe, and ...

''. * The Charles McNider incarnation of Doctor Mid-Nite appears in the '' Batman: The Brave and the Bold'', voiced by

Corey Burton Corey Gregg Weinberg (born August 3, 1955), known professionally as Corey Burton, is an American voice actor. He is the current voice of Captain Hook, Ludwig Von Drake, Dale and others for The Walt Disney Company, Shockwave on '' The Transforme ...

. * The Charles McNider incarnation of Doctor Mid-Nite appears in '' Mad'' episode 46, voiced by

Kevin Shinick Kevin Thomas Shinick ( ; born March 19, 1969) is an American writer, producer, director and actor, as well as a comic book creator. Shinick received an Emmy award for his work on the stop motion animated series '' Robot Chicken'', and an Emmy nom ...

. * Pieter Cross appears in ''

Young Justice Young Justice is a fictional DC Comics superhero team consisting of teenaged heroes. The team was formed in 1998 when DC's usual teen hero group, the Teen Titans, had become adults and changed their name to the Titans. Like the original ''Teen ...

'' voiced by

Bruce Greenwood Stuart Bruce Greenwood (born August 12, 1956) is a Canadian actor and producer. He is known for his role as the American president John F. Kennedy in '' Thirteen Days,'' for which he won the Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion ...

. This version is a surgeon and associate of

Ray Palmer Ray Palmer may refer to: * Raymond A. Palmer, science-fiction writer and editor * Raymond F. Palmer, medical professor * Ray Palmer (pastor), American pastor and author of hymns * Ray Palmer (Arrowverse), a TV show character based on his comic boo ...

and

Bumblebee A bumblebee (or bumble bee, bumble-bee, or humble-bee) is any of over 250 species in the genus ''Bombus'', part of Apidae, one of the bee families. This genus is the only extant group in the tribe Bombini, though a few extinct related gener ...

. * The Charles McNider incarnation of Doctor Mid-Nite appears in the second season of

The CW ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

Arrowverse The Arrowverse is an American superhero media franchise and a shared universe that is centered on various interconnected television series based on DC Comics superhero characters, primarily airing on The CW as well as web series on CW Seed. ...

series ''

'', portrayed by Kwesi Ameyaw. This version was active in the 1940s, is a member of the Justice Society of America, and is legally blind, but possesses the metahuman ability to see perfectly in the dark. * Both the Charles McNider and Beth Chapel incarnations of Doctor Mid-Nite appear in the

DC Universe The DC Universe (DCU) is the fictional shared universe where most stories in American comic book titles published by DC Comics take place. Superheroes such as Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Robin, Martian Manhunter, The Flash, Green Lant ...

series '' Stargirl'', portrayed by

(season one) and Alex Collins (season two) and Anjelika Washington respectively. The latter takes up the mantle after the former is killed in battle against the

Injustice Society The Injustice Society (also called the Injustice Society of the World) is a group of supervillains in the . They are the main antagonists of the Justice Society of America. The Injustice Society first appears in ''All Star Comics'' #37 (Oct 194 ...

. ** Ahead of the series' premiere, Chapel made a cameo appearance in the Arrowverse crossover event, "

Crisis on Infinite Earths "Crisis on Infinite Earths" is a 1985 American comic book crossover storyline published by DC Comics. The series, written by Marv Wolfman and pencilled by George Pérez, was first serialized as a 12-issue limited series from April 1985 to March ...

Film

An unidentified Doctor Mid-Nite makes a cameo appearance in the opening credits of the

animated film Animation is a method by which image, still figures are manipulated to appear as Motion picture, moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent cel, celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited ...

'' Justice League: The New Frontier''. This version is a member of the Justice Society of America.

Toys

* Doctor Mid-Nite was featured as an action figure in the twelfth wave of the

DC Universe Classics DC Universe Classics was an action figure toyline, a sub-line of the DC Universe (toyline), DC Universe toy brand manufactured by Mattel. They were 6-inch scale figures based on the fictional characters owned by DC Comics. The entire line was scul ...

line. His accessory was his owl, Hooty, who rested on his arm. *

Mattel Mattel, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational toy manufacturing and entertainment company founded in January 1945 and headquartered in El Segundo, California. The company has presence in 35 countries and territories and sells products in more ...

released an action figure of the ''

'' version of Doctor Mid-Nite in its DC Universe: Justice League Unlimited Fan Collection line in November 2011. *

DC Direct DC Direct was a Division (business), division of WarnerMedia that sold collectibles based on DC Comics characters (Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, etc.). Prior to 1998, merchandise sold by DC Comics was branded with the DC Comics logo rather th ...

released two action figures of the Charles McNider and Peter Cross incarnations of Dr. Mid-Nite. The former was released in 2001 and had exchangeable right wrists, with one coming with his pet owl, Hooty.

References

External links

JSA Fact File: Doctor Mid-Nite I

at

Don Markstein's Toonopedia Don Markstein's Toonopedia (subtitled A Vast Repository of Toonological Knowledge) is an online encyclopedia of print cartoons, comic strips and animation, initiated February 13, 2001. Donald D. Markstein, the sole writer and editor of Toonopedi ...

. {{GoldenAge All-American Publications characters Characters created by Roy Thomas Characters created by Todd McFarlane Comics characters introduced in 1941 Comics characters introduced in 1985 Comics characters introduced in 1999 DC Comics female superheroes DC Comics martial artists DC Comics metahumans DC Comics male superheroes DC Comics titles Earth-Two African-American superheroes Fictional characters from parallel universes Fictional blind characters Fictional physicians Fictional surgeons Golden Age superheroes