Ohiyesa "Pow Wow" Smith is a fictional

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

hero published by

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 ...

. Created by writer Don Cameron and

penciler A penciller (or penciler) is an artist who works on the creation of comic books, graphic novels, and similar visual art forms, with a focus on the initial pencil illustrations, usually in collaboration with other artists, who provide inks, colors ...

Carmine Infantino Carmine Michael Infantino (; May 24, 1925 – April 4, 2013) was an American comics artist and editing, editor, primarily for DC Comics, during the late 1950s and early 1960s period known as the Silver Age of Comic Books. Among his character creat ...

, he is a

Sioux The Sioux or Oceti Sakowin (; Dakota language, Dakota: Help:IPA, /otʃʰeːtʰi ʃakoːwĩ/) are groups of Native Americans in the United States, Native American tribes and First Nations in Canada, First Nations peoples in North America. The ...

who is the

sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...

of the small Western town of Elkhorn, where he is known as a master detective. He prefers to be addressed by his proper name, Ohiyesa, but people called him "Pow Wow" so stubbornly that he eventually gives up and accepts the nickname among them. Originally, the Pow Wow Smith character was located in the modern West. Later stories were set in the 19th century. It was eventually

retcon Retroactive continuity, or retcon for short, is a literary device in which established diegetic facts in the plot of a fictional work (those established through the narrative itself) are adjusted, ignored, supplemented, or contradicted by a subse ...

ned that the

Old West The American frontier, also known as the Old West or the Wild West, encompasses the geography, history, folklore, and culture associated with the forward wave of American expansion in mainland North America that began with European colonial ...

character was the ancestor of the modern-day character. Since then, Smith has remained a generation legacy, and a historical figure 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 ...

, meeting other heroes in their occasional time travel stories.

Publication history

Smith first appeared in ''

Detective Comics ''Detective Comics'' is an American comic book series published by Detective Comics, later shortened to DC Comics. The first volume, published from 1937 to 2011 (and later continued in 2016), is best known for introducing the superhero Batman i ...

'' #151, the only Western feature in the book. After four years as a regular feature in ''Detective Comics'', his strip became the lead feature of ''

Western Comics Western comics is a comics genre usually depicting the American Old West frontier (usually anywhere west of the Mississippi River) and typically set during the late nineteenth century. The term is generally associated with an American comic books ...

'', which ran until 1961. Much of the art during the ''Detective'' period was by

Leonard Starr Leonard Starr (October 28, 1925 – June 30, 2015) was an American cartoonist, comic book artist, and advertising artist, best known for creating the newspaper comic strip '' On Stage'' and reviving ''Little Orphan Annie''. Early life Born Octob ...

, and when Smith found a home in ''Western Comics'', his original illustrator Infantino returned. Stories were by

France Herron Francis Edward Herron (July 23, 1917 – September 2, 1966) was an Americans, American comic book writer and editor active in the 1940s–1960s, mainly for DC Comics. He is credited with co-creating Captain Marvel Jr. and the Red Skull, as well a ...

and later

Gardner Fox Gardner Francis Cooper Fox (May 20, 1911 – December 24, 1986) was an American writer known best for creating numerous comic book characters for DC Comics. He is estimated to have written more than 4,000 comics stories, including 1,500 for DC ...

. Smith also starred in the premiere issue of ''

All-Star Western ''All-Star Western'' was the name of three United States, American comic book series published by DC Comics, each a Western fiction omnibus featuring both continuing characters and anthological stories. The first ran from 1951 to 1961, the second ...

's'' second volume.

Fictional character biography

Ohiyesa left his native Red Deer Valley to learn more about the white man's world. His tracking and expert gun skills won him employment as a deputy sheriff, and eventually the job of sheriff of Elkhorn. Ohiyesa's deputy is Hank Brown. Once sheriff, Pow Wow spends most of his time in Elkhorn, only rarely returning to Red Deer Valley. For most of his adventures, Pow Wow's girlfriend (and later fiancée) is the Native American maiden Fleetfoot, daughter of Chief Thundercloud. Fleetfloot aids Pow Wow in a number of adventures.

U.S. Marshal Pow Wow Smith

U.S. Marshal The United States Marshals Service (USMS) is a federal law enforcement agency in the United States. The USMS is a bureau within the U.S. Department of Justice, operating under the direction of the Attorney General, but serves as the enforce ...

Ohiyesa Smith, a present-day descendant of the original Pow Wow Smith, appears in '' Robin'' (vol. 2) Annual #6, a

pastiche A pastiche is a work of visual art, literature, theatre, music, or architecture that imitates the style or character of the work of one or more other artists. Unlike parody, pastiche pays homage to the work it imitates, rather than mocking it ...

that also featured a modern-day version of

Nighthawk The nighthawk is a nocturnal bird of the subfamily Chordeilinae, within the nightjar family, Caprimulgidae, native to the western hemisphere. The term "nighthawk", first recorded in the King James Bible of 1611, was originally a local name i ...

. This Ohiyesa attended college in the East, then returned to Red Deer Valley, seeking to modernize his tribe. As a U.S. Marshall, he too takes the name Pow Wow Smith, but continues to live in Red Deer Valley. The modern-day Pow Wow Smith works with Robin and other heroes to take down the modern-day

Trigger Twins The Trigger Twins are the names of two sets of fictional Western themed comic book characters published by DC Comics. Fictional character biography Walter and Wayne Trigger The Trigger Twins first appear in ''All-Star Western'' #58 (May 1951), the ...

, who unlike their 19th-century antecedents are homicidal criminals. Much of the adventure takes place in a tourist-spot recreation of an

town, which is located near

Gotham City Gotham City ( ), or simply Gotham, is a fictional city appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, best known as the home of the superhero Batman and his allies and foes. Created by writer Bill Finger and artist Bob Kane, the cit ...

.''Robin'' (vol. 2) Annual #6 (1997)

In other media

Smith appeared in a time travel episode of ''

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 Once and Future Thing ''Justice League Unlimited'' is an 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 specifically bas ...

", as a sheriff of Elkhorn in the 1880s. He was run out of town by Manning who used technology he got from

Chronos Chronos (; grc-gre, Χρόνος, , "time"), also spelled Khronos or Chronus, is a personification of time in pre-Socratic philosophy and later literature. Chronos is frequently confused with, or perhaps consciously identified with, the Tit ...

(David Clinton). With the aide of

Bat Lash Bartholomew "Bat" Aloysius Lash is a fictional Western superhero character in the DC Universe. A self-professed pacifist, self-professed ladies' man, and gambler, Bat Lash's adventures have been published by DC Comics since 1968. Character or ...

El Diablo Diablo or El Diablo may refer to: Arts and entertainment Fictional entities * Diablo (Disney), a raven in ''Sleeping Beauty'' * Diablo (Marvel Comics), a Fantastic Four villain * El Diablo (comics), several fictional characters from DC Comics * ...

Jonah Hex Jonah Woodson Hex is a fictional antihero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer John Albano and artist Tony DeZuniga. Hex is a surly and cynical bounty hunter whose face is scarred on the ...

Green Lantern Green Lantern is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. They fight evil with the aid of rings that grant them a variety of extraordinary powers, all of which come from imagination, fearlessness, ...

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superhero created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (pen name: Charles Moulton), and artist Harry G. Peter. Marston's wife, Elizabeth Holloway Marston, Elizabeth, and their life partner, Olive Byr ...

and

Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...

, he defeated Manning. In this version, Smith still objects to the name "Pow-Wow", which is only used by the villain Tobias Manning. He was voiced by

Jonathan Joss Jonathan Joss (born December 22, 1965) is an American actor. He is best known for portraying the voice of John Redcorn from season 2 to 13 of the animated series ''King of the Hill'', replacing the original actor Victor Aaron after his death in 19 ...

References

External links

Don Markstein's Toonopedia: Pow-Wow SmithDCU Guide: Pow-Wow Smith I

DCU Guide: Pow-Wow Smith II

DCU Guide: Pow-Wow Smith III
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Pow Wow Characters created by Carmine Infantino Comics characters introduced in 1949 DC Comics Western (genre) characters DC Comics male characters Fictional gunfighters Fictional Sioux people Fictional characters from Oklahoma Fictional male detectives Golden Age adventure heroes Western (genre) peace officers