Tobias Mefis (Earth-616)

Phantom Burglar
Name	Tobias Mefis
Current Alias	Phantom Burglar
Aliases	Doctor Mefis
Physical Characteristics
Gender	Male
Hair	Brown
Origin and Living Status
Origin	Human
Living Status	Alive
Reality	Earth-616
Personal Information
Identity	Public
Citizenship	American
Occupation	Psychiatrist (fraud)
Creators and Appearances
Creators	Ray Gill, Bob Oksner
First	Marvel Mystery Comics #32 (April, 1942)
First	Marvel Mystery Comics #32 (April, 1942)

History

In the 1940's, Dr. Mefis operated as a psychiatrist using the skill of hypnosis to coerce his patients into giving him their valuables and make them forget it. His patients then went on to think they were robbed, earning Mefis the name of the "Phantom Burglar" in the newspapers. He operated out of a private residence with his receptionist, a man apparently from India -- suggesting that perhaps Mefis learned his hypnotic abilities in that region.

His plot attracted the attention of newspaper reporter Deadline Dawson and his detective friend Terry Vance. They went to the home of the most recent victim, Mrs. Kaye, arriving just as Kaye was returning home from a visit with Dr. Mefis. Mefis told the young men that Kaye was in no condition to be interviewed and asked them to leave. By this point, Terry's pet monkey Dr. Watson had stolen a list of clients out of Mefis's back pocket and showed it to Terry, Deadline, and Mrs. Kaye's daughter Jane. They were surprised to find that the names on the client list were also all of the victims of the Phantom Burglar.

Seeking to catch Mefis in the act, Terry disguised himself as an old man and went to visit Mefis at his private office. There, the boy detective proved to be no match for the hypnotic powers of Dr. Mefis who ordered the boy to return home and cut his own throat. This was stopped by the timely arrival of Deadline, Dr. Watson, and Jane Kaye. The hypnotic spell was broken when Dr. Watson wrapped his tail around Mefis's throat and threatened to strangle him. Surrendering, Mefis then attempted to escape when the authorities were called. He ran into his receptionist's pet boa constrictor and cowered, but his life was saved by Terry who cut the giant snake in half with a sword.

With the police on the scene, Dr. Mefis was taken into custody and his operation exposed. His subsequent fate is unrevealed.

Attributes

Abilities

Dr. Mefis is a skilled hypnotist, able to implant commands in the minds of his victims and then make them forget his orders until they needed to be carried out and forgetting them afterward. The limitations to his hypnotic abilities are unexplored; however, they appear to be nothing more than a psychological trick as opposed to any sort of super-human mind control ability.

See Also

• 1 appearance(s) of Tobias Mefis (Earth-616)
• 1 image(s) of Tobias Mefis (Earth-616)