History
There are two conflicting origins regarding the past of Hoot Temple.
In the original account his first name was stated as being Zane Temple, a retired US Marshal who moved to Caliber City to raise a family with his wife Lucy. They had a single child named Lance Temple. When Lance was a young boy, an outlaw from "Zane's" past named Link Cado came for revenge leading to a gun battle on the Temple property. During the fight, Lucy was shot dead and "Zane" was shot in the back by Cado. "Zane" and Lance were rescued thanks to the timely arrival of Emilio Diaz and Red Hawk who forced Cado and his men to retreat. "Zane" was treated by Red Hawk, and although he would live, he was to live the rest of his life blind. "Zane" was helped to deal with his blindness thanks to Emilio and Red Hawk who also assisted him in raising young Lance. When Lance grew to adulthood, "Zane" had his son vow to never use violence to solve his problems. Lance agreed but soon learned the location of Link Cado. With the assistance of Emilio and Red Hawk, Lance fashioned the costumed identity of the Outlaw Kid and avenged his father and mother. Lance continued to operate as the Outlaw Kid in secret, being able to fight outlaws and maintain his vow to his father.[1] However, this has been proven to be false.
In reality, Hoot Temple was a simple rancher whose son Lance fought in the Civil War and returned home to practice law. When the Red Vest Gang attempted to take the Temple Ranch, Hoot tried to defend his property but was blinded when a stray bullet struck a keg of TNT. Although Lance wished revenge, Hoot believed that he was blinded because he stood up to the Red Vest Gang and had his son vow never to use his guns against another man. Lance agreed, but torn between his vow and his sense of justice, Lance developed the identity of the Outlaw Kid to avenge his father and get justice against the Red Vest Gang.[2]
Hoot lived a mostly peaceful life at his ranch with his son Lance, often sharing local gossip with his son, unaware that he was really the Outlaw Kid, and more often than not this gossip helped the Kid in his various cases. He also provided occasional relationship advice for Lance who was in a romance with Belle Taylor, who was also smitten by the mystique of the Outlaw Kid. Most importantly, Hoot always reminded Lance of his vow to abstain from violent situations, something that Lance always complied with -- at least when he was not in costume as the Outlaw Kid.[3]
However, Hoot was not immune to the dangers that Lance's double-life presented, nor was he entirely safe of the lawless nature of the time. When Brady King robbed a card game and attempted to flee the region, he briefly held Hoot hostage, until the Outlaw Kid arrived forcing King to flee, King eventually died trying to escape capture.[4] Hoot was also threatened when Chad Burrows and his gang tried to flee the area. They demanded that Hoot provide them with fresh horses to escape the region. Once again the Outlaw Kid came to the rescue. In the aftermath, Hoot told his son Lance that he felt that had known the Outlaw Kid for many years. This was the first time that Hoot came close to discovering the Outlaw Kid's double-identity.[5]
However, when Hoot eventually discovered his son's double-identity, the shock killed him. The guilt of causing his father's death caused Lance to develop a split personality. One of these personalities believed that the he and the Outlaw Kid were two different men and that the Outlaw Kid had murdered his father.[6]Attributes
Additional Attributes
See Also
Links and References
References
- ↑ Outlaw Kid #1
- ↑ Outlaw Kid (Vol. 2) #10
- ↑ The above situations were a constant in nearly every Outlaw Kid story published.
- ↑ Outlaw Kid #10
- ↑ Outlaw Kid #19
- ↑ Blaze of Glory #2