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History

Early Life[]

Professor Philo Zogolowski was a frail and sickly man born in 1880. As an adult he made a fortune selling his inventions.[1]

1940s[]

Professor Zog decided to focus his resources and energy on leaving a positive impact on society and invented the robot known as Electro, hoping to utilize the robot to wipe out crime and corruption.[2] His project was secretly funded by the United States government under the direction of President Roosevelt.[3] He developed his a team of a dozen operatives to work out of his headquarters in the Midwestern United States.

Zog gained critical acclaim due to his involvements in the rescue of kidnapped child actress Joyce Lovely,[4] the liberation of the Republic of Molicia from the tyranny of Kalph Belgri,[5] and the elimination of numerous drug cartels including the San Francisco operations run by the Voice.[2]

Philo Zogolowski (Earth-616) from Marvel Mystery Comics Vol 1 4 001

Professor Zog

By this time, a hotline was established so that the public could request Electro's aid at any time. Zog sent Electro to deliver aid in a flooding in Ohio, leading to the capture of mobster Boss Sarpo.[6] However, Sapro had his minions kidnap Zog and forced him to use Electro to free Sapro from prison and commit a series of crimes.

Planet Ligra[]

Zog and Electro's crime spree was short lived as they were soon be kidnapped by the Dragon-Men of planet Ligra.[7] On Ligra, Zog was forced to use his invention to attack the Lion-People and capture their ruler Queen Nara. However, Zog freed himself from his Dragon-Men captors and used Electro to turn the tide of battle, slaying the Dragon-Men's leader Jago in the process. Zog was rewarded by being crowned a knight of Ligra before being returned to Earth.[8]

Crime-Fighting[]

Zog's famed work lead to President Franklin Delano Roosevelt requesting Zog deal with the threat of the reanimated corpses of the mad Dr. Bruno Varoz.[9] By this point, Zog had ceased using operatives and took a more active role in Electro's operations. He modified the robot with a televisor that would project the user's face and allow two-way communication between the Electro operator and its environment. With new adaption, Zog came to the aid of his friend John Borden, who's lumber property was being set ablaze by the vindictive Baldwin Drake.[10] Zog once more responded to a request for aid from the president in dealing with the Shark, a notorious pirate. For his aid in destroying the Shark's operations, Zog was awarded a Congressional Gold Medal.[11]

Zog accompanied his colleague Dr. Simon Crane and his daughter Betty on a expedition to explore the moon, taking Electro along with him. When Electro was captured by the alien creature called Gnorr. Zog and the others slayed the creature to recover his invention.[12] When a series of strange building collapses prompted the officials of Fairbanks City to call on Zog's assistance, he pit his robot against the subterraneans known as the Onees, slaying their leader.[13]

Shortly thereafter, Professor Zog was called to Titan City which was under siege by the evil Dr. Lorrof and his flesh eating "Green Terror". Deducing that the creature' weakness was radium, he slayed the creature with a Radium Gun and Lorroff was slain attempting to unsuccessfully blow up Electro.[14]

Zog was once more manipulated to use his robot for crime, this time by Prince Omei, who hypnotized Zog to do his bidding. When Zog suggested to the increasingly paranoid Omei that the authorities might use his lab to build a robot to counter Electro, he ordered Zog to destroy it. Unable to bring himself to destroy his own lab, Zog broke free of Omei's control. With his minions revolting and his plan in shambles, Omei set off a bomb, collapsing the building on all of them. Zog survived thanks to his body being shielded by Electro.[15]

When dealing with mystically enlarged animals unleashed by Mor the Mighty, Electro was dismantled by giant birds. Professor Zog would quickly repair the robot and send it after Mor, forcing the magicians plane to crash.[16]

Zog saved the Earth from an invasion by the alien Antons from the planet Torsa with the aid of his colleague Dr. Horace Forde. While Electro slaughtered the Anton forces, Zog and Forde used a Magno-Generator to send Torsa away from Earth and detonated the planet with super-bombs.[17] Later, Zog's colleague Sir John Chadwick begged for his help solving a mysterious string of murders directed at his family by a seemingly invisible killer. Thanks to Zog's investigation, he determined the killings were orchestrated by the jilted Basil Drake who would send his Ethiopian aid Chandi to murder for him while doused in an invisibility solution. Rather than face Electro, Drake committed suicide. When Chandi continued to threaten them, Zog was forced to shoot him dead.[18]

World War II[]

In Spring 1941, Professor Zog was captured by Nazi spies under the direction of Dr. Manyac who sought to utilize Zog's robot technology to create robot versions of his Green Flames. When Zog refused, they reverse engineered Electro's technology to suit their purposes, including creating a massive robot called Project: Blockbuster. Ultimately, Zog was found by the combined efforts of Betty Dean, the Sub-Mariner, the Angel, the Ferret, the Human Torch, and Toro. During the ensuing battle with the robotic Green Flames, Zog activated Electro to aid the heroes in defeating the Nazis.[19]

Later, Zog developed a telepathic interface with his Electro robot and sent it along with many other costumed heroes to storm Berlin in 1945. Electro, along with eleven other heroes, were captured by Nazi forces and placed in suspended animation. Being cut off from Electro ultimately lead to Zog's death from acute withdrawal -- a side effect of the interface.[20]

Legacy[]

Professor Zog was survived in the modern age by his daughter Elizabeth. When Electro was found along with the eleven other missing heroes, Elizabeth struggled to claim the robot from the United States government who sought to learn the secrets of Zog's telepathic interface. When the side effect leading to Zog's death was revealed, Elizabeth was able to buy back Electro with the help of the Blue Blade, and the robot was made part of the Blue Blade's cabaret show.[21]

During a trip back in time with the Mighty Avengers to aid the Invaders in stopping a Cosmic Cube empowered Red Skull, the hero Iron Man briefly disguised himself as Electro.[22]

Attributes

Power Grid[23]
:Category:Power Grid/Fighting Skills/Poor:Category:Power Grid/Energy Projection/None:Category:Power Grid/Durability/Weak:Category:Power Grid/Speed/Below Normal:Category:Power Grid/Strength/Weak:Category:Power Grid/Intelligence/Gifted

Abilities

  • Electrical Engineering: A mechanical wizard and electronic genius, Zog had a vast fortune at his disposal due to the success of his inventions and Zog Industries.

Weaknesses

Professor Zog is frail and physically weak.

Paraphernalia

Equipment

  • Electro: Professor Zog could control the powerful robot Electro's actions from thousands of miles away via Electra-Wave technology that transferred his thoughts directly into the robot's cybernetic processor.

Trivia

Box (Bochs) controlled the original Box robot in a similar manner; Marla Madison created the Psycho-Cybernetic Helmet that controlled her Spider-Slayer (version 5); and the nameless scientist used a similar interface to control a robot that fought Andreas de Ruyter[1].

See Also

Links and References

References

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