15 Comic Book 'Firsts' You Didn't Know
8. Madam Fatal - First Crossdressing Superhero
In 1940, Art Pinajian wrote Crack Comics #1, which launched the first cross-dressing superhero, Richard Stanton, who is better-known as Madam Fatal. Rather than putting on a cape or superhero costume, Stanton fought crime disguised as an old lady. His "outfit" consisted of a dress, make-up, and a wig.
Why did he do this? How could this possibly help him fight crime? Simple. If he looked like an elderly woman, crooks would naturally let their guard down. When criminals saw Fatal hobbling along with a cane, they assumed she was easy to rob from, unaware that Stanton was a master fighter who could use his cane like a bo staff.
Sadly, readers saw Madam Fatal as a gimmick and grew tired of the comic's novelty quickly. When sales dried up, the series was cancelled in less than two years.
Some sources state that the original Red Tornado, Ma Hunkel, was the first crossdressing hero but this isn't true. Ma Hunkel debuted one year before Madam Fatal but she didn't take on the guise of a male superhero until the following year, six months after Fatal's series was published.