by John Romita, 1973

Kangaroo

Real Name: Frank Oliver
Identity: Boxer, later professional criminal
Affiliation: None
First Appearance: Amazing Spider-Man #81
Status: Deceased
Final Appearance: Amazing Spider-Man #126

Powers & Abilities:

The Kangaroo possessed a superhuman leaping and jumping ability. However, the rest of his muscular was that of a normal human until Dr. Jonas Harrow enhanced the Kangaroo's abilities with surgically connected devices. These devices contained compressed air-jets and were attached to his legs and arms allowing him to leap higher and further than before, kick through ten feet of concrete, and punch through five-inch thick concrete walls.

Equipment & Weapons:

Aside from the compressed air devices attached to him and connected to his nervous system, the Kangaroo used no other weapons or equipment.

Origin:

A native of Australia, Frank Oliver used to spend his vacations observing kangaroos in the wild. Fascinated by their leaping ability, Oliver decided he might be able to leap like a kangaroo by living like one. So, he left his job and lived in the wild, eating what kangaroos ate, frequenting the same areas they did, and continually practiced his jumping. Amazingly, Oliver developed the proportional strength and leaping ability of a kangaroo. Presumably, Oliver superhuman leaping ability was due his being a superhuman mutant, but that is speculation. Trying to make a buck on his new-found abilities, Oliver became a professional boxer known as the Kangaroo. During his first match, Oliver injured an opponent with one of his powerful leaps and was told he'd be prosecuted if the injured man didn't recover. Panicking, Oliver fled Australia and stowed away on a boat to the United States.

by Ross Andru, 1973

Appearances:

The Kangaroo is introduced in Amazing Spider-Man #81. After being arrested as an illegal alien and in the process of being deported, the Kangaroo escapes from authorities at New York's Pennsylvania Station. Since he is being treated as a criminal, the Kangaroo decides to become a criminal. In his first crime, he mistakenly steals a vial which, unknown to him, contains a deadly bacteria being used for scientific study. Spider-Man managed to retrieve the vial intact and apprehend the Kangaroo.

In Amazing Spider-Man #126, the Kangaroo resurfaced. Having spent months in a deep depression and living as a vagrant in New York, Oliver was approached by Dr. Jonas Harrow. Dr. Harrow convinced the Kangaroo to undergo an operation to mechnically boost his superhuman abilities. After the operation, Dr. Harrow blackmailed by a small device implanted in Oliver's skull. This device could be remotely operated by Dr. Harrow to give the Kangaroo commands or generated intense pain. Dr. Harrow ordered the Kangaroo to steal a radioactive isotope for him. Spider-Man battled the Kangaroo at the laboratory and tried to convince him of the danger presented by the radiation. Kangaroo knocked Spider-Man aside and entered the room holding the isotopes. Within seconds, he was killed by the intense radiation.