Booster Gold

BOOSTER GOLD

Real Name: Michael Jon Carter

Class: Human technology-user

Occupation: Super-hero for hire

Group Affiliation: formerly Conglomerate, Justice League America, Super Buddies

Known Relatives: Ellen (mother), Gladys (wife), Michelle (sister)

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: New York City, NY

First Appearance: Booster Gold #1 (February, 1986)

Powers: Booster wore a microweave exoskeleton that gave him superhuman levels of strength and resistance to damage, and it could generate a force field around his body as well. Booster also used the following items: gloves that fire energy blasts of adjustable intensity; a ring enabling flight; goggles providing night-vision, micro-vision and infrared vision. At one time Booster was accompanied by a robot named Skeets that was programmed as a history guide.

History: Several hundred years in the future "Booster" Carter was a brilliant college quarterback with great promise as a professional player. This came to an end when he was caught betting on games in which he played. Booster started gambling to help pay for surgery his mother needed, but he continued long after this simply for the thrill and the easy money. After being banned from playing college football and shunned by the pros., he drifted through the eastern seaboard until he found employment as a janitor in Metropolis's Space Museum, a museum dedicated to preserving great technical and scientific discoveries. Deciding that he had no future in his own time, Booster stole Rip Hunter's Time Machine in addition to various other pieces of advanced equipment, and made his way to the 20th century.

(Booster Gold #1) - Soon after his arrival in our time, Booster foiled a plot by Chiller and the 1000 to kill the President and Vice-President of the United States. Using the publicity this brought him, he took the name Booster Gold and became a super-hero for hire. Booster also formed the corporation Goldstar, which was designed to accumulate wealth and book him as a commercial spokesman.

(Justice League #2-4) - Booster was invited by Maxwell Lord to join the Justice League. The other League members rejected Booster, liking neither him nor Maxwell's attempts at directing the team. Booster proved himself worthy when he played an instrumental part in defeating the Royal Flush Gang, and was subsequently welcomed into the JLA.

(Justice League #5, 6) - Booster fought alongside the Justice League against the Gray Man.

(Justice League International #7) - Booster becomes a founding member of Justice League International; a U.N. sanctioned peace-keeping force.

After the collapse of his corporation Booster has spent most of his time trying to rebuild his financial empire. He tried marketing a line of Justice League endorsed products, but Martian Manhunter put an end to this scheme. After that, he and Blue Beetle II built an island resort; this also ended in disaster when it was discovered that he funded the project with stolen Justice League funds

(Final Night #1, 3) - Superman organized a summit of superheroes, including Booster, to listen to an alien named Dusk. She'd seen the Sun-Eater snuff out the sun of countless planets, and she was there to warn the heroes that the Sun-Eater was headed towards Earth. The heroes discussed different ways to deal with the menace. The Eater engulfed the sun, causing chaos and panic on the ground. Booster met with other heroes at Warriors, which Guy Gardner had converted into a command center and hospital. Parallax sacrificed himself to dispel the Sun-Eater and reignite the sun.

(Green Lantern III #81) - Coast City; Gold was among the heroes who attended a memorial service for Green Lantern Hal Jordan.

(JLA #27) - Booster Gold was called in as a JLA reservist to battle Amazo. Amazo was programmed to acquire the powers of the JLA, so when Booster and a number of other heroes temporarily joined the JLA to battle him it just made Amazo more powerful. Amazo decimated the JLA reservists, and was only defeated when Superman officially disbanded the JLA, leaving Amazo powerless.

(Chase #4) - Booster showed up a Teen Titans public appearance at L.L. Siegel & Schuster toy store. He claimed to be checking in on the Titans to make sure Davis P.R. was treating them well, but they realized he was just trying to steal their thunder. Clock King and his Clockwatchers burst onto the scene to pick a fight with the Titans. Booster, the Titans and Firehawk defeated the Clockwatchers, and after the fight Booster convinced Firehawk to come away with him and discuss the possibility of a partnership.

(JLA #38, 39, 41) - Booster was among the legion of heroes summoned by the JLA to quell worldwide outbreaks of warfare that were incited by Mageddon.

(JLA: Our Worlds at War #1) - On President Luthor's request Guy, Blue Beetle and Booster Gold went to Krasnoyarsk, Russia to battle an Imperiex Probe that had landed on Earth to hollow out the planet, but the battle went badly for the heroes.

(Formerly Known as the Justice League #1) -

(Identity Crisis #1) - Booster Gold, along with a number of other superheroes, attended Sue Dibny's funeral.

(Flash II #215) - Booster Gold, Blue Beetle and Firehawk interrogated Heat Wave about the death of Sue Dibny. He told them he knew nothing, and reminded them he was a reformed villain. When they continued badgering him his ally Pied Piper put them to sleep with his pipes.

(DC Countdown #1) - Booster stole Blue Beetle's ATM card to get the money to travel to a meeting for a new sunglasses campaign. Beetle confronted him, and Booster apologized, and made a weak excuse that he stole the card because he was tired of asking Beetle's help. After some soul searching Booster blew off the sunglasses campaign to help Beetle investigate a mysterious enemy who stole money from Kord Universal and was manipulating Wayne Enterprises. Booster and Beetle tried to come up with leads through computer hacking, but a lightning bolt struck Beetle's home, severely injuring Booster. Beetle visited Booster in the hospital and broke the news that someone had disassembled Skeets and used one of his parts to make a tracking device that was planted on Beetle. Booster was determined to help Beetle find out the identity of who was causing them problems, but when he rose from his hospital bed he collapsed. Beetle had a feeling he wouldn't come back from the confrontation with their enemy, so he told Booster's nurse to deliver a message. Whatever happened Booster was not to blame himself, and Beetle wanted Booster to know he was the best friend he ever had.

(OMAC Project #1) -

(52 / WWIII Part Two: The Valiant #1) - <Week 50, Day 4> Booster Gold returned to the present in the midst of WWIII, Black Adam's war on humanity. He realized he'd arrived too early, and returned to the future.

(Tales of the Sinestro Corps: Superman-Prime #1) - An army of Earth’s heroes, including Booster Gold and Skeets appeared to take Superboy down during the Sinestro Corps invasion of Earth. The heroes focused on wrecking his armor, because after a year on Oa, and away from a yellow sun his Kryptonian body still wasn’t at full strength, and his armor collected sunlight. Superboy bragged that once the sun rose on Earth he’d be at full power. Superboy was battered by Wonder Girl and Wonder Woman, who blamed him for Superboy’s death, as well as Supergirl and Power Girl, who blamed him for the death of the Superman of Earth-2. As the fight went against him, Superboy broke down in tears. He tried to wipe them away, saying that it was impossible foir boys to cry, and then whining that no one ever thanked him for sacrificing his Earth to save the multiverse. The battle lasted until dawn, and he flew into the sunrise. As he achieved full power he declared himself the one, true Superman. The Guardians arrived with Sodam Yat, the new Ion, and pitted him against Superboy-Prime.

(Titans II #38) - Booster Gold and the superhero community attended the funeral of Atom Ryan Choi.

Comments: Created by Dan Jurgens

Booster Gold received profiles in Who's Who Update '87 #1 and Who's Who in the DC Universe #2. He received a profile in JLA-Z #2 under the JLA (“The International” Era) entry. He received a profile in Who’s Who in the DC Universe #6 under the Conglomerate entry. He received a profile in Who’s Who in the DC Universe #7 under the Justice League America entry. Booster Gold was featured in the Millennium and Armageddon 2001 entries in JLA in Crisis Secret Files #1.

In Bizarro Comics #1 Mr. Mxyzptlk beamed information about all of Earth’s superheroes into Bizarro-Superman’s mind, hoping to teach him how to be a proper hero. Afterwards Bizarro had images of various heroes, including Booster Gold, wandering through his head.

In Martian Manhunter II #24 Martian Manhunter told a story about Booster, the JLI and his addiction to choco cookies. This may have been part of Booster’s history, but more than likely it was just an anecdote Martian Manhunter found funny.

Booster had cameos in JLA #119 and Justice League of America II #2, 7.