Madame .44

Gunslinger of the Old West.

Name:

Madame .44

Publisher:

DC Comics

Real name:

Jeanne Walker Tane

Aliases:

Jeanne Walker Tane
Jeanne Tane
M .44
Robin Hood of the West

Birth date:

None

Gender:

Female

Powers:

Agility
Animal Control
Leadership
Marksmanship
Unarmed Combat
Weapon Master

First issue:

All-Star Western (1951) #117 "Six-Gun Showdown with Madame .44!"

See at ComicVine

Origin

Jeanne's father found a rich vein of gold in a gold mine but his cheating partner filed a claim on it first. Unable to prove his partner wrong, Walker died heartbroken and penniless. Enraged by the legal system, Jeanne decided to bring justice to men who were robbed or cheated. She became a photographer and used her business to learn about wealthy, unscrupulous men. She then posed as the outlaw Madame .44 to rob these men and redistribute the money to the poor and suffering, Robin Hood style.

Creation

Madame .44 was created by Gil Kane and Gardner Fox. Her first appearance was in All-Star Western #117, 1961.

Character Evolution

Though she began as a Robin Hood kind of vigilante, Madame .44 came to be, alongside her partner and husband Johnny Thunder, part of law enforcement fighting injustice in Mesa City.

Major Story Arcs

While operating in Tombstone, Arizona, Madame .44 crossed paths with Wyatt Earp and aided him in his fight with the villainous Clanton Gang. While Wyatt and his family squared off against the Clantons at the OK Corral, Madame .44, provided them with an escape route by shooting out all of the gas lamps along the back corridor leading away from the corral.

After moving to Mesa City, she met and clashed with the gunfighter Johnny Thunder. He believed her to be an outlaw, and though he did discover her intentions, he disapproved of her methods. Working together, they brought down the criminal Black Silk, but during the encounter they each learned the others' true identity: Johnny Thunder was really John Tane - schoolteacher and son of the local sheriff William Tane, and Madame .44 was really Jeanne Walker - local photographer. Her secret identity is revealed to the sheriff, who pardons her for her past crimes because of her good intentions. John and Jeanne married and had two children, Charles and Rebecca ("Becky"), and continued to protect Mesa City as Johnny Thunder and Madame .44.

Powers and Abilities

Jeanne does not have any superhuman powers but she is a professional photographer and is an excellent sharpshooter who is capable of crazy trick shots. She is also a skilled equestrienne. Despite her short stature, she is skilled in hand-to-hand combat, and able to overpower male adversaries twice her size.