If we have erred, Rogers will be dead within seconds! For, he is drinking the strongest chemical potion ever created by man! But, if we succeed, he will be the first of an army of fighting men such as the world has never known! His reflexes, his physical condition, his courage, will be second to none! 
- —Dr. Erskine[src]
History
Early Life[]
Doctor Abraham Erskine was a Jewish[5] scientist born and raised in Germany. He worked for Nazi Germany during World War II.[6]
Projekt Nietzsche[]
In February 1940, Nazi scientists Doctor Erskine and Professor Eric Schmitt sought to unlock the secrets of Steele's abilities for Project Nietzsche. They also hoped to use Homo mermanus DNA but the mission to retrieve it failed. Their attempts were met with varying success.[6] Doctor Erskine however defected to the United States of America with the help of Nick Fury, taking his work with him.[7] In the Spring of 1940, his death in a car crash was faked, and he was given a new identity as Professor Reinstein.[1]
Project Rebirth[]
Doctor Erskine developed the Super Soldier Serum and Vita Rays designed to create an army of super-soldiers, enhanced human beings without physical defects or limitations, for the American war effort during World War II.[3] Doctor Erskine's process transformed Clinton McIntyre into Protocide but accidentally killed Clinton. It later successfully transformed scrawny Steve Rogers into the muscular Captain America. After getting his process to be successful with Rogers' trial run, a Nazi agent named Heinz Kruger infiltrated the top-secret military base and assassinated Doctor Erskine at Rogers' transformation presentation.[3]
Legacy[]
To date, nobody has been able to duplicate the Super Soldier Serum intact as successfully as Doctor Erskine was with Rogers, but some have recreated powerful human transformation techniques similar to Doctor Erskine's. Including his successor Wilfred Nagel and William Burnside, who became the Captain America of the 1950s.[8] Other experiments following Doctor Erskine's footsteps led to the creation of Luke Cage, the Sentry, and the Weapon Plus Program.
During his research, Doctor Erskine developed a special diet and exercise regime that he theorized would allow an individual to reach peak human physical development. However, the proposal was rejected by the US government as the basis for a super soldier program because it required a lifetime of adherence in order to produce maximum results. After Erskine's assassination, the American government deemed his previous research irrelevant to the program and did not classify it. Thus it was passed down through his family.[9]
His grandson, Brian Van Patrick, would use it as the basis for both a successful organic food business and the physical training of his own son Michael Van Patrick. Brian had wished to see if his grandfather had been right and Michael's peak human physiology proved the accuracy of Doctor Erskine's theories. Unfortunately, when it became publicly known that Michael was descended from the creator of the Super Soldier Serum, his achievements came under scrutiny. This resulted in him losing his scholarship to the University of Kentucky and nearly every award that he had ever earned, despite the fact that medical testing showed that his abilities were due to training.[10]
However, Michael's abilities did earn him a place in the 50-State Initiative.[10]Attributes
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Abilities
Paraphernalia
Equipment
Notes
- Erskine is often confused with his successor Dr. Wilfred Nagel who inherited the Project Rebirth program as they shared a close code name:
- "Dr. Joseph Reinstein" was Erskine's codename.
- "Dr. Josef Reinstein" was Dr. Wilfred Nagel's codename.
- "Dr. Joseph Reinstein" was Erskine's codename.
See Also
- 39 appearance(s) of Abraham Erskine (Earth-616)
- 2 appearance(s) in handbook(s) of Abraham Erskine (Earth-616)
- 21 minor appearance(s) of Abraham Erskine (Earth-616)
- 27 mention(s) of Abraham Erskine (Earth-616)
- 2 mention(s) in handbook(s) of Abraham Erskine (Earth-616)
- 16 image(s) of Abraham Erskine (Earth-616)
- 3 quotation(s) by or about Abraham Erskine (Earth-616)
- 1 item(s) used/owned by Abraham Erskine (Earth-616)
Links and References
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Captain America #255
- ↑ Giant-Size Invaders #1
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Captain America Comics #1
- ↑ Adventures of Captain America #1
- ↑ Marvel Fact Files #5 ; Captain America's entry
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Marvels Project #1
- ↑ Marvels Project #2
- ↑ Young Men #24
- ↑ Avengers: The Initiative Annual #1
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Avengers: The Initiative #1
- ↑ Marvels Project #4
- ↑ Captain America: America's Avenger #1
- ↑ Captain America: America's Avenger Vol 1 1