In light of the holiday week, I thought I might take a page from my fellow iFanboy writers and have a little fun by way of a Top 10 list. But since this is supposed to be a column about the business side of comics, I present to you…
The Top 10 Corporate Magnates in Comics
<< 10) Adrian Veidt – Veidt, like a number of members on this list, has made multiple fortunes in his life. Originally inheriting vast sums, he gave it all away before embarking on his career as Ozymandias, the crime fighter. After retiring from his hero duties, he used his vast intellect to build a massive corporate empire that spanned scientific research, energy production and toy licensing.
9) Warren Worthington III – One of the original X-men, Worthington is the classic Prodigal son who in his adult years embraced his role as the heir to Worthington Industries – a multi-billion dollar conglomerate founded by his grandfather. Today Warren splits his time between adventuring and overseeing his company’s vast business interests. >>>
<< 8) Richard Rich Sr. – Harvey Comics’ Richard Rich Sr. is an industrialist who has controlling interest in virtually every industry imaginable in Richville. He might be higher on this list were it not for his tendency to spoil his son, Richie Rich, rotten. The sums of money he blows on robotic, sentient maids and live-in inventors keeps him from pushing into the Top 5.
7) Wapol – One of the main villains in One Piece, Wapol may be known to some as the former despot of Drum Island, but the truth is he’s also a renowned businessman. Wapol was able to use his abilities to create toys of unparalleled popularity, and as a result he gained more wealth as the CEO of his toy company than he ever had as the King of Drum Island. >>>
<< 6) Jack Marlowe – Formerly known as Spartan, Jack Marlowe (secretly an android) took control over the Halo Corporation after his “relative” Jacob departed and built the company into a global powerhouse. Under Marlowe’s astute eye, Halo expanded into the world’s largest energy provider (thanks to batteries powered by energy from another dimension), as well as successful forays into media, automotive and defense.
5) Aleksander Lukin – Born an impoverished Russian villager, Lukin rose to power in the KGB and – like many of his counterparts – leveraged his influence into legitimate business practices once the Cold War ended. As founder and CEO of the Kronas Corporation, Lukin’s business interests are vast and include, among other things, controlling interest in the world’s largest oil producer – Roxxon. >>>
<< 4) Tony Stark – For all of his reputation as a billionaire playboy and adventurer, Tony Stark is also among the most successful and astute businessmen of his generation. Stark made his fortune as a weapons manufacturer but a crisis of confidence expanded Stark Industries' interests into other areas of scientific, industrial and medical advancement. More so than anyone else on this list, Stark has had to fight to hold onto his wealth and business ventures; his company has fallen victim to a number of hostile takeover efforts over the years. Many analysts believe Stark would be even higher on this list were it not for the tens of billions of dollars he must spend to maintain the Iron Man suit.
3) Lex Luthor – Put ten people in a room and you’ll get ten different answers as to the kind of man Lex Luthor really is. He’s a former President of the United States, but has also been accused of vast criminal dealings including an unhealthy fixation against the likes of Superman. Regardless of what you think of the man himself, his acumen as an industrialist is beyond reproach. As CEO of LexCorp, Luthor has built one of the most influential conglomerates in world history that spans cutting-edge scientific research to space exploration to architectural design to defense contracting. >>>
<< 2) Bruce Wayne – Although his right hand man Lucius Fox handles day-to-day oversight of Wayne Enterprises, Bruce Wayne continues to be a driving force in the world’s most successful corporation. Wayne acts as CEO and Chairman of the Board for the holding company whose subsidiaries include: Wayne Steel, Wayne Shipping, Wayne Foods, Wayne Biotech, Wayne Medical, Wayne Chemicals, Wayne Electronics and Wayne Entertainment. Mr. Wayne is also among the list’s most influential philanthropists, through the Martha Wayne Foundation.
1) Scrooge McDuck – Scrooge McDuck is the ultimate rags to riches story. From humble beginnings as a shoe-shine boy, McDuck leveraged hard work and business savvy into a never-ending series of smart business ventures. Today, in his later years, he stands as the richest duck in the world and has a net worth (according to Carl Barks) of "one multiplujillion, nine obsquatumatillion, six hundred twenty-three dollars and sixty-two cents."
Jason is a mutant with the ability to squeeze 36 hours into every 24-hour day, which is why he was able to convince his wife he had time to join the iFanboy team on top of running his business, raising his three sons, and most importantly, co-hosting the 11 O'Clock Comics podcast with his buddies Vince B, Chris Neseman and David Price. If you are one of the twelve people on Earth who want to read about comics, the stock market and football in rapid fire succession, you can follow him on Twitter.
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Oh pretty pennies! Would love to have rooms full of bags and coins of gold like Scrooge! I’ll settle for a being a penniless playboy with my one and only super power, the power of seduction.
I’d settle for one obsquatumatillion. I love those old Scrooge McDuck books.
Jason, don’t forget Bruce also has the new Batman Inc! And i wonder how much his stokes went up or down when he annouced that?
and why oh why didn’t i think of Scoorge mcDuck as number one. silly me!
@WeaklyRoll…yes, the Batman Inc thing is notable, but I haven’t read any of the issues yet so I took a little bit of liberty with my "continuity." 🙂
I also didn’t include the likes of Norman Osborn or Oliver Queen because they’re not currently as flush as they usually are.
To be honest, I have no idea who Wapol is.
@ato…that’s the fun of the list. Click on his name and you can learn more, if you want. But he’s one of the main antagonists in the most successful comic book series in the world. One Piece.
What about Tomax and Xamot, the twin controlling interests of Extensive Enterprises! Without them, there’d be no COBRA!
Great article! I wonder, how would Professor Xavier, Reed Richards, Janet Van Dyne, and Victor Von Doom rank? Their finanical resources are quite considerable too.
@rodfa02 they’re all exceedingly wealthy but not corporate executives actively. The like of Tchalla, Namor, Thor, Hercules, etc…are also ridiculously wealthy but this isn’t a list of wealthiest people.
Wait, I’m thinking of something else.
How can anyone compete with a character that frequently SWIMS through his vast amounts of cash held up in his super secure (unless you are the begal boys) vault
I miss DUCK TALES. If it was on I’d watch it right now.
@Conor agreed, I’m hoping Boom! gets on that bc I love their Darkwing Duck
Like the diversity of the list. Don’t hear so much about the Maria Stark Foundation so much anymore with Tony.
I’d push Wayne to 4, he’s not that much of a business person really
@pppiquer: He is very much a business person. He just hides behind a mask of incompetence.
What’s Danny Rand’s fiscal situation these days? Did he dissolve his company? My memory is fuzzy on what happened in the Brubaker/Fraction run.
Awesome.
Rand is wealthy but no longer super wealthy after Rand International was destroyed in the aftermath of the events that took place in The Immortal Iron Fist.
Yes, a One Piece referance. That is my favorite manga.
Veidt is truly the most insidious one! Making a FORTUNE off of Watchmen action figures!!
ooooh look, 2D Pancake Comedian, complete with spatula!…the bastard
What, no Ted Kord?
Scrooge deserves top spot for one reason alone: he’s the only one on the list who can SWIM IN HIS OWN MONEY!
Of all the things that confused me in my childhood cartoons, Scrooge’s ability to swim through his silo of gold coins like it was water just mystified me…
What about Veronica’s father from ARCHIE? Sorry, can’t think of his name right now.
All hail Scrooge McDuck. Come on, there was not magnate cooler than a anthropomorphized duck who can swim in gold. I am now tempted to break out the DVDs.
@BC1: Mr. Lodge.
@jesse125, I think there is a real life magnate who made a fortune off selling toys off his franchise…I just can’t remember his name…
and @rhyyoungir I think possibly because Ted is dead, not sure what happens to his riches though. Anyone?
Yep…Ted Kord didn’t make the list because he’s "comic book dead."
[Obligatory bitching about someone "missing" from the list.]
Bonus points for including Lukin.
My List
#5. Johnny Cage – Technically he wouldn’t count but I’m talking about the comics man! Johnny Cage is a celluloid superstar that’s supposed to be like a modern day Chuck Norris and Ken Masters only COOLER! When in actuality the man is a tool but a lovable one. He’s the type of character you love to see as canon fodder but in serious situations you root for him. The first movie was good, but the second didn’t really do him justice (seeing as he died 4 minutes into the sequel) but that new trailer certainly made him look pretty cool. I’m putting him up here because he is something I haven’t seen before.
#4. Bruce Wayne – You’re Gary Stu. He gets points for eeriness but that’s just about it. Getting f’d over on a daily basis is pretty much the only reason why he’s on this list.
#3. Danny Rand – He’s your dumb hand to hand guru. He doesn’t really run his company well but he runs goddamm it! He’s a very realistic take on someone who gains a fortune out of kinship. Nepotism never looked more modern!
#2. Kouga Amagi (from: ZETMAN) – He’s your naive richboy who invests his moral compass on this idealogical concept of "justice". His determination to make the world this way for the betterment of mankind is what draws me to this character. He’s a parody of Bruce that isn’t what you expect and there isn’t a damn Gary Stu moment in his life where he "miraculously" get’s out of really bad situations. His ventures are quite realistic and damages to his body while disguised as "Alphasz" is always in continuity. (eg spoiler: he loses an arm)
#1. Adrian Veidt – He isn’t perfect. He isn’t your world’s strongest, most unkillable man. But he is its smartest and that my friends legitimately makes him the most threatening person to be around. Who else can be more dangerous than someone who’s taken every move you could make into consideration?
Ummm… Mr Burns anyone?
@Wood can’t believe you brought up Wapol from my favorite manga, One Piece. Too bad most people wouldn’t remember him being a toy creator, but more of an evil businessman who took away all the doctors from the kingdom.
I miss Duck Tales, but Darkwing Duck is better.
@Nightwing I really don’t think of Mr. Burns as a comic book character, although he certainly qualifies. That said, no way is he more powerful than anyone on this list IMHO. Burns owns a nuclear reactor in a small Midwestern Town. He’s a dime a dozen. 🙂