Punisher

Super Name: Punisher
Real Name: Frank Castle
Publisher: Marvel
Creators: John Remita
Gender: Male
Hair: Black
Eyes: Blue
Born: 1950 (chronological age; reinvigorated/rebooted to around age 35-40).
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 210 Ibs.
Born: Queens, New York
Relatives: Maria Elizabeth Castle (wife, deceased), Lisa Barbara Castle (daughter, deceased), Francis Castle (son, deceased), Mario Castiglione (father, deceased), Louisa Castiglione (mother, deceased), Michael Castle (brother, deceased)
Status: Widower, Former Special Forces, US Marine & Instructor. Vigilante.
Character Type: Human
First Appearance: The Amazing Spider-Man #129 (Feb. 1974)
Birthday: February 16, 1950
Died: None

Origin:

A dedicated US Marine excelling as a soldier in every way, Frank Castle was a force to be reckoned with during the Vietnam War but also a dedicated family man - which proved to be his salvation. After a particularly close call in the closing years of the war, he resigned to a Special Forces instructor post in upstate New York so he could be closer to his wife Maria and two children, Lisa and Francis.

Things finally seemed to calm down for them as Frank once more learned to live life in peace. However, disaster struck when Frank and his family went for a pick-nick in Central Park. There they were witnesses to a mob execution. Causing the mob to fire on the family as well, fatally hitting Maria, Lisa and Francis. Frank was also gunned down but survived.

In the hospital, Frank found that he not only couldn't move on with his life, but the mob didn't want him to either and neither could he find justice within a corrupt system bought off by powerful criminals.

These events were the trigger for Frank Castle to become the Punisher. He went AWOL from the Corps and began his legendary career as tormented vigilante.

He donned a black battle suit emblazoned with the image of a white death's head on his chest; first seeking vengeance for his family and next applying his skills to criminals and murderers the world over. In time he would rack up an immeasurable body count as he put his past life behind him and entered the never-ending war against crime.

Creation:

Frank Castle debuted in 1974's The Amazing Spider-Man #129 as the vigilante assassin hired by Jackal to kill Spider-Man for the apparent murder of Norman Osborn. As differences between Punisher and Jackal came to a head, Punisher realized that he was being tricked into killing Spider-Man and that our friendly neighborhood web-slinger was not in fact a criminal or murderer. From then on, audiences came to understand Punisher's origin and that he was not a villain and he then returned to aid Spider-man when old war buddy turned insane war criminal Hitman was hired to kill the web head.

Created by writer Gerry Conway, artists John Romita Sr and Ross Andru and Stan Lee having suggested the Punisher title, Conway originally designed Frank Castle as a villain but as the story developed he became an antihero. Conway has said his biggest influences in creating the character were Don Pendelton's Executioner: Mack Bolan.

                                                                       

                                                                       Major Stories:


Year One
First Strike: Spider-Man
Circle of Blood
Microchip and the Never Ending War
Punisher on the Edge
Welcome Back Frank
Army of One
Max
War Journal: Civil War
Goin' Out West
Dark Reign
Punisher: The List (the death of Frank Castle)
Franken-Castle
In the Blood
Shadowland: Battle for the Soul of New York
The Punisher/ Omega Effect
War Zone
Thunderbolts



Powers and Abilities:


Powers: 

Adaptive
Agility
Attractive Male
Escape Artist
Gadgets
Intellect
Leadership
Marksmanship
Stamina
Stealth
Tracking
Unarmed Combat
Weapon Master

Equipment and Gear:

Frank Castle has used various weapons and equipment throughout the decades of him being the vigilante known as the Punisher. During his early years working with Microchip the Punisher had many battle vans, other armored vehicles, helicopters, planes, submarines, robots (such as the Dalek), and even his own Exo-Armor, he would use in his war against crime.

                                                                     Costumes and Belongings:

The most common and basic costume is simply a black top with the deaths head symbol spray painted onto it, a pair of black leather trousers, boots and a black leather belt if not utility belts. The second costume is exactly the same, just with a leather or khaki overcoat worn to hide his weapons and of course the skull head symbol. The costume used in the regular 616 continuity is a more generic superhero costume, with a simple black and white color scheme and utilities resembling Nick Fury's classic SHIELD uniform.