Limehouse Jack

LIMEHOUSE JACK

Real Name: Quentin Conroy

Class: Human

Occupation: Serial killer

Group Affiliation: None

Known Relatives: John Francis Conroy (father, deceased)

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: Gotham City

First Appearance: Batman I #307 (January, 1979)

Powers: Limehouse Jack was mentally unstable and possessed extraordinary strength. He was armed with a metal cane and gold coins coated in fast-acting poison.

History: (Batman I #307) - Quentin Conroy was the son of John Francis, who abandoned his family when Quentin was a child, seeking freedom and peace by living a fringe life on the streets. John, also called “Limehouse Jack,” died in a gutter and his loss broke Quentin. As an adult Quentin’s most valuable possession was his coin collection, which once belonged to his father, and was his only keepsake of him. He had a mental breakdown, developing a split personality and believing himself to be Limehouse Jack, his own father. As Limehouse Jack he became a serial killer, offering gold coins from his collection to the homeless which had been coated in fast acting poison. After killing the victims of his “generosity” he placed the coins over their eyes, hoping they’d found peace. Limehouse Jack believed he was an angel of mercy, ending the misery and hopelessness the homeless felt. Batman investigated the murders, clashing with Limehouse Jack in the sewers, but Jack escaped him. Batman lured out Jack by posing as a panhandler, and managed to subdue him. He raged that Batman had turned his friends against him, saying that he only killed the homeless to free them from pain. Batman turned him over to the GCPD, feeling empathy for a man who was completely broken by his father.

Comments: Created by Len Wein & John Calnan.

Limehouse Jack's appearance in Batman I #307 was reprinted in DC Retroactive: Batman - The ‘70s #1.