PAN
Real Name: Aegipan
Occupation:
God of shepherds, flocks and forests
Legal Status:
Citizen of Olympus
Identity: The general populace of Earth is unaware of Pan except as a
mythological character.
Other Aliases:
The Goat-God, Faunus, Sylvanus, Satyr
Place of Birth:
possibly Olympus
Marital Status:
Single
Known Relatives:
Hermes
(father), Iris
(possible mother), Silenius (half-brother), Marsyas and the other Satyrs
(nephews), Hercules,
Apollo, Ares,
Hephaestus,
Dionysus
(uncles), Aphrodite,
Artemis, Athena,
Persephone,
Discord, Eileithyia,
Hebe (aunts), Asclepius,
Janus, Cupid
(cousins), Zeus
(grandfather),
Group Affiliation:
The Gods of Olympus
Base of Operations:
Olympus, sometimes Mobile
First Appearance:
(historical) Action Comics #77, (recent) Tales to Astonish #36
History: Pan is a member of an extra-dimensional race of beings known as the
Olympians, who were worshipped as gods by the people of Ancient Greece and the
later Roman Empire. According to most accounts, he is the son of Hermes, the god
of messengers and thieves. His mother is unknown because his appearance so
frightened her upon his birth that she abandoned him in the land of Arcadia (now
part of modern Greece), but some speculation is that his mother was Iris, the
rainbow-goddess. Hermes, however, was very proud of Pan and showed him off to
the other gods of Olympus. Pan meanwhile preferred to live in the lesser
mountains around Olympus although he became the patron god of Arcadia. He spent
much of his time using his powers to protect the animals of the forest and
pursuing lesser faerie-like divinities called nymphs for sexual favors. He once
fell in love with the goddess Syrinx, but she fled to the protection of her
father, the river-god Ladon, to protect her and he transformed her into marsh
reeds to conceal her. Unable to tell which one was she, Pan reportedly took some
of the reeds to make his panpipes or else named the one he already owned after
her. Pan also pursued the moon-goddess Selene and wooed her attention by showing
a promising her a beautiful white fleece. A favorite companion of Gaea, Mother
Earth, Pan discovered the hiding place of Demeter when she hid following the
abduction of her daughter Persephone. He reported her location to Zeus and he
sent the Fates to convince her to return to Olympus.
Although not a member of the Gods of Olympus,
Pan was a close ally and staunch defender alongside the Olympians against their
enemies. Pan discovered that his shout could invoke terror against their
enemies, sounding as a source of terror that it became the source of the word
“panic.” Several generations after Zeus defeated the Titans and conquered
Olympus, Gaea upset over the treatment of the Titans gave birth to the Giants
and Pan used his scream against them. Typhon, who preceded the Giants, however,
appeared unfazed against his screams and wounded Zeus by removing the sinews
from his hands and feet. Pan and Hermes banded together to rescue Zeus and help
him defeat Typhon. Pan also used his scream to protect himself from those who
might discover him in the forests of Greece.
Despite his preferential seclusion, Pan
remained fascinated by mortals and over the years assumed mortal disguises in
order to remind mortal man of the grandeur of the Olympian Gods, particularly
himself, long after worship of the Olympian gods had ended.. Around 490 BC, he
encountered a runner named Philippides near Mount Parthenius and requested from
him why the Athenians did not honor him since he had befriended them in the past
and wished to continue their friendship. Philippides reported this message to
the Athenians as Pan came to their defense in the Battle of Marathon against the
invading Persians shortly thereafter. Using his shout to invoke terror in their
enemies, he used his magic to transform their weapons into harmless objects such
as plants and fruit and saved the city from invasion. Honoring Pan, the
Athenians consecrated a cave on the north side of the Acropolis to worship him.
Into modern years, Pan assumed a variety of
mortal guises to meet mortal of high potential or to meet chosen champions of
the gods. He met the renowned magician Giovanni Zatara, a member of the wartime
Justice Society of America, the first Hawkman and the original Captain Marvel, a
young man imbued by godly gifts. While posing as a security guard, Pan took it
upon himself to teach humility upon a man who criticized his image in ancient
artwork from a museum.
In later years, Pan continued exploring the
modern world learning new cultures and how modern man had advanced, but he was
always careful to preserve his privacy. At some point, he took a unassuming post
in a Swiss inn, but his true identity must have became known because an American
reporter came looking for him to debunk his existence, but proof of Pan’s
existence unnerved the reporter to the extent that he backed off from
confronting him.
Despite his travels, Pan often returned to
Olympus from time to time, encountering a visit by the god Thor on one occasion.
He briefly fled Olympus during the invasions of the witch Circe and the Dark
Gods. His present activities are unrevealed.
In one alternate future of the 24th Century, the Olympian gods depart this plane of existence that Hercules might father a new generation of Olympians in their absence. Apollo challenged this decision and tried to create another earthly civilization based on the style of Ancient Greece within another planet in the galaxy. In doing so, he took captive of the USS Enterprise under command of Captain James T. Kirk, comparing Kirk’s First Officer Spock to Pan, adding that the satyr often bored him. Whether this occurs in the known mainstream timeline is unrevealed.
Height: 5' 8"
Weight: 310 lbs.
Eyes: Brown
Hair: Brown
Unusual Physical Features:
Pan has the appearance of a satyr including the hindquarters of a goat and two
small horns on his head.
Strength Level:
Pan possesses the normal strength level of an Olympian god of his size, height
and build who engages in extensive regular exercises; he has superhuman strength
enabling him to lift (press) 15 tons under optimal conditions.
Known Superhuman Powers: Pan possesses the conventional physical
attributes of the Olympian gods. Like all Olympians, he is immortal: he has not
aged since reaching adulthood and cannot die by any conventional means. He is
immune to all Earthly diseases and is resistant to conventional injury. If he
were somehow wounded, his godly life force would enable him to recover with
superhuman speed. It would take an injury of such magnitude that it dispersed a
major portion of his bodily molecules to cause him a physical death. Even then,
it might be possible for a god of significant power, such as Zeus, Apollo and
Hermes or for a number of Olympian gods of equal power working together to
revive him. Pan also possesses superhuman strength and his Olympian metabolism
provides him with far greater than human endurance in all physical activities.
(Olympian flesh and bone is about three times as dense as similar human tissue,
contributing to the Olympians' superhuman strength and weight.)
Pan
also has some mystical powers such as the ability to commit feats of material
transformation and possibly to teleport between Earth and Olympus. The full
extent of his mystical powers are unknown. His principal power is his scream, a
shrill siren call which can affect the minds of his rivals, inducing
inexplicable feelings of fear and dread, although some beings of potential power
have proved immune to even its effects.
Abilities: Pan is very adept at
playing the syrinx (also called panpipes) and has a very wily mind and a raucous
sense of humor.
Comments: This bio includes Pan as he has appeared in the Marvel and DC
Universes.
Pan’s parentage is a matter of debate.
Traditionally, he is the son of Hermes, but he has also been called the son of
Zeus and Hybris, Zeus and Aex, Zeus and Boetis, Apollo and Dryope or the son of
Helios. His mother has been variously identified as Iris the rainbow goddess,
Penelope the wife of Odysseus or Penelope, daughter of King Dryops.
Chronologically, since his existence predates both the mortal candidates for his
mother, Iris is the most likely candidate.
Pan was played by Tony Randall along with a
host of other creatures in the classic movie, “The Seven Faces of Doctor
Lao” (1964)
Clarifications: Pan is not to be
confused with:
Last updated: 10/05/07