Black Adam

Black Adam is a fictional comic book character, created in 1945 by Otto Binder & C. C. Beck for Fawcett Comics. Originally created as a one-shot villain for Fawcett Comics' Marvel Family team of superheroes, Black Adam was revived as a recurring supervillain after DC Comics began publishing Captain Marvel/Marvel Family stories under the title Shazam! in the 1970s. As originally depicted, Black Adam was a corrupted ancient Egypt predecessor of Captain Marvel, who found his way to modern times to challenge the hero and his Marvel Family associates.

Since the turn of the 21st century, Adam has been redefined by DC writers Jerry Ordway, Geoff Johns, and David S. Goyer as a corrupted antihero attempting to clear his name. Featured roles in comic books series such as JSA, Villains United, Infinite Crisis, and 52 have elevated the character to a level of prominence in DC Comics. In 2009, Black Adam was ranked as IGN's 16th Greatest Comic Book Villain of All Time.

The original Fawcett Comics version of Black Adam, which appeared only once during the original Fawcett run of Captain Marvel comics, is an ancient Egypt prince named "Teth-Adam", who is chosen by the wizard Shazam to be his successor.

When Adam says the magic word "Shazam", he is transformed into a super-powered being, Teth-Adam (literally translating into "Mighty Human"). Possessing the same powers that Captain Marvel would later be granted, Adam is soon corrupted by the vastness of his powers. The wizard Shazam originally gives him ancient powers derived from Greco-Roman deities (later stories establish that the names of gods from the Egyptian pantheon make up the acronym Shazam for Black Adam).