I have a vague memory of a book I had read (probably in the early 60s, although I’m not sure when it was written) that involved a set of rings, each one tingled when in the presence of another, to let the wearer know that there was another good guy nearby. Anyone have any clue what the heck I’m talking about?
It might have been Edgar Rice Burroughs…?
I was going to mention Alladin’s ring as the grandfather of them all, but I see it’s been covered.
Not sure about older versions, but the 1980 movie had a ring with which, among other things, Ming could make you do a sexy dance.
There was a cartoon called Cyborg Six (I think) that had your normal ethnically diverse American family. If they touched their ring to the wrist of the other hand they’d change into their “cyborg” identity. In one episode, they were tied in such a way that they couldn’t do that, but one of the kids touched his ring to the mom’s wrist and it worked. Can’t remember if he changed, she changed or they both changed.
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If I remember aright, the dad is the one who invented the entire setup: rings, wrist contact points and powers. If I was setting people up with powers, especially people I cared about, I think I’d make the power-up sequence easier and much less noticeable.
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Bionic Six. It was “The Bionic Six”.
And it was a professor, who was a friend of the father, that created the bionics.
BTW–daughter was HOT! Plus MILF.
King Solomon’s ring is from the same tradition.
I saw a record album from that cartoon at a collectors’ fair recently. Reading the cover I realized for the first time that the main bad guy, who as a kid I always thought was called “Devilus,” was actually Daedalus (typoed on the linked site as “Daedalius”).
Vilya, Narya, and Nenya.
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In the Square-Enix game Saga Frontier, a marmoset named Riki has to collect 9 rings with various magical powers (and defeat the Master Ring) in order to save his homeland. (Someone over at Square likes Tolkien.)
In Spaceballs, Yogurt gives Lonestar a ring with which he can manipulate the Swartz. (Turns out that Yogurt just found the ring in a cereal box.)
Obviously, I remembered awrong. [insert smiley of choice here] And the mom was a hottie. Don’t remember the daughter.
Curse you! I wanted to blow people’s minds with the Thing Ring reference.
The character was Ben Grimm. Somehow the partial cure for… Thingness made him younger. I remember the doctor who treated him did not wnat to treat him furthur because he was afraid he could end up as an infant.
That was part of a Flintstones show.
In Hugh Cook’s ‘Chronicles of an Age of Darkness’ series of books, there were genie style bottles, but instead of there being a genie in there, the owner would use a ring to enter the bottle himself, it was like carrying your own building around with you.
Also, the flight rings would allow the flying characters such as Superboy or Mon-El to retain their power of flight when powerless, as under a red sun. Or for Ultra Boy, who could only devote his ultra-energy to the use of one power at a time, to use it for strength, invulnerability or flash vision instead of flight.
Wow, I used to like that show when I was a kid, but for years I’ve been misremembering it as “Shazzam”. Occasionally you’ll still hear people say "Shazzam meaning “Presto!” or “Abracadabra!” or the like.
SHAZAM!* is what Billy Batson said to turn into Captain Marvel.
*Solomon, Hercules, Atlas, Zeus, Achilles, Mercury
I though SHAZAM* was what Mary Bromfield said to turn into Mary Marvel.
Or maybe SHAZAM** what Teth-Adam says to turn into Black Adam.
Or is SHAZAM*** what Hoppy says to turn into Marvel Bunny?
*Selena, Hippolyta, Ariadne, Zephyrus, Aurora, Minerva
**Shu, Heru, Amon, Zehuti, Aton, Mehen
Salamander, Hogules, Antlers, Zebreus, Abalone, Monkury
GEEEEEEK! GEEEEEK! Comic book GEEEEEEEK squared to the power of infinity (especially for that last one)!
I concur with jayjay. Man, Otto, you’re talking to a man who owns every issue of Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew and even I did not know about Hoppy. I’m seriously impressed.
I will confess to having to look up who constituted Hoppy’s pantheon. The others I knew after some looting of the memory bank.
Captain Marvel Jr’s magic phrase is, of course, “Captain Marvel,” which makes him the only superhero I know of who can’t utter his own name in casual conversation. Probably put a crimp in Freddy’s newsboy career whenever the Big Red Cheese was on the front page too.
Anyone want to go for the bonus round and name off the pantheon for IBAC, or identify who got dropped from the pantheon when Shazam the Wizard changed his name from Shazamo?
OK, I suppose Black Bolt goes on that list as well. I suppose I could include Jericho from the Titans too, since his throat was cut (except I guess they grew back or something) but if this particular tangent takes off let’s limit it to those who actually have the power of speech.
I thought it was SHAZOOM+, what Billy Spafon says to turn into Captain Marbles