But they’re not heroes. One we meet is the Mentor (and dies), one’s a villain, and one’s a colleague.
Oliver Twist?
David Copperfield?
Ishmael?
Natty Bumppo?
Huck Finn?
Uncle Tom?
Ragged Dick?
Sister Carrie?
McTeague?
Tom Joad?
Sal Paradise?
He might be rich, but is he a hero? Well, he has managed not to kill Sheldon Cooper so far. That’s gotta count for something.
Now that you mention it, this is another thing that I think disqualifies Nero Wolfe. He was certainly nobody’s hero and would quite readily send someone on their way if he considered their request beneath his dignity or of little interest, no matter how dire their circumstances or what threat they were under. More than a few unfortunate souls who came to Wolfe for help or protection were subsequently murdered after he declined to help them.
There was a JSA story in the 90s, set in the 40s, that specifically addressed the class divide in the group. Dr. Mid-Nite and Johnny Thunder were at a charity fundraiser and Mid-Nite was kind of put on the defensive for being an Ivy League toff. It ended with some civilian blueblood walking over and complaining about Mid-Nite’s owl moulting near his food (Mid-Nite, a mere doctor, was less worthy of being there than the sons of the DAR). It was kind of cute. But it was clear that the wealthy were disproportionately represented in the group. And for the first year or two, the same was true of the Avengers.