Kerry (New Earth)

King of Clubs
Mainstream Universe‎‎, 1950s-2011‎
Gallery
Real Name	Kerry (last name unknown)
Main Alias	King of Clubs
Other Aliases	King of Spades, Alexander the Great
Affiliation	Royal Flush Gang
Status
Alignment	Bad
Occupation	Super-villain
Characteristics
Gender	Male
Origin
Universe	Earth-One · New Earth
Creators	Gardner Fox · Mike Sekowsky
First Appearance	Justice League of America #43 (March, 1966)
Appearance of Death	JLA Classified #24 (August, 2006)

Kerry was the first King of Clubs of the Royal Flush Gang.

History

Kerry was the childhood friend of Amos Fortune, the "Ace of Clubs" of the Royal Flush Gang. Fortune patterened all of his original gang members as the Suit of Clubs and provided them with weaponized playing cards charged with Stellaration energy. The King fought up against and initially defeated several members of the Justice League of America, including Hawkman, Hawkgirl, Flash, and Wonder Woman. Ultimately, it was Snapper Carr who was granted the means by which to defeat the Royal Flush Gang. The Gang later faced the League again, initially disguised as the historical characters from whom their cards were derived (in King's case, Alexander the Great) while searching for a lost treasure.

Amos Fortune eventually abandoned the Gang. Shortly thereafter, the King and the Gang switched suits to Spades and attempted to steal paintings containing clues to a hidden treasure, but were thwarted by the machinations of the Joker. After a prolonged period of inactivity, and with several new members, they later fought Wonder Woman although by now, only the King and Queen remained from the original lineup.

After this failure, the King abandoned his criminal career, but he later reunited with his original Gang for a one-time encounter against the so-called "Justice League Detroit". The Gang were defeated, then betrayed by their former leader Amos Fortune, who killed the King of Clubs by cutting his throat.

Notes

• Although this character was originally introduced during DC's Earth-One era of publication, their existence following the events of the 1985–86 limited series Crisis on Infinite Earths remains intact. However, some elements of the character's Pre-Crisis history may have been altered or removed for Post-Crisis New Earth continuity, and should be considered apocryphal.
• JLA Classified #22 establishes that the original Royal Flush Gang were childhood friends and that they adopted their positions within the gang based on their first name initials: Amos = Ace, Kerry = King, Queenie = Queen, Jack = Jack, Tom = Ten.

Related

• 12 Appearances of Kerry (New Earth)
• 3 Images featuring Kerry (New Earth)
• Quotations by or about Kerry (New Earth)
• Character Gallery: Kerry (New Earth)

Footnotes

Royal Flush Gang member This character is or was a member of the Royal Flush Gang, in any of its various incarnations. This template will categorize articles that include it into the category "Royal Flush Gang members."

Justice League Villain This character is or was primarily an enemy of the Justice League, in any of its various incarnations. This template will categorize articles that include it into the category "Justice League Villains."