I can talk for myself, Tom! See, folks? This paw-print, left by the killer, exactly matches his! That clears me of the crime! 
- — Mr. Tawky Tawny src
Tawky Tawny was a talking tiger and friend of Captain Marvel.
History
Tawky Tawny started life as an ordinary tiger cub, in a jungle in South Asia. When he was still very young, his mother was killed by a big game hunter. The cub was found and befriended by a young American boy, Tommy Todd, who named him "Mr. Tawny." Tommy's father was a missionary schoolteacher, and Mr. Tawny grew up in their house. After one year of elementary schooling, Tawny had grown too big to be allowed inside the little schoolhouse in the jungle, but he quietly sat outside all day, as if listening, and little Tom and his schoolmates used to ride and romp around the school on his back.
One day another tiger came to the area and killed some of the Natives, who blamed Mr. Tawny and came after him with spears. Tawny and Tommy escaped into the the jungle, where Tommy wished out loud that Tawny could talk. Just at that moment, along came a hermit with a bowl of liquid, a serum for energizing an animal's brain and enabling it to use its vocal chords for speech. He placed it in front of Tawny, who lapped it up, and was now very pleased to find himself able to speak. Leading the way, Tawny hunted down the new tiger and fought him to the death, then dragged his carcass to the Native village, where he explained to the natives how the other tiger's paws matched prints left by the killer. The natives agreed that Tawny was innocent.
Years later after making his way to America,[1] Mr. Tawny was able to return the friendship of Tom Todd, when he too was framed for a murder. Tawny aided Captain Marvel in tracking down the real killer and bringing him to justice, exonerating Tom.[2]
Powers and Abilities
Powers
- Superhuman Strength: Tawny is strong enough to break metal chains with his hands.
Abilities
- Hand-to-Hand Combat (Basic): During the events of Convergence Tawny was shown to be a competent fighter.
- Athletics
- Aviation
- Enhanced Senses: Tawky Tawny can track down a murderer by smell.[3]
Notes
- This version of Tawky Tawny, including all history and corresponding appearances, was erased from existence following the collapse of the original Multiverse in the 1985–86 Crisis on Infinite Earths event and later restored following the rebirth of the infinite Multiverse during the Dark Crisis of 2022-2023. Even though other versions of the character may have appeared, this information does not apply to those versions.
- Shazam! #1 was Tawky Tawny's first appearance in a comic published by DC Comics.
Related
- 50 Appearances of Tawky Tawny (Earth-S)
- 3 Images featuring Tawky Tawny (Earth-S)
- 4 Quotations by or about Tawky Tawny (Earth-S)
- Character Gallery: Tawky Tawny (Earth-S)
Footnotes
  This character is or was a member of the Marvel Family in any of its various incarnations, and an ally of Captain Marvel and the Wizard Shazam. This template will categorize articles that include it into the category "Marvel Family members." |