Keeper of Infinite Earths - Villains of the Pulp Age
Created by Matt Parmenter
Dr. Pretorious
Alter Ego: Dr. Ethelbert Guyllum Pretorious
Occupation: Architect, Engineer, MD,
Known Relatives: None living
Group Affiliation: Leader of The Followers of the Sound
Base of Operations: New York, NY
Background/History:
They say there is a fine line between genius and insanity, Dr. Pretorious
crossed back and forth many times. In a class room or a laboratory, he was a
genius. The rest of the time, he was eccentric, to be kind. He believed in a
theory that ghosts and spirits were simply other dimensional visitations and
that if he could produce the proper harmonic frequency, he could access their
home. He sequestered himself from the world for weeks at a time trying to find
this frequency. Then, the reports were that a strange sound emanated from his
lab, shattering glass for blocks around. When the authorities broke in to
investigate the room was bare and there was no sign of Pretorious or his
equipment. A week later, he reappeared without a word about his absence. He
simply started writing papers and began claiming to be a vessel for the Elder
Gods. He gathered a cult called ‘the Followers of the Sound’ and was
considered quite insane by his former colleagues. Following reports of strange
goings on, the police raided a Followers gathering and hearing strange noises
and such, broke in just as Pretorious vanished into thin air. The acolytes were
rounded up and the premises searched. The investigators found photos and
evidence of horrific acts of debauchery and evil. A warrant was put out for Dr.
Pretorious wherever he was. The Covenant stumbled across some of Pretorious’
disciples bringing some sort of eel-like creature through a portal and stopped
them causing the creature to return to where it came from. The trail led them to
Pretorious’ home, a twin towered apartment building. They discovered that the
building was designed to be a giant tuning fork to create the proper frequency
to open a huge portal and bring his Elder Gods to our dimension. His followers
had started the device and the mutated Dr. Pretorious with tentacles in place of
his arms came through. The heroes cut off the power to the device and Pretorious
was drawn back to the other dimension. Pretorious Towers was declared condemned
and destroyed.
Personality/Motivations:
The insane genius sought to bring peace and harmony to the world by giving
complete control to his Elder Gods. His insanity made him very determined to
succeed at any price, including his very soul.
Quote: "Come a little closer so that the good doctor can taste you."