TALES OF SUSPENSE #45 (1963): 1st Pepper and Happy

Tony keeps a portrait of Iron Man in his home.

That’s weird.

Tony Stark gets into a car accident driving race-cars for fun, and a new character pulls him out and saves his life…

Happy Hogan! 

Hogan is introduced as an extraordinarily strong man with innate heroism.  When Tony’s recreational racecar crashes, Hogan is the only one who leaps towards the burning vehicle to save Stark.  So Tony hires him on the spot.

And along with Happy Hogan, we meet Pepper Potts for the first time.

Only she’s called Kitty. Above is the first panel we see of her, and she’s clearly named “Kitty.”  But then she’s Pepper, with no explanation, later in the same issue (see below). It’s a typo.  Stan Lee was clearly doing too much at this time, and stuff like this could get by him.

And Blizzard.  Who goes by “Jack Frost” in this early appearance.

It’s really the first good Iron Man story (other than his origin).  Good, but not great.

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