A day after plans were announced for one of the X-Men to marry his partner in the comic book's first gay wedding, now, Marvel Comics is introducing its first hearing impaired superhero, named for a little boy.
Four-year-old Anthony Smith from New Hampshire was born with a rare genetic condition. He's unable to hear on his right side, and has hearing loss on his left. But one day he decided he didn't want to wear his blue hearing aid to school anymore.
"Basically one day he woke up and I said ok time to put in your hearing aid and said let's put in blue ear, we've always called it that and he said no superheroes don't wear blue ears," said the boy's mother, Christina D'Allesandro.
Anthony is a huge superhero fan, but if they don't wear blue ears then why should he? His mother told him superheroes do wear hearing aids but then she wasn't entirely sure that was true.
And so she sent an email to Marvel Comics here in New York City hoping someone would answer and we found the person who did
Bill Rosemann is an editor at Marvel Entertainment and a father of a 3-year-old son.
First he sent Anthony a comic book cover featuring Hawkeye, a superhero who lost his hearing.
"I said tell Anthony that's the ear he has the hearing aid in and if Anthony wears his hearing aid, he can be an honorary avenger," said Rosemann.
Then he and his team created a new superhero inspired by Anthony named Blue Ear who says thanks to his listening device, he hears someone in trouble.
"The main thing Marvel teaches is with great power there must come great responsibility and that guides all of our heroes," adds Rosemann.
Bill says the goal is to help kids like Anthony recognize their own his special powers.
To send fan mail to Marvel Entertainment,mheroes@marvel.com
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