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Nelson, King J. King J. Nelson was created by Fred MacIsaac (Dick Boswell, Pete Crane, Fred Leonard, Rambler Murphy, Pagneomon, Bill Peepe) and appeared in “The Great Commander” (Argosy All-Story, July 3-24, 1926).

King J. Nelson, American businessman, has nearly unlimited financial power; through his dummy corporations and various holdings he essentially controls America. But that’s not enough for him--he wants to be publically esteemed. He hires Rottenberg, a public relations agent, to create a “dragon” for Nelson to slay. Nelson orders the leaders of the labor unions (who he controls) to go on strike, which plunges America into chaos. Nelson then has the president and Congress invite him to Washington and make him “Commander Nelson,” with a wide range of legal powers. Nelson orders the leaders of the strikers to come to Washington and threatens to shoot them if they disobey him.

So far, all is well for Nelson, but after he consolidates his power over the armed forces and gives a speech in which he suspends the Constitution, various American leaders, in collusion with Nelson’s daughter Sydney, arrange for Nelson’s kidnaping. The Secret Service soon rescues Nelson, but in the short time he has been away, his lieutenants have seized most of his money and the president and Congress have taken back his power. The press praise Nelson for gracefully relinquishing his power, which Nelson realizes gives him the esteem and respect he wanted all along.

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