A
super-hero published by
DC Comics. The Whip first appeared
in
The Flash #1 in January 1940.
The Whip's history begins in the 1800's when poor Mexican
workers were being mistreated by the wealthy landowners in
the Southwest. Rising up to defend the maltreated was El
Castigo (or "The Whip" in English), who defeated the rancheros
and brought peace to the people of the area. The people never
knew that the Whip was in fact Don Fernando Suarez, one of the
Mexican upperclass who used his costumed identity to bring
the people justice.
One hundred years later, the town of Seguro was in the
same trouble as years before. The townspeople were being
terrorized by the rich landowners and one of the men, oddly
enough named Carlos, was to be hanged for a crime he didn't
commit. The people of the town despaired for a champion, but
little did they know one was about to come their way.
Their hero came in the form of Rodney Gaynor, later to be
renamed Rodrigo to make his origin more plausible. Gaynor
was a millionaire playboy who had decided that riding his
polo pony on the East Coast was boring, so he packed up his car
and his obligatory Asian man-servant Wing and headed west. (Note:
Wing should not be confused with Wing (the Oriental sidekick of
the Crimson Avenger) or Stuff, the Chinatown Kid (the sidekick
of the Vigilante) or Kato (the sidekick of the Green Hornet)
or Hop Sing (the cook on Bonanza)). The two came to Seguro
and soon met Marissa Dillon, the daughter of the publisher of
that hotbed of journalism, the Seguro Sentinal. Learning
of Carlos' plight and the history of El Castigo, Gaynor decided
that he would right the wrongs done to these people by dressing
up in a costume (complete with matador jacket) and fight for
the people as the Whip, Zorro with the serial numbers filed off.
The Whip fought in the Southwest for a few years and eventually
moved back to New York City. He was a member of the All-Star
Squadron though only in group shots.