History
Spark Publications
Origin
Tommy Preston was a high school age lad who worked after school in his grandfather’s antique shop. Amongst the items there, one day he discovered an old relic, The Heart of Gold. This was an Aztec artifact that had magical powers, due to the blood of thousands of people who had been sacrificed to it. It offered super powers to anyone who held it and said aloud the name of the talisman and wanted to help justice. When Tommy did so, he became Golden Lad, and fought crime. A recurring foe of his was the Dreamer. The material was best noted for the art of Mort Meskin, who created the character and drew all the stories and covers. In the last issue, there was a story where Peggy Shane became Golden Girl, with powers similar to his.
After his short run, Golden Lad disappeared except for a single story that was included in an AC Comics reprint book in 1996.
Charlton Comics/Warp Graphics
Thunderbunny
Golden Lad returned into the world of 1985’s America. It was revealed that he was kidnapped and placed into suspended animation by The Keeper, who was hired by one of Golden Lad’s enemies The Minstrel. Golden Lad’s pod malfunctioned and he managed to escape. When he team-up with Thunderbunny against armed bank robbers, The Heart of Gold was destroyed and a fragment was infused into his body where accelerated him to age into a grown adult. Once released from the hospital, he got a job, went to night school where he developed a talent for computer science and in time he was teaching his instructors. Even though The Heart of Gold was destroyed, some of its magic still resides in Prestin’s body and was he still able to resume heroic duties as Golden Man. With his newfound computer skills, he contacts Thunderbunny, they learn Golden Man wasn’t the only hero who was presumed dead. They force an elderly and retired supervillain, The Clown, to know where The Keeper held the other missing superheroes of the 1940s and 1950s.