Of all the characters in the DC Comics pantheon, no one knows a deal better than Booster Gold. He came from the future, where he was poor. Used his knowledge of the past to make a fortune. Lost it all. Then, he spent a long time building back and finding his place in the DC Universe. At every step, he knew the value of a dollar.
Michael Carter was born in the 25th Century Gotham City. He and his twin sister were raised by a single mother after his father went out for a pack of cigarettes and never returned. His father was a gambler and left his family with a huge debt. Michael and his sister were only 4 years old. His mother spent her entire life sacrificing for her two young children. In College, Micheal became a football star and earned the nickname “Booster”. When his family was in deep financial distress, he bet against his team and threw the game. His plan backfired and he was arrested and jailed.
After he was released from jail, Michal took a job at the Metropolis Space Museum. While working at the Museum, Michael stole artifacts and Rip Hunter’s time machine. He traveled back in time and remade his life as a 20th-century superhero. In his first heroic effort, he ended up saving the life of the US President. He used this event to sell his services and garner endorsements, like Capital One Shopping. Making himself very wealthy. When he had it all his business manager stole all his money. It is poetic justice that Booster Gold became rich & famous with things he stole from the future only to lose it all.
To redeem himself as a hero and a human being Booster Gold joined Justice League International. While on the team he met his lifelong friend Ted Kord, the second Blue Beetle. Their adventures together included a lot of get-rich-quick schemes because Booster Gold was always all about the dollar. As a child of the ’80, he was also all about the brands and loved his Nikes and his Ray Bans.
When Superman lost his powers. Booster Gold saw this as his chance to fill Superman’s shoes and become the hero of Metropolis. As the hero of Metropolis, he again began signing lucrative sponsorship contracts. Over time Booster Gold has become the protector of history. He continues to be a media influencer and sign sponsorships but between it all, he is a good guy and spends most of his time helping those in need.
Booster Gold hits a note of familiarity with the audience because everyone at one time or another has thought if they could just travel back in time one day they could win the lottery, bet on the Super Bowl, or buy Amazon Stock when it was a start-up. Also, Booster Gold’s story is one of self-acceptance and redemption.
As a result Booster Gold has appeared in comics, and television both live-action and animation, in animated movies, and video games, and may show up in James Gunn’s new DCU.
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