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Dubbed "The World's Wickedest Scientist", Dr. Thaddeus "Bodog" Sivana is undoubtably Captain Marvel's most despicable and devious nemesis. A scientist and self-styled ruler, Sivana continues to be a thorn in the foot of Captain Marvel.

Sivana has been a part of Captain Marvel's history from the start. As detailed in Whiz Comics #2, shortly after Captain Marvel burst onto the scene, Sivana cooked up a wild scheme to block all radio stations from the airwaves. Captain Marvel eventually discovered and destroyed Sivana's "Radio Silencer" effectively eliminating Sivana's $50,000,000 ransom demand. From that day Sivana has been Captain Marvel's number one enemy.

Sivana's daughter, Beautia, was introduced shortly thereafter as Sivana moved his base of operations to the planet Venus. It was eventually revealed that Beautia had a brother Magnificus. Both siblings looked nothing like their father in appearance. Instead they looked like classical definitions of female and male beauty. Although initially, their motives were questionably, both Magnificus and Beautia basically were good people often led astray by their father.

Several years later two more of Sivana's offspring appeared on the scene. Sivana, Jr. and Georgia Sivana both looked liked their father in physical appearance and both shared his manicial bent for world conquest. Together these three formed The Sivana Family.

Many of Sivana's greatest schemes involved time-travel in one form or another. Sivana was always trying to go back in time to prevent Captain Marvel from coming into being.

In "A Twice-Told Tale," from Captain Marvel Adventures #80, Sivana narrowly escapes Captain Marvel by taking a time-travel pill landing in the past mere hours before Billy Batson first becomes Captain Marvel. Sivana promptly forgets his purpose for traveling back in time and proceeds to re-enact the past timeline.

Earth-S

One of Sivana's most nefarious inventions, Suspendium™, put Captain Marvel, his family, friends, and villains into suspended animation for nearly twenty years! Sivana, with the help of his son, Sivana Junior, and daughter, Georgia Sivana, created a giant globe of Suspendium in outer space. Flying high over the city in the Sivana spaceship, the dastardly villains used a transport ray to capture the Marvel Family who just happened to be at City Hall to be honored by the Mayor. Sivana, Jr., excited by the capture of the Marvel Family, slapped his father on the back and accidentally knocked Dr. Sivana into the ship's controls. The ship hurled into the Suspendium globe trapping not only the Marvel Family but ironically and conveniently the Sivana Family as well.

Twenty years later as the ship neared the Sun's orbit, the Suspendium began to melt. Captain Marvel, the first to awaken, freed Mary Marvel and Captain Marvel, Junior. Together, the Marvel Family, pushed the Suspendium globe back to Earth and rescued the other victims. Although they escaped during the rescue the Sivana Family was eventually recaptured by The Marvel Family.

During this period, it was revealed that Captain Marvel and his friends lived on Earth-S, a parallel world separate from the mainstream DC Universe.

One of Sivana's greatest capers of this time period was to lead Captain Marvel and Uncle Dudley on a cross-country chase through various major cities. It was during this great adventure that Captain Marvel met up with and fought some of his greatest villains including Black Adam, Aunt Minerva, Mr. Mind, Ibac, King Kull, and Captain Nazi.

The Crisis on Infinite Earths

During a catyclysmic universal disaster that consumed millions of parallel universes, five remaining universes were "merged" into one. Earth-One and Earth-Two containing the silver and golden age DC universes, Earth-4 home of the Charlton heroes, Earth-X home of the Freedom Fighters, and Earth-S were brought together into one "seamless" planet during this Crisis on Infinite Earths. Sivana joined forces with other villains, including Mr. Mind, Black Adam, and Captain Nazi, from the five worlds to grab control of the universes and to subject the population to the villains rule. Captain Marvel and heroes from the other worlds were able to save the one remaining Earth. At the closure of Crisis, Captain Marvel's history was revised as well as Sivana's.

Post-Crisis

Sivana's history following the Crisis is a bit murky. Sivana made his reappearance in Shazam: A New Beginning #1. Although, initially, this series was to revamp the Marvel Family origin, too many changes were made to Marvel Family cast that this story is now considered a prototype Elseworlds story.

Some of the major revamps in the story included changing both Uncle Dudley's and Dr. Sivana's relationship to Billy Batson. Uncle Dudley became Billy's blood uncle while Sivana became a distant uncle through marriage. Sivana, essentially, replaced Ebenezer Batson as Billy's evil uncle. Sivana's children, Beautia and Magnificus, also appeared in the story.

The Past Four Years

Sivana's history was revamped, once again, with the release of The Power of Shazam Graphic Novel. In this story Sivana was revealed to be a wealthy businessman with ties to organized crime. His ultimate goal -- to acquire wealth and power. Sivana hired Billy and Mary Batson's parents to travel to Egypt and bring back Egyptian treasure to Fawcett City. It was during this expidition that Theo Adam, Sivana's henchman and soon to be Black Adam, killed Billy's parents. At the end of the story Sivana is left in ruins and on the brink of madness.

Sivana popped up in Superman and Batman Magazine #7. It was during this story that Sivana learned that Billy Batson was Captain Marvel.

Sivana returned at the end of The Power of Shazam! #15. It seemed that Sivana had cooked up a scheme with Mr. Mind to initiate the conquest of Earth. Part of the plan was to lure Captain Marvel to Venus and incapacitate him so that the invasion would meet with less resistance. It was later revealed that Mr. Mind's worms had actually taken control of Sivana. Sivana broke free and with the help of Captain Marvel defeated Mr. Mind. Sivana used his teleportation ray to escape from Captain Marvel.

Sivana eventually turned up at the Rock of Eternity where he discovered he could manipulate time. With Shazam away spending time with Billy Batson and the indifference of the Rock's temporary guardian, Ibis the Invincible, Sivana was able to change the time stream to make himself Mayor of Fawcett City, resurrect Billy Batson's and Mary Bromfield's parents and basically prevent Billy from ever becoming Captain Marvel. Billy's father, now Captain Marvel, eventually caught on to Sivana's game and realized that he had to die for the natural timeline to come back into being.

As the timeline restored itself, Sivana ironically appeared in police station and was immediatly jailed. Sivana was recently seem cavorting at a super-villains meeting but it is unclear whether he has truly escaped from prison.

It was during the alternate timeline that Sivana's dim-witted campaign manager was dealt a gruesome death at the hands of Theo Adam.

Super-Powers

Sivana has no known super-powers. He's just an incredibly smart guy who doesn't know how to properly channel his intellect. Oh if he could only use his great mind for good rather than evil.

Your local comic shop will probably have a near complete run of Cap's latest series, The Power of Shazam!, for sale at a reasonable price. There is also a painted, graphic novel by writer/painter Jerry Ordway that served as a prologue to the afore-mentioned series, also called The Power of Shazam!

You'll probably also be able to find issues of Shazam! and World's Finest Comics which featured the Shazam! Family!

Your local comic shop may also stock, or special order for you, the hardcover reprints of Cap's early Fawcett adventures in DC Comics' Archives line - Shazam! Archives Vol. 1 and 2. Each volume retails for about $50.