Name: Rosie Kurtz Occupation:Fortune Teller/Psychic Base of Operations: Washington, DC (Previously Metropolis) Marital Statis: Single Height: About 5'10'' Weight: About 149 lbs Eyes: Black Hair: Black Age: Mid 30's First Appearance: Superman - The Man of Steel #22 (June, 1993) Other Appearances: Steel Annual #2, Superman - The Man of Steel Annual #2, Superman - The Man of Steel #27, Steel #0, Steel #9, Steel #10, Steel #14 (Her Funeral & Twin Suzzie) Rosie Kurtz or just "Rosie" was the first reacurring character to be introduced into John Henry Irons supporting cast of characters and with good reason. Rosie's role as Psychic was intentually written for two reasons. One, she told several reporters, including one from W-GBS, that Superman had returned as a "Walk-In Spirit". This gave all the other characters, including Lois Lane, a reason to think that John Henry/The Man of Steel was Superman back from the dead even though he didn't look like Superman. The other reason is that Louise and Jon didn't know if they wanted to have something of Superman actually pass over to John Henry when he was saved in Superman The Man of Steel #22. If they had decide to go in that direction, they had Rosie in place to explain it all. Since that never happened though, it seems that Rosie's usefulness was limited which is probably why she was rarely used. The few times she was used though it was to great effect as can be seen in her next appearance. In Superman - The Man of Steel Annual #2 she told John Henry (or Henry Johnson as he was known at the time) that during a tarot card reading for Mary O'Brian she found out that Tom (Mary's son) was in trouble. This is what led him to Tom or the new Bloodlines hero Edge (the first person to have his Meta-Gene activated in the crossover). It also led Steel to be the first of Earth's superheroes to encounter the alien's responsible for the death's as well as the few that returned with superpowers. Rosie's next appearance in Superman - The Man of Steel #27 was only a brief one. In it she told "Henry" that she was leaving Metropolis to go to the psycics intitution in Arlington and that she would see him in Washington DC since she would be nearby. Again Rosie was the plot device to move the story along but it does show that she had been a regular part of John Henry's life in Metropolis. Her next appearance, this time in Steel's own series (Steel #0), was again only a brief tease. This issue came out just after Zero Hour and looked at where Steel had come from and set up story plots for future issues so it makes sense that Rosie turned up here. Still, it's a surprise that the character went unused for almost a year. Anyway, Rosie's return to Steel's universe happens when DC's police call on her to track down a serial killer but all she could see in her visions was a police badge. At first she thinks this is just interference because of all the police at the scene of the crime. In Steel #9 though she has a brainstorm and calls the police to tell them that the serial killer "is" a cop. Just then, the Meta-Human serial killer turns up to protect his secret identity by killing Rosie. Before she dies though she draws a policeman's badge on the floor in her own blood as a clue for Steel and the police. Steel then arrives at Rosie's apartment but it's to late to save her. She tell's Steel that she had always known about him being a Superhero and she tries to tell him who the killer is but only says "alter". In Steel #10 though Lieutenant Shauna Beryl and Steel use the two clues Rosie gave them and figure out that the killer is a cop with an "alter ego". Using that information they are able to capture Rosie's murderer and bring him to justice. The next time Rosie is mentioned is in Steel #14. It is at her funeral when Rosie's twin sister Suzzie tell's John Henry that she has a message for him from beyond the grave. You see, Suzzie had held a seance and had told her that she was now in place but she also had a warning for John Henry. That there was trouble ahead, woman trouble. Even though Rosie was now dead and buried we would see her one more time.... in a flash back. In Steel Annual #2 we get to see how John Henry and Rosie met. When "Henry Johnson" first moved to Metropolis to hide from Colonel Weston and Armertek he moves into Rosie's building. He becomes the buildings handyman in exchange for using the basement as a workshop. It's then that he meets Rosie and she tell's him that she knew it would work out for him. That she felt it. This is the last time we would see Rosie. Rosie was a kind, loving character who wanted to help others anyway she could. The reason she was called Rosie has been forgotten but the inspiration for it was possibly a combination of Rosie the Riveter and Dr Occult's partner Rose Psycic. But again, this is only a guess. Where she originally came from is never told but since we first met her in Metropolis it can be assumed that she came from there. Her height and weight also have never been difinitively pointed out but by measuring her against John Henry it can be guessed that her height was about five foot ten inches and her weight was about 149 pounds. Her Marital statis is again unconfirmed but she has never been seen with a husband or partner, only her cat Socrates. Lastly Rosie had Black colored hair and eyes. At first I wasn't sure if the eyes just hadn't been colored. After going to www.obsidianbookshelf.com/html/eyecolorlist.html though I found out what black colored eyes symbolised. Black eye color is associated with mysticism, goddess-worship, intuition and magic. Black eyes apparently may indicate a person who can tap into powerful energies of the unconscious and may possibly have psychic tendencies. That being the theory, it makes sense that Louise and Jon would give Rosie black colored iris'. Even though she was rarely used, Rosie was a great character and a worthy edition to the Profile Page. |
Home > Steel Profile >