Creation

Jerry Cornelius is a fictional character created by the English writer Michael Moorcock and associated with his recurring concept of the Eternal Champion. He is portrayed as a modern, countercultural urban adventurer with an ambiguous and fluid gender identity.

Jerry Cornelius in his more original form was a secret agent spy, much like John Drake or James Bond. This spy version of Cornelius was bi-sexual in nature and was considered a hipster.

What makes Jerry Cornelius interesting is that he is one of the first characters to explore metaphysics in literature. Creator Michael Moorcock and other writers later would explore alternate versions of Jerry Cornelius in the multiple universes (or Multiverse).

The character appears in several loosely connected novels beginning with The Final Programme, later adapted into a 1973 film starring Jon Finch and Jenny Runacre. Cornelius also inspired the comic Le Garage Hermétique by Jean Giraud, originally published in Métal Hurlant. After a rights dispute, later editions released by Marvel Comics changed the character’s name in the story to Lewis Carnelian.

Major Story Arcs

The airtight garage of Jerry Cornelius

In this French Scifi-classic, Cornelius is a cosmic being, who originated from Terra. He is an agent of Nagual (a God, possibly Jahveh) and Major Gruberts antagonist (reason why is never explained). He searches for Grubert, so he can fight against him. When he finally finds him, the Garage is in the claws of a crisis, and the two enemies must team up to save it. They do so, and as the result, Cornelius dies.