"Another corrupt dies so his innocent victim may live. Which is as it always should be. Don't be afraid of me, woman. I mean, you no harm... Rather, it is... All those who think themselves greater than the law... above all society who should find fear in me... And in the waiting noose of... The Hangman!"

Growing up, Harlan Krueger idolized the larger-than-life heroes of the silver screen, and when the opportunity arose, he joined the army to fight in World War II. However, he was court-martialed for brutal war crimes. Once released, he still wanted to fight for right, but no police department would accept him. As time passed, he'd made up his mind that those in uniform are corrupt and unwilling to fight crime on its own terms. Thus, he devised the identity of the Hangman, and played the role of judge, jury and executioner of those he found preying on the innocent. Early in his career, he fought the Werewolf, but was arrested after their second encounter.

Later, he also came up against Spider-Woman, even kidnapping and tying up the superheroine after a conflict with one of the Brothers Grimm. This incident revealed his exceptionally mysogenistic nature, as he repeatedly ranted about the supposedly fragile and easily-corruptable nature of women, and stating that he only locked Drew away in order to protect her from a society that preys on "helpless females".

His final mission was an attempt to kill a splatter film's cast and crew, who, in his view, were spreading their corruption through their movies. When he inadvertantly killed an innocent woman, he dropped his scythe. A film reviewer who knew of his plan killed the Hangman with his own weapon.

Legacy

After his death another Hangman emerged in the shape of the actor Jason Roland, although he had far less brutal methods than the original.