Ben Urich

Real Name
Benjamin Urich

Occupation
Reporter

Citizenship
U.S. citizen with no criminal record

Place of Birth
Unknown

Known Relatives
Doris (wife); Arnold (brother); Mindy (sister-in-law); Ken (nephew); Philip (a.k.a. Green Goblin, nephew); unnamed father

Group Affiliation
Front Line; Daily Bugle staff

Education
NYU degree in journalism

Height
5' 9"

Weight
140 lbs.

Eyes
Brown

Hair
Brown

Powers
None

Abilities
Ben Urich is an experienced reporter and writer. He is in reasonably fit physical condition for a chain smoker of his age.

Other Info
During college, Ben Urich got a job as a copy boy for the Daily Bugle. He began his reporting career under city editor Jimmy Hughes. Ben longed to put his talent to work on criminal investigations and sought leads on crime figures like Hammerhead and Forunato; however, after years of reporting he remained assigned to minor new items. While pursuing a farm festival, Urich was present at a diner when the criminal called Kruel burst upon the scene, fleeing from his employer, Kingpin. The Kingpin beat Kruel and left him for dead, then he had Urich and other witnesses drugged so they would forget the encounter. Perhaps subconsciously influenced by this incident, Urich's efforts to break into crime investigation soon proved successful, and he covered both petty and organized crime in New York, occasionally working with photographer Peter Parker. (To learn about the above highlighted characters and/or place, just click on their names.)

Despite his relative success, Urich hoped for a major news story that would earn him recognition and maybe even the Pulitzer Prize. He began to focus his energy on the costumed hero Daredevil. Eventually, Urich's work paid off when he figured out Daredevil's secret identity of Matt Murdock and successfully traced the events that had led Murdock to begin his crimefighting career. However, Ben empathized with the hero and his mission and eventually spoke with Daredevil to confirm his own conclusions. He then decided that the good Daredevil did in New York outweighed his own desire for fame; therefore, Urich burned his files, leaving this secret his own for the time being. (This is similar to what happened in the Daredevil movie. Also, click on the highlighted name above to learn about Daredevil.)

Later, Kingpin learned Daredevil's secret identity and orchestrated his enemy's downfall. After Urich investigated Police Lieutenant Nick Manolis (who had been forced to frame Murdock for criminal activities), one of the Kingpin's operatives, named Lois, severely beat Manolis, pausing to break Urich's fingers. Afraid for his life, Urich dropped the investigation, but his shame at this intimidation prevented him from working. However, Urich eventually regained his dedication and wrote an expose of Murdock's framing. But in return, Urich and his wife Doris were targeted by the Kingpin who sent Lois to kill both of them. Luckily, Daredevil rescued the Urichs and captured Lois, who was sent to prison.

Urich's own investigation came back to haunt him when fellow reporter Sara Harrington discovered fragments of Urich's Daredevil notes and wrote her own expose on the hero's secret identity, despite Urich's protests. The charge seemed false when Matt Murdock's home was searched and no incriminating evidence was found, but Daredevil himself (concerned by the coverage) faked the death of his civilian identity and took the new identity of Jack Batlin while changing his costume with body armor. Unaware of this move, Urich was grief-stricken when Murdock was reported dead. Ben held himself partially responsible for allowing Harrington to uncover his notes. (However, at a later time, Murdock revealed that his death had been a hoax, and he renewed his friendship with Urich).

After this, Ben threw himself into a new project: a book detailing the histories of the various criminals who had used the "Green Goblin" identity, most notably industrialist Norman Osborn and his son Harry, both believed dead. Urich's investigations led to an abandoned warehouse laboratory, where, unknown to him, his intern and nephew Philip was inadvertently bonded to a high-tech mask, which he used to briefly become a heroic, if somewhat frivolous, Green Goblin. Still pursuing his book, Urich sought an interview with Harry Osborn's widow Liz, but the exchange was interrupted when three female robots abducted Osborn's young son Normie. Accompanied by Spider-Man and the Molten Man, Urich helped uncover Normie's whereabouts and rescue the child. Ben Urich completed his book, "Dynasty of Evil," which proved a financial success; however, he faced an unexpected complication when Norman Osborn showed up alive and well, claiming vendettas against Urich and others at the Daily Bugle. Soon after, Osborn published his own autobiography whose allegations caused problems for Urich's book. (To learn about the different characters above, click on their highlighted names.)

Some time later, J. Jonah Jameson trusted Urich with an assignment to follow former costumed hero Jessica Jones, whom Jameson believed was involved in the disappearance of foster daughter, Mattie Franklin. Urich aided Jones in discovering that Franklin had in fact been abducted by a cartel distributing a Mutant Growth Hormone (MGH) drug. However, soon afterward, she was rescued and returned to the Jamesons. (To learn about the different characters and/or place, click on their highlighted names above. Note: Beware of the form-fitting costume on Jessica Jones's bio page.)

During the superhero Civil War, Ben Urich met Sally Floyd for the first time. They worked together investigating the Civil War. However, no newspaper wanted to publish their stories. So, they founded their own newspaper organization to publish their stories called the "Front Line." (To learn about the above highlighted event/people, just click on their names.)

To learn more about Ben Urich, click on the following link, http://marvel.com/universe/Urich,_Ben.