[1] The Phantom Stranger made his first live-action appearance in the 2019 DC Universe television series Swamp Thing, portrayed by Macon Blair.

The Phantom Stranger first appeared in an eponymous six-issue comics anthology published in 1952 and was created by John Broome and Carmine Infantino.

Beginning with issue #4 (November-December 1969), the series began featuring all-new material, with stories produced by Robert Kanigher, Len Wein, Jim Aparo, Neal Adams, Tony DeZuniga and others.

The stories hinted at a romantic attraction between the Stranger and Craft, but he eventually left her, deciding she could not be part of his life, convincing her he had been killed in their final battle against the Dark Circle.

Doctor Thirteen, dropped along with the reprints, was given a back-up series here as of #12 (March-April 1971) which morphed into "The Spawn of Frankenstein" in #23 (January-February 1973).

The Phantom Stranger received a new ongoing series in September 2012 written by Dan DiDio and drawn by Brent Anderson.

After a vote of the majority of the team in Justice League of America #103, they offered him membership, with Superman declaring the Stranger "a member" without qualification, though he left before accepting.

Beginning in Marvel's Amazing Adventures #16 (by Steve Englehart with art by Bob Brown and Frank McLaughlin), the story continued in DC's Justice League of America #103 (by Len Wein, Dick Dillin and Dick Giordano), and is concluded in Thor #207 (by Gerry Conway and penciler John Buscema).

[14][15][16] The Phantom Stranger has at least twice asserted his membership status when other Leaguers challenged his input, during the vote on the League's re-admission of Wonder Woman[17] and during the crossover with The Avengers.

[19] Writer Len Wein commented on the Phantom Stranger's relationship with the JLA in a 2012 interview stating that the character "only sort of joined.

[20] Unusually for a comic book character of such longevity, nothing in the way of personal data about the Phantom Stranger—his real name, his true nature, or his origins—has ever been revealed.

His appearances in titles featuring Doctor Fate state that the Stranger was a servant of the Lords of Order during the Ninth Age of Magic (at least).

When the Stranger facilitates the transformation of Jim Corrigan into the Spectre, one of the coins falls from the necklace and crumbles, bringing him one step closer to redemption.

During Kevin Smith's relaunch of Green Arrow, he prevented Hal Jordan from uniting the resurrected body of Oliver Queen with his soul in Heaven.

This earned him Jordan's wrath; indeed, the Spectre threatened to judge the Stranger to see whether God had "punished" him properly by refusing him access to Heaven itself.

Nonetheless, the Phantom Stranger assisted Jordan during his tenure as the Spectre on numerous occasions as well, most notably in a short stint babysitting his niece Helen.

He changed back using recovered energies in Day of Vengeance #6 and aided the Shadowpact, allowing them to see the battle between the Spectre and Shazam.

In Day of Vengeance: Infinite Crisis Special #1, the Phantom Stranger works with Nabu, Doctor Occult, Zatanna, the Shadowpact, and other mystics to re-form the Rock of Eternity and help defeat the maddened Spectre.

The Stranger subsequently became one of the forces that stood against the Spectre when it went on a rampage without its human host, until the soul of Hal Jordan bonded with it.

Nor...nor demon..." Before Nimue is able to grasp his nature, the Stranger goes away, claiming to be "compelled to counsel and yet forbidden to interfere in the course of history".

While not named explicitly, the necklace he wears is presumed to be made from the 30 pieces of silver that he received for his betrayal of Jesus Christ.

Thousands of years later, he is guided to help desperate former detective Jim Corrigan find his kidnapped girlfriend.

As payment for what occurred with Corrigan, one coin drops off the necklace he was cursed with (made of the 30 pieces of silver he betrayed Jesus for) and the Stranger realizes he has more encounters ahead of him before he is forgiven.

[28] Pandora meets the Phantom Stranger and tells him she needs his help to find the person who can open her box.

[29] John Constantine tries to con the Phantom Stranger to join the Justice League Dark by promising to return one of the coins bound to him through his punishment.

The Phantom Stranger rejects the offer, but Constantine feels he will eventually come around and be on the Justice League Dark's side.

[31] The Phantom Stranger is left on the door to the House of Mystery, and the Justice League Dark attempt to revive him, summoning the Nightmare Nurse.

[32] Once they do revive him, the Phantom Stranger states that they are all in his debt and asks the Justice League Dark (specifically Zatanna) to help him enter Hell to save his family.

He can fire energy bolts of great force, travel through time, dispel magic, reveal illusions, warp reality on a universal scale, and survive in space without any type of life support system; on one occasion, he created a mystical shield that protected Superman from any spells cast against him directly in preparation for Superman's upcoming confrontation with Arion.