http://tormentedeyes.livejournal.com/ ([identity profile] tormentedeyes.livejournal.com) wrote in [community profile] cap_ironman2011-04-11 10:56 am
Entry tags:

Delurking. It must be the season.

So. Hi, everybody! :D

I have a question for a fic - possibly for big bang, but that's still debatable - and seeing as you are a lovely, knowledgeable bunch, I thought I'd ask here.

Have the characteristics of pre-serum Steve ever been detailed? Height, weight, health issues, the like. I can't really get my hands on comics at the moment, so I apologize if this is a silly question and/or if it's been asked already. I'd appreciate any help!

[identity profile] schala-kid.livejournal.com 2011-04-11 05:41 pm (UTC)(link)
All I know is that he weighted 90 pounds he was very weak, sickly, and suffered from malnutrition.

Don't know about height but malnutrition and being underweight can severely stunt your growth so I'm sure he was probably around 5'6 at the most really (I can't see him being any more and still weighting 90 pounds because that would just kill anyone or have him bed-ridden). He grew up in the great Depression, poor and weak I am sure he didn't get sufficient nutrients and proteins that every kid needs while growing up, especially after his father died.

Also being underweight and having malnutrition can bring a lot of health issues from cardiac arrhythmia to nervous disorders.

I'm pretty surprised Steve didn't die.

[identity profile] grand-duc.livejournal.com 2011-04-11 06:37 pm (UTC)(link)
if he weighted 90 pounds he definitly wasn't more than 5'6. I'm 5'7 and I know that 110 pounds is the lowest end of the healthy weight bracket, can't be much lower for 5'6.

[identity profile] marinarusalka.livejournal.com 2011-04-11 06:51 pm (UTC)(link)
According to the current US Army requirements, the minimum acceptable weight for a 5'6" man is 117 lbs. Even for a 5' man -- the shortest acceptable height -- the minimum weight is 97 lbs. This may have changed since WWII, but probably not by much.

I'm not sure if Steve really weighed 90 lbs, or if writers just liked using the "90-lb weakling" cliche as a metaphor for describing him, but it was pretty firmly established that he was underweight for the requirements.

[identity profile] schala-kid.livejournal.com 2011-04-19 07:05 am (UTC)(link)
See I had never heard of the "90 pound weakling" phrase before, thanks for pointing that out!

So my guess he probably weighted around 99-115? He was severely underweight.

[identity profile] marinarusalka.livejournal.com 2011-04-19 01:21 pm (UTC)(link)
Amusingly enough, the original phrase was "97-lb weakling." It came from old Charles Atlas ads that used to appear in comic books in the 70's. In the add, a skinny kid is bullied by some jocks at the beach who kick sand in his face. He goes home and sends away for the Charles Atlas exercise guide, and turns himself into a muscle-bound hunk who can beat up the bullies. But it seems like everyone says "90-lbs" now.

[identity profile] burntcopper.livejournal.com 2011-04-11 09:39 pm (UTC)(link)
I remember something about a lung problem too - not stated as TB, but given the conditions of the area Steve grew up in, certainly not uncommon.

[identity profile] elspethdixon.livejournal.com 2011-04-12 03:56 am (UTC)(link)
Severe cases of childhood bronchitis can damage your lungs, too. My grandmother, who grew up around the same time Steve did, was told by doctors at one point that she had enough scar tissue in her lungs to have survived TB, but in her case it was all from bronchitis.

[identity profile] elspethdixon.livejournal.com 2011-04-12 03:52 am (UTC)(link)
My vague recollections from the Golden Age origin comic art and other retellings of Steve's origin story is that he's drawn to look very skinny, with visible ribs, but otherwise looks like himself. The US Army had a major problem with potential recruits being malnourished and underweight at the beginning of WWII, thanks to the Depression, so Steve being too "frail" to serve wasn't unusual.

I doubt the serum changed his height and general bone structure, though, since it would have to practically regrow his entire skeleton to do that. The "90-pound" thing is probably the writers referencing "90 pound weakling" rather than an indication that Steve was horse-racing-jockey-sized short.
ext_868562: curved checker pattern, mainly black and white (Default)

[identity profile] shariangel.livejournal.com 2011-04-12 07:31 am (UTC)(link)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:CAtransformation.png

That's a scan on wikipedia, showing Steve before and after the serum. Angles make it difficult to make any judgement on height.
ext_772215: (Default)

[identity profile] tonistark.livejournal.com 2011-04-20 10:53 am (UTC)(link)
I just saw something in an interview with Chris Hemsworth and Chris Evans that said that pre-serum Steve was 98 pounds. But of course, it could be hyperbole, as I recall a line from a RHPS song about 'a weakling weighing ninety-eight pounds.'