Odds Zonn was an ambitious criminal who sought to take over the national organization that had been operated by Mr. Crime. He had dark hair, and the habit of tossing dice in his hand.
The Culvert Death Trap[]
Following Mr. Crime's death, Odds Zonn believed that the first step in securing his power would be to eliminate the threat posed by Dick Tracy. Using his daughter Susie as bait, Zonn lured Tracy into a trap, sealing him in a culvert beneath an isolated roadway. He offered Tracy a large bribe to retire from law enforcement, with the understanding that if the detective refused he would face death by starvation or freezing.
Tracy managed to escape, and Zonn became a fugitive. He left Susie at her preschool, and prepared to flee from the city with his wife. Mrs. Zonn protested, and Odds struck her. The blow was more powerful than he'd intended, and Mrs. Zonn died. Zonn disposed of the body by tossing it in a river with a weight attached.
Zonn on the Run[]
Zonn then went to the home of his sister, who berated him for his criminal acts. He was concerned about Susie, and had learned that she had been taken in by the family of her schoolmate Sparkle Plenty. He sent his sister to investigate, which she did (begrudgingly). She went to the Plenty home and saw that Susie (who was now being called "Wingy) was being well cared-for. She reported this back to Zonn, who agreed to leave his daughter with the Plentys.
Zonn was nearly apprehended by Tracy when Zonn had arranged for a barber friend to come to his hideout to cut his hair, but he managed to escape.
The Glowing Hand of Odds Zonn[]
Shortly thereafter, it was discovered that both Odds and Wingy were suffering from radiation poisoning. Zonn has stolen a shipment of radioactive paint (under the mistaken assumption that it was gold), which Wingy had spilled on herself in the kitchen of their home. Zonn was exposed to it while cleaning it. The radiation caused Zonn's right hand to glow (an effect which covered all of Wingy's body). It eventually caused both of them to suffer significant pain as well.
B.O. Plenty's wealthy friend Diet Smith arranged for a radiation specialist to be brought in to treat Wingy. Zonn followed his progress in newspapers, as he was becoming increasingly desperate. When Zonn could no longer bear the pain of his radiation poisoning, he went to the hospital where Wingy was being treated. Brandishing a gun, he demanded that the doctor treat him as well. However, the doctor had already left the country, having successfully treated Wingy.
Zonn barricaded himself in a hospital room. Dick Tracy had discovered the body of Zonn's murdered wife and attempted to arrest Zonn. Tracy approached Zonn using a piece of bulletproof glass for protection, and the bullets Zonn fired at him were deflected. When Zonn shot at Tracy's shield from close range, the bullet ricocheted and struck Zonn in the head, killing him.
Notes[]
- Zonn's solidification of the late Mr. Crime's criminal enterprise is considered to be an early incarnation of the national criminal organization that later came to be known as "The Apparatus".