Cliff Marsland

Big, tough, with chiseled features, Marsland roamed the underworld with the reputation of a killer and lone wolf. Only he and The Shadow knew this to be false.

There are some mysterious things about Cliff Marsland that have never been made clear. These arise in his first meeting with The Shadow (MOBSMEN ON THE SPOT, Apr. 1932, p. 8).

The Shadow said:

"Clifford Marsland, that was not your name fourteen years ago when you were overseas. Perhaps you remember the village of Esternay in the spring of '18 or perhaps the trip to Monte Carlo three weeks after the armistice? Do you recall Blanton the Frenchman? Like yourself, I am a man whose name has been forgotten. We shall speak no more of years gone by. You are now Clifford Marsland. I am The Shadow."

Most astonishing is the fact that he knew Cliff did not commit the robbery he served time for and that a murder linked to him by the underworld was false. As the tale continued, we learned that Marsland took the blame for these crimes because they were committed by the brother of the girl he loved, Arlene Griscom. Later in the tale, Cliff was reunited with her and learned that she knew he was innocent. At the conclusion, they were married.

So the man that readers believed to be named Cliff Marsland turned out to be an assumed name. Never were any of his war experiences further elaborated on, so we never learned his real name, why it was changed, or what the incidents referred to by The Shadow meant. Nor did we learn how The Shadow knows of them.

Then, there was a mystery with his wife. She was mentioned in some tales in 1932, when Cliff worked partially for The Shadow. By 1933, Marsland was living constantly in the underworld and his wife was no longer mentioned. It would not be like The Shadow to make Cliff abandon his wife. Probably she died soon after the marriage and Marsland, to soothe his grief, dedicated himself to The Shadow's cause.

Cliff was The Shadow's spy in the badlands. He traveled about criminal hangouts trying to pick up information on impending crime. Because of his reputation, he could usually join any gang that The Shadow wanted him to infiltrate. Cliff was good with his fists and a gun, and was useful in battles. Because his features were rugged but not hard, he could occasionally team with Vincent for honest work.

Cliff had to reveal his double role to Cardona once. Yet, for some reason, nothing came of it. Cliff saw extensive duty and was the most captured agent. He always managed to join gangs secretly and those who discovered his real role died. One is amazed that anyone could be that lucky for so long.

It would have been nice to know what The Shadow meant by his references to the war episodes. But, like Burbank and The Shadow, Cliff had his mysterious past.




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