Losing faith in the American sys tem due to the Viet Nam War-related illness of his son, Professor Power soon became convinced that American universities were instilling apathy and cowardice in their students, and that the United States’ leaders were so terrified of worldwide nuclear war that they were deliberately dragging America down in what he believed to be meaningless conflicts like the Viet Nam war.

Taking as his models Alexander the Great and the Roman emperors, who dominated virtually the entire Western civilized world of their times, Professor Power decided that worldwide peace could be achieved only if one mind—one power— controlled the entire Earth. Power believed that America must move against what he saw as the enemies of democracy to annihilate all threats to freedom.

Determined to be the one mind that dominated the entire world, Professor Power dedicated himself to this challenge. Receiving almost unlimited funding from supporters, the already wealthy Power began organizing his underground movement of so-called “ultra-patriots,” Among the individuals in Power’s organization were former operatives of the FBI, CIA, SHIELD, and other law enforcement agencies, including former CIA operative August Masters. After his apparent death in an encounter with the original Spider-Woman, multimillionaire Morgan MacNeil Hardy was recruited as one of the financial backers of Power’s organization.

Power believed that a devastating war need not be waged in order to eliminate the threats he believed that various nations posed to America and to world peace. Instead, Power intended to organize a corps of powerful telepaths whose powers he would utilize against those nations whom he considered to be enemies of America. Power established two operations for finding individuals with great psionic potential that could be utilized in this scheme.

Later, August Master, working for Power, prepared to launch a massive psionic attack against the Soviet Union. Captain America, Daredevil, and the Defenders all battled against Power’s organization in an attempt to thwart its plan. Six telepaths under the organization’s control, apalled by the prospect of committing mass murder on Master’s command, telepathically linked their minds to that of Kyle Richmond, alias Nighthawk. Having learned the means to acti vate the destruct sequence on the main computer power system of Master’s entire secret complex, they passed the information on to Richmond, who activated the sequence. Apparently under his own will, Richmond had Doctor Strange, who was one of the Defenders, evacuate his costumed allies from the complex. Richmond remained behind as a physical focal point for the minds of the psychics, and died in the ensuing explosion.

Professor Power then decided to take matters into his own hands. Weeks after Master’s defeat, Power captured the world’s most powerful telepath, Professor Charles Xavier. Power intended to force Xavier to revive another telepath, Mentallo, from his comatose state. Power planned to have Mentallo cure Matthew of his own catatonic state and to have Mentallo then assist him in launching the psionic attack against the Soviet Union. Mentallo’s frequent partner, the Fixer, had built a machine for Power that began draining Xavier’s psionic energies into the mind of Mentallo in order to revive the latter. Spider-Man intervened and defeated the Fixer in battle, and Xavier over-powered Mentallo in psychic combat. However, Matthew Power’s mind was further damaged during this psychic battle, so much so that he could never be cured.

Power was sent to prison, but powerful allies of his soon had him released. Knowing his son could never be cured, Professor Power had scientists permanently encase Matthew’s body in a battlesuit that amplified its strength. Then Power had the scientists transfer his own mind into Matthew’s body. Now possessing great power through the battlesuit as well as a physically younger body, Professor Power resolved to take revenge on Charles Xavier by killing the latter’s mutant students, the X-Men. Power battled one of the original X-Men, the Beast, and Spider-Man, but did not kill either; rather, Power escaped and began work on new plans.

Professor Power organized a new version of the subversive organization known as the Secret Empire. The Defenders thwarted Power’s plan to instigate World War III and rebuild society. One of the Defenders, Moondragon, telepathically caused Anthony Power’s consciousness to merge with Matthew’s, driving Professor Power into a state of catatonic madness.

Professor Power was taken into the custody of SHIELD, but he was abducted by members of his subversive organization who were still loyal to him. The fifth Captain America and the fourth Bucky were sent to Power’s castle in the Adirondack Mountains in New York State by the President’s Commission on Superhuman Activities for the express pur pose of neutralizing Power in any manner necessary. To prevent the two costumed adventurers from recapturing the still-catatonic Power, some of his men loaded Power into a rocket sled-like escape craft. Captain America V hurled his shield at the escape craft, striking its engine and causing it to crash. The shock partially revived Power, who was now barely conscious of what was happening. Power began blasting Captain America V with powerful electron-beams in order to defend himself. Enraged by the painful attack, Captain America V battered Professor Power with his augmented strength so severely that Power died from his injuries.