Iceman

Real Name: Robert "Bobby" Drake

Powers: Iceman has long manifested his power to lower his external and internal body temperature without harm to himself, thereby projecting intense cold from his body. (He can reach -105F within a few seconds.) Iceman can use this ability to freeze any moisture in the air around him into unusually hard ice, and thereby form ice-slides, shields, bats, and other objects. He is also immune to sub-zero temperatures around him. Recently, Iceman discovered that he has the ability to turn his body into ice at will.

History: Bobby Drake discovered his mutant power to create ice while he was in his early teens, but kept it a secret from everyone except his parents. One night, however, Drake and his girlfriend Judy Harmon were attacked by a bully named Rocky Beasely and his friends. To save Harmon, Drake temporarily encased Beasely in ice. When they heard what had happened, the local townspeople thought Drake was the real menace. They formed a lynch mob who broke into his home and overpowered him. The local sheriff took Drake into custody for the boy's own protection.

Meanwhile, Professor Charles Xavier learned what had happened and sent Cyclops, his only X-Man at that time, to contact Drake. Cyclops broke into Drake's cell, but when Drake refused to go with him, the two began fighting until they were caught by the lynch mob. Cyclops and Drake were about to be hanged when they broke free. Professor Xavier used his mental powers to stop the mob, and afterwards to erase their memories of Drake's powers. The grateful Bobby Drake then accepted Xavier's invitation to join the X-Men and took the code name Iceman. He was the youngest of the original five X-Men.

Years later, after Xavier had recruited a new group of students, Iceman and other veteran X-Men quit the team. Soon afterwards he joined the Champions of Los Angeles, a short-lived super hero team founded by his fellow former X-Man the Angel. After the Champions disbanded, Drake went to college to study accounting. Eventually, however, he rejoined his fellow former X-Men Angel and the Beast as members of another super hero team, the Defenders. The Defenders, though, came to an end when several of their members apparently perished in a climactic battle.

Iceman and the other original members of the X-Men then founded a new team based in New York City. This was the original version of X-Factor.

When Professor Xavier returned to Earth after an extended absence in outer space, Iceman and his fellow X-Factor members rejoined the X-Men.

Recently, Emma Frost, the White Queen, took mental possession of Iceman's body and was able to activate the full extent of his powers, turning his body into all ice. Since then, under Frost's prodding, Iceman has learned to transform his body into its "ice" state on his own.