Somehow this story got past me, but apparently Captain America's long-standing crime-fighting partner the Falcon will be joining him in the highly anticipated sequel, The Winter Soldier. The first African-American super hero, The Falcon was introduced in the pages of Captain America by Stan Lee and Gene Colan, prompting a reaction so strong that for a time the series was renamed Captain America and The Falcon. He has appeared in animated form and also served in the Avengers and Defenders during his long career since his introduction back in 1969.

I'm very happy to see Marvel using another of its superb characters in film and I'm also pleased that anon-white hero is getting the motion picture treatment because not only is the Falcon a great hero, he is also adds more diversity to the comic book movie world. The origin of the Falcon is rather confusing (he started off as a social worker and later turned into a former pimp and drug dealer), but... I'm hoping that the movie avoids some unsavory aspects of the comic book creation, especially if the movie is directed at children.

In the comic, the Falcon was duped by the Red Skull using the cosmic cube into assisting his band of Exiles against Captain America. When he came to his senses, the Falcon joined Cap in his crime-fighting career. Later, writer Steve Engleheart added some extra notes to this story and caused the cosmic cube to not only fuse the Falcon and his bird Red Wing, but also introduce a new back story involving a forgotten life of crime. I'm all for the concept of societal reform, but found it weird to see actor Mackey talking about the Falcon being an ex-pimp and later mentioned how happy he is that kids will be dressing up as the hero for Halloween.

Back in July, it was reported that Anthony Mackie was in negotiations with Marvel Studios to play the role of the Falcon in the upcoming Captain America The Winter Soldier. Now, comes the first official confirmation that we're aware of that he landed the role via an interview on Newsday.

When asked about his recent casting in the new Captain America movie, Anthony Mackie said, "I'm playing the Falcon. He's this guy in Harlem who moved to California and became a drug dealer. His plane crashed, and he was genetically altered, and he can fly, has telepathic powers. He's the first African-American superhero. It makes me feel all the work I've done has been paying off. I have a son, nephews and nieces, and I love the idea that they can dress up as the Falcon on Halloween. They now have someone they can idolize. That's a huge honor for me."

-Via Comicbook.com

While he was prominent in print during my childhood, I still recall the Falcon mostly from the excellent Mego doll based on him that I owned. One of the more interesting visual heroes, I am looking forward to seeing the high-flying Falcon on the big screen.

The Falcon (from the Mego Museum)