| Name:
Walter Watson AKA Pa Bell.
Nationality: American.
Political Affiliation: None.
Education: Iowa State University.
Rank: Sergeant (U.S. Army)
Decorations: Distinguished Service Medal
(U.S.)
DOB: 3/10/12, Ames, Iowa, USA.
DOD: 1/8/82, Green Valley, Arizona (heart
failure).
Known Parahuman Abilities: Watson could directly
call any telephone in the world, without knowing
the number or exchange, even if one or both phones
lacked a physical connection to a working line.
His Talent only worked on calls he initiated and
it could take him several minutes to an hour to
"home in" on a recipient if he was unfamiliar
with their identity or unsure of their approximate
location. If the recipient or the recipient's location
was known to Watson, he could make a connection
almost instantly using any telephone.
History: Watson was a typical Midwestern
farmboy, the youngest of three brothers born and
raised on the family farm in Iowa. His father served
with the American Expeditionary Force during the
Great War, and it may have been this exposure to
the wider world that lead him to encourage his son
to pursue a higher education.
Whatever the reason,
Watson was an intelligent boy and he was fascinated
with the growing number of technological marvels
of the day. He idolized Thomas Edison and loved
to spend his free time tinkering with various electro-mechanical
gizmos.
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Through
hard work and natural talent, Watson was fortunate
enough to earn a scholarship to the local university
and he graduated in 1933 with a degree in Applied
Science. Despite the nation being in the depths
of the Great Depression, he was soon able to secure
a position surveying for the Federal Highways program.
He married Mary Crandell
in June 1935, and their first child was born a year
later. In 1938, Watson joined up with AT&T where
he worked on wiring up remote, rural areas throughout
the state.
War came to America
in December 1941 and Watson was nothing if not a
patriot. He attempted to enlist in the Army on his
30th birthday, but was rejected for failing to pass
the physical. However, his second attempt later
that year was successful and by early 1943, he found
himself in Sicily with the U.S. Army Signal Corps.
There he spent much of his time managing the constantly
shifting field telephone network for the Allied
armies on the ground.
As Patton and Montgomery's
forces converged on Messina, a German counter offensive
threatened to cut off the sector where Watson was
then working. His quick efforts in getting the information
through to headquarters allowed reinforcements to
arrive in the nick of time and he was commended
for his efforts.
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However,
it was later revealed that the Germans had cut the
lines prior to the attack, so the issue was raised
as to how Watson had gotten his call through. He
performed a few experiments himself, then personally
phoned the Section Two office in Washington as soon
as he realized that he had developed into a Talent.
Once his claims were
verified by the authorities, he was quickly transferred
out of the European Theater of Operations (ETO)
and sent back to the capital to work with the fledgling
OSS. He became one of the many unsung heroes of
the war as he used a system of prearranged calls
to coordinate communications with a constantly expanding
network of field operatives.
After the war, he
was persuaded to stay on as the OSS evolved into
the CIA. He continued to act as one of the Agency's
primary conduits of coded information until well
into the 1970s, when man-portable satellite communications
sets became cost-effective. Upon leaving Langley,
Virginia in 1976, he and his wife enjoyed a quiet
life in an upscale retirement community near Tucson,
Arizona. After a few close-calls in the late 70s
and early 80s, Watson finally suffered a fatal heart
attack in 1982.
"Pa Bell," created
by Matthew Gabbert, won the first GODLIKE Talent
Contest.
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