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.
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.
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. Download his game stats in the free GODLIKE Character Collection.