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The Avenger is actually Richard Henry Benson, a globe trotting adventurer who decides to settle down and raise a family. In his first adventure, Benson's plans for a peaceful life are shattered when his wife and young daughter are killed by a criminal conspiracy. The shock of this loss has a bizarre effect on Benson. His hair and the skin of his face turn white, and the flesh of his face became malleable, like clay.

Benson vows to avenge himself, and all those who have suffered at the hands of criminals. His strange condition is actually an advantage for he can sculpt his face into a likeness of any person. With skin and hair dyes, and colored contact lenses, Benson becomes the world's greatest master of disguise.

Like Doc Savage, Benson relys on a variety of special gadgets to help him overcome criminals. These include knockout gas bombs, miniature radios, and his special pistol and throwing knife. He gathers a number of assistants to help him in his adventures. These are all people who have suffered loss because of criminals. They are also people with specialized skills.

Fergus MacMurdie, known as 'Mac' is a stereotypical Scottsman who is also a gifted chemest.

Algernon Heathcote Smith, better known as 'Smitty' is a gigantic man of incredible strength. Smitty looks slow and stupid but he is actually a genius with electronics.

Nellie Gray is a beautiful, delicate-looking young woman who is actually an expert at jujutsu and other martial arts.

Josh and Rosabel Newton are an African American couple who often go undercover as domestic servants. The Avenger series is notable its presentation of minorities. Pulp magazines of the time are well known for racist stereotypes but Josh and Rosabel are always presented as brave, intelligent people of good character.

Cole Wilson joins the group near the end of the series. He is much less distinctive than Benson's other assistants and has a light hearted manner that contrasts the Avenger's serious tone.

The pulp series was credited to Kenneth RobesonKenneth Robeson is a pseudonym used by Conde Naste Publishers as the author of their popular character Doc Savage. Many actual authors wrote under this name, though most "Doc Savage" stories were written by the author Lester Dent. Robeson, Kenneth. the same name that appeared on the Doc Savage stories. Actually, Robeson was an aliasAlias has several meanings A person with an alias has a pseudonym It can mean aliasing in signal processing and computer graphics Alias is a United States television series Alias is also an American comic book It can refer to the former company known as A used by a number of different writers. Most of the Avenger stories were written by Paul ErnstPaul Ernst was a writer of pulp fiction. He is best known as the author of The Avenger series.. Towards the end of the series Ernst was directed to eliminate Benson's facial affliction in the hopes of keeping the dwindling audience.

The Avenger pulp stories were released as books by Paperback Library in the 1970sMillennia: 1st millennium 2nd millennium 3rd millennium Centuries: 19th century 20th century 21st century Decades: 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s Years: 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 Events and trends. These were successful enough that several new adventures were written by Ron GoulartRon Goulart (born 1933) is an American science fiction author. Goulart is most noted for his humorous science fiction, especially that dealing with robots. Goulart ghost wrote the popular Tekwar series of books credited to the actor William Shatner (Shatn. There have also been several attempts to revive the Avenger as a comic book character but these have not been very successful.

The Avenger is mentioned by author Philip Jose Farmer as a part of his Wold Newton family.