Wilson Fisk

[Source]

"*The underworld will now be run like a business... and the chairman of the board will be... the Kingpin!*"
―The Kingpin[src]
**Wilson Fisk** (primarily known as **The Kingpin**) was a Human businessman and crimelord who served as the founder and head of Fisk Industries.

## Biography

### Early life

Wilson Fisk was born on July 30, 1959 in New York City to a caring mother and an ambitious but cruel father. He described himself as having been "an unpopular, blubbery child" before he began his lifelong pursuit of bodybuilding, which was in part because of his fascination with the Norse god Thor. Fisk was impoverished as a child and because of it, Fisk's father, Bill, ran for the city council of Hell's Kitchen, believing it would make him and his family rich. Wilson, at the age of twelve, was tasked with helping his father put signs together to promote his campaign. One day while making signs, Fisk's father allowed him to take a drink of whiskey to prove he was a man, but when Fisk choked he was mocked by his father who laughed in his face.

Despite the work that their family put in, the campaign was soon a complete failure, with Bill Fisk losing out to his rival and coming out feeling both angry and humiliated as well as looking for someone to take out this anger upon. Wilson had soon became ridiculed by his neighbor Bernie Walker, who began kicking down all of the signs for Fisk's campaign before hitting Fisk in the jaw for fighting back and attempting to defend his father's work during his political campaign. The upset Fisk quickly returned to his home where his mother cared for his cut lip and gave him food to make him feel better. When his father found out about this assault, he then took the young Wilson to confront Walker in person. Fisk watched closely as his own father cornered and confronted the over confident Walker until he became angry. Bill Fisk assaulted Walker and managed to beat him to the ground by hitting him repeatedly with a baseball bat. Fisk was then ordered by his father to kick the defenseless Walker repeatedly, telling him that he had to prove that he was a man and willing to fight back. Fisk did as he was instructed and assaulted Walker repeatedly, as his father ordered him to continue kicking Walker.

Having lost his campaign, Bill Fisk's drinking habit got more out of hand as the pressure of owing money to local mobsters, including Don Rigoletto, got to him, and he began beating his wife, blaming her for everything that was wrong with his life. During these beatings he would order Wilson to sit and stare at a blank wall and listen to his own mother scream in fear and pain as she was beaten repeatedly. The young Wilson remained fearful of his father, but hearing his mother's pain caused him to despise his father. During one of these beatings, Wilson decided to put an end to his beloved mother's suffering. He grabbed a nearby hammer and repeatedly hit his father over the head with it, killing him and crushing his skull with hit after hit. His mother comforted Fisk and promised to protect him, deciding to then cut up the body. They began dumping it in the river every night for the next week, knowing that most people who knew them would blame Rigoletto for his disappearance. As a gift, Fisk was given his father's cufflinks, which he kept and wore for years afterwards to remind himself of his father's true nature.

### Criminal Take-over

From the start, Fisk was determined to be the best in whatever he did, and he believed physical strength to be a major factor in building power in the underworld. Fisk later moved to Asia where he would spend most of his time abroad, something reflected in his behavior and clothing. Hence, he fanatically trained himself in various methods of bodybuilding and personal combat, finally concentrating on the Japanese art of sumo. His sumo training probably led to his interest in the Orient, which would manifest itself in other ways. In addition to his devotion to physical strength, Fisk realized the importance of intelligence. Being from a poor family, Fisk's formal education was limited. He became self-taught, acquiring or borrowing or sometimes outright shoplifting books from libraries or bookstores in whatever he could find. Although Fisk learned a great deal in sciences and arts, he became particularly fascinated by political science. He decided that another key to success would be in using political techniques in organizing and directing groups of criminals.

Many years later, Fisk returned to New York City and became a powerful criminal businessman, developing a plan to pull Hell's Kitchen apart and rebuild it. Fisk began his criminal life working for mafia boss Don Rigoletto as his bodyguard and enforcer. He took control over Rigoletto's criminal activities after his death and recruited the Russian Mafia, "Yakuza" and Madame Gao's Triad into his organization.

## Personality and traits

"*The Kingpin has rules... rules which you would do well to memorize. Among these rules is one stipulating that we do not tourch another man's wife for any reason... ever.*"
―The Kingpin[src]
Wilson Fisk was cynical, ruthless, violent, and sociopathic. However, in spite of his social anxiety and his awkward nature, he was nonetheless capable of being extremely persuasive and charismatic when he needed to be. He had a keen understanding of psychology and social dynamics, which allowed him to almost effortlessly manipulate people around him and exploit their psychological and emotional weaknesses. He also had a natural talent for leadership, as his take-charge attitude, sheer force of personality, and raw physical presence enabled him to take control of chaotic situations. As evidenced from the speeches he gave at his press conferences, he knew how to play a crowd as well, feigning emotion and passion in order to rally support from the masses.

He was a polite, articulate, and well-spoken man of courtesy and manners. He expected courtesy from his subordinates as well, as he would attack and sometimes even kill those who did not show respect to him or those he cared about. Fisk was a man of deep sophistication, enjoying the high-class life despite his poor origins. He enjoyed fine suits, fine dining, and classic literature and music. He considered himself a man of honor and always kept his word. While he could be a brutal, cold, calculating machine, he honestly believed what he was doing for Hell's Kitchen was righteous.

However, if Fisk was provoked he had an unstoppable, almost animal-like rage. His aggression was immense, and nothing could get in his way if those he cared about or his plan for the city were in danger. This was largely due to his abusive father, who taught him to keep hitting someone even when they were bloodied and beaten. Fisk's broken childhood had a lasting effect on him, still causing him nightmares even into his later years. He even hallucinated his reflection in the mirror having the image of his younger self covered in blood after murdering his father.

## Relationships

### Romances

#### Vanessa Marianna

"*No, no, no! Vanessa! No, do not leave me again!*"
―Wilson Fisk[src]

#### Gabrielle Haller

"*I never knew that I could feel this way again until the day that we met. I didn't think that I was capable, that there would be someone else that I would care for, more than my own life. That her happiness would be more important than anything else. And then a terrifying thought occurred to me, that perhaps my feelings were a trick. The self-deception of a vain man. That the only reason why I love you is because of the way I see my reflection in your eyes. That thought, it fills me with dread. The fear that that I don't deserve you and that I am broken.*"
―Wilson Fisk[src]

## Appearances

Template:Imagecat (Fisk Industries)
Template:Quotepage (Fisk Industries)