Toyman

Challenge of the Super Friends 1x01 006 — Toyman from *Challenge of the Super Friends*.

Toyman is a code name used by several comic book characters featured in titles published by DC Comics that have been adapted for television. All versions of the character have been criminals or super-villains to one extent or another. The most well-known individual to adopt the name Toyman is Winslow Schott, of which there have been several different versions presented in different shows.

TV history

Lois and Clark 2x09 001 — Sherman Hemsley in *Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman*.

Before Winslow Schott made his television debut however, there was Jack Nimball. Jack Nimball was a foe of Superman and was introduced in the pages of Action Comics #432 in February, 1974. Nimball was a lanky and dexterous criminal who dressed like a court jester and used different toy-related gimmicks and gadgets to confound Superman. This version of the Toyman made appearances on the 1978 cartoon series Challenge of the Super-Friends by Hanna-Barbera Productions. The Toyman was a member of the Legion of Doom, though he was never identified as Jack Nimball in the series. On the series he was portrayed by veteran voice actor Frank Welker. He made fourteen appearances on the show, though he did not always have speaking lines. A slightly similar version of the Nimball Toyman appeared in an episode of the Plastic Man Comedy/Adventure Show where he was voiced by another mic legend, Alan Oppenheimer.

In comic book history, Winslow Schott was actually the first Toyman, predating Jack Nimball by several decades. Winslow Schott was created by writer Don Cameron and artist Ed Dobrotka and first appeared in Action Comics #64 in September, 1943. Along with the likes of Lex Luthor, Brainiac, and Bizarro, he remains one of Superman's most enduring foes.

The TV version of Winslow Schott was introduced as a live-action character on Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman. Played by The Jeffersons star Sherman Hemsley, he first appeared in the 1994 holiday episode, "Season's Greetings". He also appeared in "Toy Story" in 1997, though this time he was portrayed by Grant Shaud.

Smallville 8x14 001 — Chris Gauthier as Winslow Scott on *Smallville*.

Winslow Schott made his first animated appearance in 1996 on Superman: The Animated Series. This version of the character was a bit more eerie than previous incarnations, as he was presented as a consciousness living inside of an animated doll. Voiced by Bud Cort, he first appeared in "Fun and Games", and in "Obsession". As part of the greater DC Animated Universe, he also appeared in episodes of Justice League and Static Shock.

The character disappeared for some time after the discontinuation of most of the DC Animated shared continuity projects. He popped back up again years later in 2009 in the live-action action series Smallville. Played by actor Chris Gauthier, he was introduced in the season eight episode, "Requiem". The character made three appearances in the series in total.

Another animated version of the Winslow Schott character appeared on the Young Justice cartoon series. Voiced by Cameron Bowen, he appeared in the season two episode, "Intervention" in 2013.

On Supergirl, the character of Winn Schott is a regular on the series, and his name is clearly derived from Winslow Schott. Though fans speculated as to whether he was destined to become the Toyman, the series quickly answered that question midway through season one with the introduction of Winn's father, Winslow Schott, Sr. in episode 1x10, "Childish Things". Like all previous version of the charcacter, Papa Schott used gimmicky toys designed to harass, terrorize and even kill.