Julian "Jack" Tiggs | |
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Aliases | Lots of them |
Nicknames | Jack, Jules, Mouse |
Gender | Male |
Species | Half-Demon |
Age | 139 |
Date of Birth | June 26, 1862 |
Height | 5'4" |
Weight | 126 lbs |
Place of Birth | York, England |
Current Location | Los Angeles, CA, USA |
Occupation | Actor, Serial Killer |
Known Relatives | None |
Significant Other | Simone Muldoon (former) |
Special Powers | Demonic Possession |
First Appearance | The Bigger Freak |
Portrayed By | Craig Roberts |
The Demon Who Just Wanted To Prove He Wasn't A Loser. A half-demon hailing from England, Julian has played second fiddle for most of his long life and yearns to rise above his limitations, his ultimate goal being the engineering of a truly memorable massacre. He lives in his own world, is not entirely in touch with reality, and currently makes his living as a serial killer. He is better known publicly as a stage actor and singer, and may be recognized by individuals who have attended shows on Broadway.
Table of Contents
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History
Julian was born in 1862 in York, England, after a man was possessed by an Ethros Demon long enough to produce a child with his wife. The family soon moved to London, and as the youngest of three sons Julian wasn't really expected to have a huge stake in the family's booming textile business. Instead, after a subdued and rather boring childhood filled with endless hours of education and manners, Julian was informed that he was going to be sent to take holy vows. A resentful but obedient son, he obeyed - but things got a little hairy when at the age of twenty-two Julian's demon half manifested and caused a very bad reaction with a crucifix. Dormant instincts took over and Julian possessed a nearby priest, but was incapable of sustaining control and was soon ejected from the body. He fled the church, severing ties with it and his family in 1884.
Realizing that something was extremely wrong Julian sought out information about himself, chasing tales and fortunetellers until he eventually uncovered his half-breed status. He spent a year learning about the true Ethros demons from a well-informed demon hunter under the guise of a student, and eventually decided that he would do his level best to be the perfect model of a demon. The rest of his life hadn't been successful and he had no other prospects, so his greatest ambition became engineering a massacre that would be remembered throughout history. He killed the demon hunter while the man slept and went on his way. When his first few attempts at causing mayhem were met with failure he went to Plan B, which consisted of becoming a stage magician and then an actor in London's West End. Though he traveled on and off around Britain, Julian was in London at the time of the Jack the Ripper killings in the autumn of 1888. He was nicknamed 'Jack' by several friends in the know about his heritage who jokingly blamed him for the murders. As it happened, Julian envied the Ripper and wished it was him, but insisted (and still does) that he could have done the job better. Unlike the Ripper's reign of terror the nickname has lasted through time, and on occasion Julian lays false claim to the famous identity to impress. He eventually left the stage in favor of picking up a decade-long career as a jockey, participating in several of Great Britain's flat races and long-distance races. He enjoyed the job tremendously, but investigation by the demon-hunting group his former tutor had belonged to led Julian to panic and flee England in early 1912.
His chosen method of escape lay in an ocean liner: the Titanic. He narrowly avoided the ship's disastrous fate: Julian originally boarded in Southampton and disembarked at the Cherbourg stop in France to sight-see, but ended up missing the next legs of the ship's journey by being too drunk to make the departure time from France. He erroneously blames another demon he met on board for the sinking of Titanic and remains convinced that the opportunity to doom the ship had been 'stolen' from him. Julian eventually arrived in New York and subsequently became a low-profile presence on Broadway from 1912-1920, mainly taking ensemble parts or very minor roles. When Prohibition rolled around and more or less cut him off from his sources of alcohol he abruptly left the Big Apple to join up with a group of mobsters in Chicago, seeking glory, booze, and murder. During his time there he was party to a number of bank robberies and shootouts, and as usual almost always managed to be too late to the scene of the crime to cause any real damage when anything truly major happened. Rather than live the life of excitement and blood that he expected it was far more common that Julian would end up moving distilling equipment or overseeing the transportation of moonshine. During his stay in Chicago he met a woman named Simone Muldoon and eventually discovered her to be a vampire after witnessing her draining the blood of her mobster boyfriend. Smelling opportunity, Julian revealed his own demonic nature and struck up a relationship with the woman.
He returned to the stages of Broadway in 1931 with Simone at his side, finding moonlight employment under Texas Guinan working at at the speakeasy called the 300 Club. As they always would, however, Julian's eyes began to wander - and Simone caught him flirting with Guinan. Jealous and spiteful, the vampire killed Guinan before departing in a huff, leaving a heartbroken Julian to take care of creating an adequate cover-story for his former boss' death. He left New York immediately afterward, moving on to Boston in 1933. There, Julian involved himself with the owners of a massive steel fortune during the twilight years of the Great Depression by wooing the oldest daughter of the family, ending up riding the economic disaster out in style until 1939 - the onset of WWII. He then made his way back to New York City and reestablished himself on Broadway, waiting out the war as an entertainer. He stayed beyond V-Day and wouldn't leave until 1952 when he started to travel around the country, visiting major cities and living the lifestyle of a semi-wealthy drifter.
Julian was picked up for drunk and disorderly contact in 1955 while in Portland, Maine. Thanks to some of his drunken ravings he was promptly committed at a government-funded psychiatric institution and labeled a paranoid schizophrenic. He was detained there against his will with his abilities inconveniently suppressed by sedatives until 1960, when he managed to hoard enough stimulants to counteract his drug regimen. Riding a wave of amphetamines Julian possessed a psychotic inmate known to be dangerous and killed two orderlies, inciting a violent riot and escaping the facility before the authorities responded. The psychopath's body was ditched within an hour of the escape and Julian was once again at large. He resumed his previous pattern of wandering the lower 48, appearing across the country whenever and wherever he pleased in a series of double- and triple-homicides. He turned up late for the Tlatelolco massacre in October of 1968 by having missed his plane to Mexico, a trip being made to attend the Olympics. He was forced to catch a flight leaving several days later. That same year he claims to have had an affair with the recently-divorced Audrey Hepburn. Although he came into contact with her, they were never romantically involved.
In 1971 he crossed the Atlantic again, spending several years in Ireland in hopes of getting involved with some of the tension and violence caused by the factional disputes being had there. After missing both Bloody Sunday and Bloody Friday, Julian was 'robbed' of the North Ireland Kingsmill massacre in 1976 due to sleeping off a night of wild drinking in a local pub. It was the final disappointment for him and he took the next flight to New York City and the life of the stage. Drunk and out to prove himself capable of changing the world, Julian possessed Mark David Chapman in 1980 and attempted to assassinate Yoko Ono. He missed and killed John Lennon instead. Julian abandoned the body immediately and proceeded to hate himself for the rest of the decade, taking a two-year break to feel miserable before returning to his acting career.
The 1990s were a time of radical change, and Julian did his best to adjust despite his stubborn clinging to various cultural and social norms from the last century. In 1996 he hit upon a new scheme: serial killing. His method involves the possession of wealthy individuals and the altering of their wills, naming himself as the sole inheritor of various small fortunes. The men he possesses (and they are always men) are soon killed by close friends or family at the rate of two or three a year, the murderers all also victims of his possession. Due to the abnormal number of inheritances that Julian has been racking up he has come under federal and local investigations across the United States, and is the number one suspect for these deaths though he has never been named as such or questioned by the authorities. Much of the money he makes is blown on gambling, alcohol, and bad investments - and after each killing Julian immediately packs up and moves, citing emotional turmoil in order to flee state jurisdiction just in case any department summons enough evidence to issue a warrant. Thirteen men of means have been killed this way since his wave of murders began, and his most recent victim's death has led him to settle in Los Angeles, moving from his latest residence in New York City.
Personality
Julian's personality has been largely molded around the fact that he has almost always been in the background, standing in the shadow of the larger-than-life people he tends to drift towards. He has a naturally subservient/submissive personality thanks to that and his upbringing. His prolonged status as second-fiddle has taken its toll, but there is a great deal of cocky bravado involved with the face Julian presents to the world. He is incorrectly regarded by some as effeminate thanks to his small stature, penchant for neatness, and aversion to 'untidy' or 'dirty' situations. Julian hates being perceived in this light and is in fact highly homophobic. He is often easily manipulated, especially by women, and finds himself nearly incapable of killing members of the female gender. The reason for this is simple: Julian loves women and is very much a romantic. He doesn't care about size, shape, age, religion, creed, or color - all women are beautiful as far as he's concerned. He is unfortunately overlooked by many women and has been left lonely for large portions of his long lifespan.
As a man starved for recognition and the spotlight it makes perfect sense for Julian to be as attracted to show business as he is. He's a world-class performer and entertainer, knows himself to be exactly that, and finds it extremely difficult to avoid the opportunity to be the center of attention. The time he spent in as an asylum inmate has had a great and negative impact on Julian's mental state, and he is not always connected as closely with reality as the people around him are. This usually manifests as paranoia, born from the fact that he is almost always too late to cause an actual massacre and is convinced that someone - possibly God - 'has it in for him' and gives others the opportunity to make it to the scene of the slaughter first. He has what has been described by other people as a drinking problem, which really means that he can frequently be found staggering around in a drunken haze. Julian is very attached to his nickname, Jack, and when placed into an informal situation will almost always introduce himself by that name rather than his given one. He has a large set of inferiority and repression issues, and in many ways is stuck in decades that have long-since died. Julian is generally an eager-to-please flatterer who nevertheless harbors great private feelings of resentment and envy towards men who are in positions of power. He almost always gravitates towards cities, finding rural and even suburban areas to be dreadfully uncivilized.
Powers
- [Aging] Ethros demons have incredibly long lifespans, and some researchers have suggested that they may in fact be ageless. As a half-breed Julian has limited access to this trait - he's already lived for almost 150 years, and if his current aging pattern continues he's likely to have several centuries more available to him before his natural lifespan runs out. After he manifested his demon half his physical aging slowed to a crawl, and in the last century he looks as though he's aged no more than fifteen or twenty years. He has no illusions that this makes him immortal, since he has aged, but is comfortable in the belief that he'll outlive everyone he currently knows.
- [Half-Demon] Julian is a passing half-demon, which means he can integrate, undetected, with normal human society. Since he's half-human he has one of those pesky soul things, and like a good number of half-breeds he ignores it and his conscience in favor of causing mayhem whenever possible. His soul tends to nag him in unexpected ways, like making him susceptible to love, remorse, and emotional pain. He can physically manifest his demonic half - and in doing so comes to resemble a hybrid between a normal Ethros demon and a human, with large facial wrinkles appearing on his face (especially on his forehead), his skin greying, his teeth all sharpening to points and his eyes turning yellow. While taking advantage of his demon side Julian has access to a supernatural degree of strength, though he is far, far outclassed by almost all other demons and half-demons and is much more comparable to that of an unusually strong adult male human. His strength does not increase with the number of years he has been alive and is simply an low-exponential representation of his the strength he would have if he was a pure human; if Julian were to bulk up on his own, he would be stronger. Like a normal Ethros he excretes a body fluid called plakticine, but it is only present when he is possessing a host and never appears when he is in his human body. In any form (human, demon, or in a host) Julian can imitate voices to perfection or change his own to suit his needs. His reaction to blessed symbols and holy water is identical to that of a vampire's: this involves pain, burning flesh, and aversion. He can be bound by most varieties of mystic circles, not having the hard-to-trap protection of his demonic sire. It is really, really, really easy to mistake Julian for a vampire. This has resulted in quite a few catastrophic misunderstandings over the years.
- [Incorporeality] Julian is capable of changing his physical form into energy. This is usually a short-lived transitional phase between being normal and possessing a human, but can be used to effect very limited teleportation. This extends to a range of about two yards and is extremely tiring, and the thicker the matter that he needs to pass through the more difficult it is to achieve. For instance, it would be exhausting for him to attempt to pass through a cement wall and relatively easy to pass through a plaster one. Julian's limited range also means he must be within around a car's length of someone to possess them. He can only sustain his energy form for about five seconds at a time.
- [Possession] After transforming into energy Julian is capable of possessing other creatures. Possessed individuals have enhanced strength, and can assume a demonically-accented physical appearance. If Julian's host body ingests certain substances (such as eucalipsis powder), it will fall into fits. If exorcised from a body with an Ethros Box present, Julian will be attracted to the box just like a full-blooded demon and will be effectively trapped by it. Without an Ethros Box, Julian will attempt to possess the nearest likely candidate or will reassume his normal form. Unlike a full-blood Ethros, he is not powerful enough to kill his new inhabitant if he takes a new host. He also differs from full-blooded Ethros in that he can't maintain a possession for longer than about a week at a time, a limit made variable by his host's level of willpower. Julian can possess all mammals of sufficient size (his minimum is a large cat), but is loathe to take up residence in anything but a human.
- [Regeneration] Like many demonically-influenced individuals, Julian can survive and recover from wounds that would prove fatal for normal humans, though his healing is by no means instant. He is still just as susceptible to pain and physical injury as the next man, and is simply able to heal from more extensive and serious injuries. For example, if his back were broken it would eventually heal - but it would be a long time coming and would cause him no small amount of agony. If taken to an area with volcanic basalt present, Julian's regenerative ability is augmented and its speed is increased. He cannot regenerate limbs or large quantities of lost flesh; if he loses a hand, that hand is gone. This ability is probably why his liver hasn't shriveled up and died due to his drinking habits.
- [Telekinesis] Julian has limited powers of telekinesis that can only be utilized while in a host body or with his demon half in full manifestation. He can't move anything heavier than an average-sized dresser but is capable of rattling, shaking, and sometimes snapping things that are larger than that. His telekinesis only extends to inanimate objects. He's not going to be tossing people around any time soon.
Skills
- [The Arts] Julian plays both the violin and the piano - and plays them well. He sings! He acts! He dances! He tap-dances. Yeah. He was on Broadway. As such, he knows a great many musicals, plays, and dramas by heart and is prone to humming long-forgotten and out-of-style music like a loser. His ability to imitate voices and alter his own give him incredible singing range, enabling him to play most male parts if his small stature is overlooked.
- [Firearms] Julian knows how to use them and is incredibly fond of them, but he's a terrible shot. This might explain why his weapon of choice remains the tommy gun, something almost impossible to locate in this day and age - if you're spraying bullets everywhere it doesn't matter how accurate you are. In lieu of this, when firepower is needed he often employs a shotgun. For personal protection Julian almost always carries a six-shot snubnose revolver (a Colt Detective Special .38) on him that he was given by Simone Muldoon during the early 1930s. Unlike most demons, he truly appreciates the human invention and uses guns to his advantage whenever possible, knowing perfectly well that while other supernatural beings might not be killed by them, they'll still be considerably slowed down with enough lead in their ribcages. He has yet to discover the glory of fully automatic weapons.
- [Horseman] While still living in England in the late 1800s, Julian became relatively well-known for his equestrian skills. He participated in long-distance races and flat races and often placed into the top five finishers, sometimes winning first. He is still an exceptional rider and has a great love for horses of all breeds.
- [Languages] In addition to English, Julian speaks and reads perfectly fluent French thanks to the education he got as a youngster. He knows no other languages.
Notes
- [Accent] Julian's natural accent is a British one thanks to his upbringing, and he's never lost it. However, due to the enormous amount of time that he's spent in the states Julian is capable of producing a nearly flawless American accent. He usually employs it when trying to conceal his identity or when possessing a body.
- [Another Time, Another Place] One of the many hangups that Julian has picked up in his lifetime centers upon his mode of dress - in short, he's kind of stuck in the first thirty years of the twentieth century. If it's not a slim-tailored bespoke three-piece suit, he's probably not going to wear it. Hats are still fashionable and should be worn at all times when outside, his headwear of choice being flat caps and fedoras. And yes, the fedoras are ribboned. As far as he's concerned spats never went out of style (though he thankfully doesn't wear them that often) and dinner jackets are the only appropriate things to wear in the evening. High, broad waistbands and suspenders are an absolute must, and if you're not wearing a tie of some sort you're obviously a destitute hooligan. The lack of style in the current day causes Julian no end of consternation. Luckily Julian just tends to come off as a mild peacock with a slightly outdated sense of fashion rather than an actual relic of the last century. It could be worse: he could have preferred zoot suits.
- [Don't Trust the Banks] Having lived through the Great Depression, Julian is understandably suspicious of the banking system. Though he banks about half of the funds he acquires to facilitate ease of transactions (credit cards are awesome) the other half is always in cash. A portion of the cash sum is hidden in a multitude of random concealed locations across America in case of emergency, and the rest of it is kept in a safe wherever Julian might be living at the time.
- [The Great White Way] Julian was one of the early performers on Broadway. He has been in shows produced by George M. Cohan, among others, and anyone capable of doing the right kind of archival digging could probably turn up old photographs or playbills with his face prominently featured. Julian is often typecast as a villain, fool, or teenager (with enough makeup). He has named his favorite parts to be John Wilkes Booth, Henry Higgins, Mordred, and Sweeney Todd. Julian was active on Broadway during the following years: 1912-1920, 1931-1933, 1939-1952, 1976-1980, 1982-1996, 1998, and 2001. Notable roles (in order of the production dates and including reprised performances) include:
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- Jud Fry (Oaklahoma!, 1943)
- Emile de Becque (South Pacific, 1949)
- Nathan Detroit (Guys and Dolls, 1951)
- Sir Edward Ramsay (The King and I, 1952)
- Nathan Detroit (Guys and Dolls, 1976)
- Billy Flynn (Chicago, 1976)
- Henry Higgins (My Fair Lady, 1977)
- Horace Vandergelder (Hello, Dolly!, 1978)
- Sweeney Todd (Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, 1979)
- Mordred (Camelot, 1980)
- Jack (Into the Woods, 1987)
- Ernst Ludwig (Cabaret, 1988)
- Inspector Javert (Les Misérables, 1990)
- John Wilkes Booth (Assassins, 1990)
- Mordred (Camelot, 1993)
- Henry Higgins (My Fair Lady, 1993)
- Harry (Company, 1994)
- Bud Frump (How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, 1995).
- The Emcee (Cabaret, 1998)
- George Gershwin (George Gershwin Alone, 2001)
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- [The Hate-On] Julian wants desperately to appear in Mel Brooks' recently-opened The Producers as Leo Bloom, and auditioned for the part during his last year living in New York City. He was beaten for the role by Matthew Broderick - who he now wants dead - thanks to the pull of the other man's 'star power' and famous name. Instead he starred in George Gershwin Alone for a series of weeks on and off after possessing the actor that actually landed the part. Julian misses the real George Gershwin. :<
- [Social Leech] Thanks to his wild ping-ponging around the United States during much of his life and his outright obsession with New York City, Julian has mingled with a great many famous names. Unfortunately he is also prone to spouting non sequiturs in response to passing mentions of people, places, things, and events, such as recalling The Time He Met Al Capone when someone offers him a drink of whatever happened to be in style way back when. The Prohibition era was a time full of social opportunity for Julian, and he had the luck to meet up with various big faces that included Gloria Swanson, Rudolph Valentino, Phillys Diller, Audrey Hepburn, and George Gershwin.
Soundtrack
Timeline
- December 16, 2001: The Bigger Freak. Freaks are lovely, aren't they?
- December 19, 2001. On Broadway. Daisy has a very nice chat with a very nice man. Yes.
- December 21, 2001. You've Got Red On You. Two old faces meet each other and have a chat over a corpse. Just like old times!
- December 24, 2001. You're Sick. Daisy and Julian meet for a date-like thing on Christmas Eve, only to have Simone come by and terrorize them both.
- December 24, 2001. In Vino Veritas. Immediately following the scare with Simone, Julian manages to get Daisy home in one piece and fills her in on some of the scary truths of the world over drinks.
- February 4, 2002. Kitten Wants Your Soul. Simone stops by to inform Julian that his soul is to be forcibly removed. Cheers!
- February 6, 2002. Maybe Next Tuesday?. Two girls, one Julian. Things get a little bit violent.
Relationships
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Simone is The One That Got Away from the golden age of the early 1900s; the fact that she killed a lady he very much liked is remembered but already pretty much forgiven. She's turned up again in L.A. as a twist of fate, and Julian is already obsessing over her. Just a little. He's practically forgotten about the most recent pretty dead girl, too, but after Simone dropped by to almost-eat Daisy Julian has started getting a tiny bit scared. Especially since she said he was sick and needed fixing. |
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Julian likes this girl. A lot. She's a sweetheart; she's into acting. She's pretty. All of the above more or less make her a wonderful woman. Julian has amateurishly saved her from the clutches of Simone, marking the girl's first encounter with the supernatural. |