I Cover the Waterfront

J. Jonah Jameson is up late at the Daily Bugle writing a story that he just observed himself.

The narrative of the story goes back to earlier in the day as he was out with Marla Madison. Madison would point out that the gruff skin-flint exterior Jameson portrays is merely a shield to disguise his truly charitable and caring personality. He scoffs at this telling her that he did not start at the Daily Bugle as a copy boy and work his way to the role of editor as being soft and scoffs further at the idea that he is getting old. He swears that he can track down and get any story, grabbing the latest edition of the Daily Bugle and deciding to go after the latest waterfront corruption investigation.

Rushing the the Daily Bugle offices he would order his best staffers to get him up to date on the waterfront scandal: Apparently according to an informant named Hadley Barnstrum the chief bookkeeper for the dockside federation has told the Bugle that someone has been threatening to blow up ships and docks if the shipowners and docker workers did not pay up. Wit the exception of Barnstrum, nobody is talking.

Jameson decides to crack the story in the next twenty-four hours and gets to work. After going over the notes he bolts out of the Daily Bugle, unaware that his staffer Peter Parker is following him in his secret identity of Spider-Man. The first place he goes is the Century Club where Wilson Fisk is presently playing pool. Confronting the Kingpin of crime, Jameson offers to turn over a document containing damning evidence against the Kingpin, on the basis that it is only enough to damage him when Jameson wants to see him utterly destroyed. Jameson offers the file folder in exchange for information about the waterfront scandal. Impressed by Jameson's business proposition, the Kingpin agrees to tell him what he knows.

Going to the dockside federation office, Jameson breaks in and goes snooping in the files. He finds a file with damaging evidence regarding the scandal when suddenly some thugs burst in. Jameson flees into a dockside warehouse and gives them the slip when he knocks over a bunch of printing paper on them. Thinking this has knocked out the crooks Jameson flees and is completely unaware that Spider-Man has arrived on the scene and has beaten the men into submission.

As Jameson flees he trips over a pile of rope and goes sprawling on the deck of a ship. He is then confronted by Hadley Barnstrum, who admits that he is the mastermind of the scandal. He then sicks his men on Jameson. Jameson picks up the rope and uses it like a whip to keep back some of the men long enough to flee the scene. However, unknown to him at the time Jameson drops the file folder.

As Spider-Man recovers it from Barnstrum, his remaining goons chase Jameson up the deck of the ship where Jonah is forced to jump into the water below. Swimming ashore, Jameson is greeted by the police and much to his chagrin is handed the missing file by Spider-Man himself. He then rushed back to the Bugle to type up the story.

With his narrative complete, Jameson is greeted by Marla Madison who takes him home leaving the finished story on the typewriter. The final paragraph addresses that Spider-Man was involved and that as a reporter Jameson has to maintain as factual as possible he states "I should tell Spider-Man's part in this story, but then there are elements to every story that get lost on the way to the printer."

Recurring Characters

J. Jonah Jameson, Spider-Man, Marla Madison, Kingpin, Joe Robertson, Ben Urich, Lance Bannon, Glory Grant

Continuity Notes

• J. Jonah Jameson states that he started working for the Daily Bugle during the Great Depression of the 1930s. This should be considered a topical reference per the Sliding Timescale of Earth-616. Modern readers should interpret this as Jameson starting to work for the Bugle roughly 54 years prior to this story and roughly 48 years prior to the start of the Modern Age. Per Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z #6, Jameson quit high school to start working at the Bugle. Roughly speaking, this puts Jameson somewhere in his late 60s to early 70s at the time of this story.