Walter Hardy is a well-known cat burglar who got arrested at some point. Years later, the thief known as Black Cat steals precinct papers on the prison holding him. Peter Parker also conducted his own research, learning that Walter Hardy had been locked up in New York Prison for the past few decades and is now terminally ill. At the prison, Spider-Man fights Black Cat while her accomplices Boris Korpse and Bruno Grainger blast the wall to Walter Hardy's prison cell, the rubble of which buries Spider-Man. With Spider-Man unable to get out of the rubble, the prison officers are unable to stop Black Cat, Korpse, and Grainger from making off with Walter Hardy. At his home, Black Cat reveals that she is his daughter, Felicia Hardy, and mentions that her mother Lydia purposefully hid his past from her. Walter then leaves to spend his final moments with his wife. After Black Cat falls into the river, Spider-Man goes to meet up with Lydia Hardy as she weeps over Walter's death. At the time when Black Cat is in the hospital following Spider-Man's battle with Doctor Octopus, she claims to Peter Parker that she was visited by the ghost of Walter Hardy.
Powers and abilities
The Cat has a miniature grappling hook device, which enables him to swing from buildings in a manner similar to Spider-Man, though not quite as fast. He can also use the cable from this device as a tightrope, wall scaling device, swing line, and/or as a weapon in combat. He has photographic memory as well.
Other versions
The Ultimate Marvel version of the character is identified as Jack Hardy and is seen on a list of known cat burglars in the Daily Bugle database.
In other media
Television
The Cat appeared in the 1994 Spider-Man episodes "The Cat" and "The Black Cat", voiced by John Phillip Law. While the character's name is changed to John Hardesky, he retains similarities to his comic counterpart. As a boy, he was tricked by the Nazis into spying on the Captain America experiment using his photographic memory. When John found out who the real Nazis were, he became hunted by a group sent by the Red Skull and managed to evade them. Years later, he fell into protective S.H.I.E.L.D. custody until the Kingpin had his henchman Chameleon replace him to get the super-soldier formula. Upon discovering it, Kingpin arranges a "family reunion" by having Doctor Octopus kidnap Walter's daughter, Felicia Hardy. She becomes a test subject for the formula and transformed into the Black Cat. After encountering Black Cat, Spider-Man follows her to Kingpin's hideout and rescues her and John after the latter destroys the super-soldier serum before it could be replicated. With Kingpin's plan thwarted, John shared his goodbyes with his family and willingly returned to S.H.I.E.L.D. custody.
Walter Hardy appears in The Spectacular Spider-Man, voiced by James Remar. This version is an amalgam between the classic Walter from the comics, and the Burglar who killed Ben Parker. In a flashback accessed by the Venom symbiote, Spider-Man confronts the Burglar in a warehouse after he broke into the Parkers' house and killed Ben, and unmasks him, only to discover that he is the same robber he let go earlier that same day. When the Burglar trips and falls through a window, Spider-Man rescues him and leaves him for the police. In the episode "Opening Night", the burglar's identity as Black Cat's father is revealed to Spider-Man. Black Cat comes to break him out of the Vault as Spider-Man volunteers to test a maximum security cell. During the climax of the episode he explains to his daughter and Spider-Man that he never used a gun until he grew older and slower, being afraid of getting caught. He sincerely regrets taking Ben Parker's life and believes that he must pay for it, so he stays behind and releases a knockout gas to subdue the escaped inmates pursuing Spider-Man, which also knocks him unconscious, whilst Spider-Man and Black Cat escape. In the end, Walter and the other inmates are re-incarcerated.
Video games
Walter Hardy appears in the 2018 Spider-Manvideo game, voiced by Daniel Riordan. He is featured in a side-quest in the DLC episode, "The Heist". Spider-Man is contacted by NYPD detective Mackey, who tasks him with tracking down paintings stolen by Walter, the original Black Cat. As Spider-Man looks for them, Mackey relays Walter's backstory to him, explaining that because of his skill as a thief, the Maggia sought to recruit him. When Walter refused, he let himself be arrested and supposedly died drowning in a failed escape attempt from Ryker's Island. However, many suspect that he faked his death to protect his family from the Maggia. After collecting all of the stolen art, Spider-Man returns to the precinct and discovers that Mackey is actually Walter, who faked his death and took on an alias so that he could obtain the paintings and use them to finance his retirement. Before he leaves, Walter asks Spider-Man to take care of his daughter.
