At first,merely an adventurer and soldier of fortune, the man known only as Congo Bill soon came to appreciate the native beauty of Africa and her cratures becoming a noted naturalist and trapper, and refusing to kill any animal unless left no other choice. His honesty, integrity, and courage made Congo Bill a legend among the many tribes of the jungle and the African authorities, and there was almost nowhere he was not welcome.

While working for a time as a special investigator and troubleshooter for the World-wide insurance company, Congo Bill came into contact with Janu, the Jungle boy, actually the orphaned son of a famous guide, now living wild in the jungle. For the next several years Congo Bill served as guardian and father figure to young Janu, until the boy left for America to receive a proper education.

Sometime later Congo Bill attempted to save the life of Chief Kawolo, an old friend and tribal witch doctor, who had fallen off a cliff. Despite BIll's best efforts, the old man knew he was dying and bequeathed Bill a final gift - an ornate ring carved with the image of a Gorilla. By rubbing this ring, the dying man explained, Bill would be able to trade identities for one hour with Kawolo's tribal god, a golden gorilla. To humour the old man, Bill accepted the ring, believing the story to be silly superstition, until an avalanche trapped him in a cave and he had no other hope of freeing himself except to rub the ring. Instantly, Bill found his mind in the body of the golden gorilla, while the gorilla's mind inhabited his body. Now a unique hybrid of man and beast, Bill freed his body from the cave and carved a new legend across Africa over the next several years as the remarkable man-ape called Congorilla.

Finally Janu, now college educated, returned to Africa and convinced Congo Bill that industry was the hope of Africa's future. Retiring from the brush, Bill and Janu opened a small industrial firm that soon became a large conglomerate withBill as it's president and Janu as vice president.

Though financially successful, Bill found little satisfaction in the world of business, and when the world was threatened with extinction, Bill once more became Congorilla, joining a number of other "Forgotten" heroes and Superman to save humanity from destruction.