Herbie first appeared in the 73rd issue (December, 1958) of Forbidden Worlds, a character despised by his peers, in this case, because he was a very fat and slow-moving little boy, and overly addicted to lollipops. Unknown to family and schoolmates alike, Herbie had vast unexplained super powers, which he used several times in the story, including foiling an alien invasion before anyone else even became aware of it.