Jess Harley, also known as Leatherhead, is an anthropomorphic alligator. Once a human from New Orleans, his thieving drew the ire of a witch, who used the magic of the Turnstone to turn him into an alligator. He appears in the TMNT comic strips.
History[]
Magic Turnstone[]
As the Turtles are returning to their lair, three of them are jumped by Leatherhead. He ties them up and takes them back to his sewer hideout, where he tosses them into a huge cauldron, intent on having them for dinner. They believe that Raphael and Splinter are preparing to rescue them. At the lair, Raph and Splinter are getting ready to watch Oprah.
The Turtles try to discourage Leatherhead from eating them by listing reasons why they are unappetizing. Mikey says they taste like rotten zombie chicken. This makes Leatherhead think they can perform voodoo and Leonardo plays along. They strike a deal; the Turtles promise not to hex Leatherhead, they promise to help him, and they promise to be his friends for life. Upon receiving their agreement, he sets them free. Michaelangelo asks why Leatherhead needs help and he answers that they have to save him from the wicked witch who calls herself Mary Bones.
Leatherhead uses a lot of verbal gymnastics to avoid telling the Turtles why Mary Bones is after him. They finally get him to admit that he stole something from her and that he's lost the thing he stole. Leatherhead says that he used to be human, and the stolen object can change him back. He tells them that the stolen object is called the Turnstone. Mary Bones caught up to him after he stole the turnstone and used it to transform him. As they walk through the tunnels to find Mary, they soon learn that she has found Raph, who came looking for them. Mary calls Leatherhead "Jess Harley" and says he's a thief. Leatherhead tries to claim he was only borrowing it, but she asks, "from New Orleans to New York?".
Mary Bones tell the Turtles that destiny brought them together and that the Turnstone belongs to them. Leatherhead starts yelling for Mary to give him the turnstone before he pounds her. Annoyed with him, Mary zaps him with the turnstone and shrinks him to the size of a mouse. Leatherhead then has an unfortunate encounter with a cat and in an attempt to escape being eaten, he ducks into a mouse hole, only to be tossed out by the rat who is inside. When the Turtles see that the cat has Leatherhead in its mouth, they rescue him and then Mary uses the turnstone to change him back to normal size. After Mary leaves, the Turtles try to figure out how to use the turnstone to return Leatherhead to human form but end up changing him into a number of other things. He gets aggravated and grabs the turnstone, but only manages to zap himself to Disneyworld.
Trivia[]
- Leatherhead's magical origin is similar that of the Cuco, a monster of European and Hispanic folklore with a draconic appearance. A later interpretation, popularized by early French and Spanish settlers in the southern United States (possibly with inspiration from "Beauty and the Beast"), identifies it as a wicked man cursed with a monstrous crocodile form for his sinful behavior.