Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E. Courtney Whitmore, stepdaughter of
Pat Dugan, finds the original
Star-Spangled Kid's gear in her stepfather's belongings. She dons the costume to annoy Dugan, as she resents him marrying her mother and moving the family from
Los Angeles to
Blue Valley, Nebraska. Dugan, a skilled mechanic, designs and builds
S.T.R.I.P.E., a robotic suit that he uses to accompany and protect her. During her time in Blue Valley, her frequent nemesis is the young villainess known as
Shiv, daughter of the immortal
Dragon King. Their most recent rematch was in
Infinite Crisis, on a page added to the hardcover edition.
Stargirl Courtney joins the
Justice Society of America. After being given
Starman Jack Knight's cosmic staff, she changes her identity to
Stargirl. Courtney appears in most issues of
JSA and it is in these pages that her half-sister Patricia Dugan is born. Later, she confronts her predecessor's killer,
Solomon Grundy. Driven further into madness by the
Joker's chemical assault, Grundy attacks the JSA headquarters with the head of the Statue of Liberty. With the aid of
Jakeem Thunder, Courtney fights Grundy in the streets and into the sewers below. The young heroes barely defeat Grundy and
Johnny Thunderbolt repairs the Statue. Grundy later develops an obsession with Courtney. Courtney encounters
Merry Pemberton, the sister of the original Star-Spangled Kid, during the "Sins of Youth" storyline. Merry's concerns about her brother's legacy and about young superheroes battling adults causes friction with Courtney. They resolve their differences during a battle against the forces of
Klarion the Witch Boy. Courtney later saves Merry's life during an attack by
Amazo. During this incident, Courtney is magically aged to an adult by Klarion. Later, she discovers her biological father
Sam Kurtis working as a common thug for an incarnation of the
Royal Flush Gang. They later confront each other during one of the Flush Gang's robberies. To outsiders, however, Captain Marvel is by all appearances a fully grown up adult, and the relationship between Marvel and Stargirl
draws criticism from
Jakeem Thunder and
Jay Garrick. After Garrick confronts them, Marvel decides to leave the JSA and Courtney, instead of revealing his secret to the team. Marvel later returns to the JSA and explains that the Wisdom of Solomon prevents him from revealing his secret identity. A glimpse into the future shows an adult "Starwoman" married to
Albert Rothstein, the JSA member known as Atom Smasher.
JSA/JSA and Black Vengeance . Courtney's family is murdered by agents of
Per Degaton and she travels with the rest of the JSA to 1951. The
Modern Age successors to
Golden Age JSA members meet and fight alongside the originals to save her family and the future. She finds herself forced to work with Atom Smasher again, for the first time since he defected to
Black Adam's rival team. During her trip to the past, Courtney is briefly stuck in an asylum when she tries to recruit Ted Knight. Knight had become clinically depressed for his perceived role in the creation of the atomic bomb to the point that he initially thought Courtney was a hallucination, but she was saved by a figure later identified as Starwoman, an adult version of her infant sister Patricia. After the crisis is over, Courtney forgives Al for his past alliance with Black Adam but Atom Smasher is nearly killed by
the Spectre during an attack on Khandaq. He survives, but the event reveals the depth of Courtney's feelings for him. She returns to her own time to find her family alive again. Later, Atom Smasher is tried and convicted for his actions while working for Black Adam. During a TV appearance, Courtney says that with Al in prison, she would "be there for him... no matter how long it takes."
Infinite Crisis on the cover of
JSA #81 (March 2006). Art by Alex Ross. Courtney is approached by the
Shade, who tells her that her biological father is dead. This tragedy and her experience of the relationship between
Liberty Belle and
Jesse Quick prompts her to re-evaluate her family life. She discovers that she can't hate her biological father for his failings as a father and as a man. She also learns to accept Pat Dugan as her only real father figure. Stargirl becomes part of a coalition consisting of the JSA, the Doom Patrol and the Teen Titans that is organized to stop
Superboy-Prime from destroying
Smallville. Superboy-Prime kills Titans members
Pantha,
Bushido, and
Baby Wildebeest and maims
Risk, ripping off his arm. Stargirl later attends a memorial service for heroes who died in the Crisis. Afterwards, she begins attending college. She has altered her equipment: her rod now telescopes into a small cylinder, and her costume and belt materialize as the rod extends to full size.
"One Year Later" Courtney joins the new roster of the Justice Society and fights without S.T.R.I.P.E.'s assistance. A seasoned hero despite her age, she forges a bond with her young teammate
Cyclone, the eager and over-impulsive granddaughter of the first
Red Tornado. They two bond after witnessing the death of
Mister America and Courtney suggests Cyclone create a new superhero costume and name. Stargirl resumes her role of mentorship for the youngest heroes by helping
Jefferson Pierce's daughter,
Jennifer, cope with her powers and her isolation. Courtney later expresses to
Damage her doubts about
Gog. A future version of Courtney is seen in
Teen Titans (vol. 3) #53 along with
Lex Luthor and his future Titans. Her role is minimal, however, she is seen wearing Jack Knight's goggles and jacket—the closest she has ever come to Jack's vision of "Starwoman" at the end of his series. In the
Final Crisis miniseries, Courtney joins with other heroes to form an underground resistance against
Darkseid. Courtney is present (and apparently involved in voting) for discussions on how to move the JSA forward after the Gog debacle (and whom to retain or remove from the team) and she defends some of the heroes who sided with Gog. Later she is present when the JSA meet a depowered Billy Batson, who reveals his
secret identity to the others. After the battle with
Black Adam and
Isis, Courtney was unhappy, as the events had happened on her birthday (and had ruined any planned celebrations). When she goes home and opens the door, the entire Justice Society is present and have prepared a late surprise party for her. Later she is unhappy to learn she still needed her braces despite being acknowledged as one of the senior members of the JSA. It has been established that both she and Atom Smasher love each other in direct quotes rather than asides and implied habits, but the elder JSA members' comments about their age difference forced Al to turn Courtney down, stating he loved her "like a sister". Following a massive supervillain attack, the JSA is split in two.
Power Girl convinces Courtney to join the JSA All-Stars splinter group. She later expresses a deep feeling of regret over siding with the All-Stars, claiming that she feels more at home with the original roster. Karen talks her through these doubts, telling her that she needed Courtney on the team because all the other teen members of the JSA look up to her.
The New 52 In September 2011,
The New 52 rebooted DC's continuity. In this new timeline, Stargirl appears as part of a new
Justice League of America title. Born in Los Angeles, Courtney Whitmore was cleaning out the office of Barbara Whitmore's boyfriend Pat Dugan when she found a staff, a belt, and a shirt with a star on it. While trying them on, she became Stargirl and caught the perpetrator of a fire she spotted. The heroic actions went viral. After talking to her friend about what happens next, Courtney was informed by Pat that the person who originally wielded the equipment has died. Though Pat agreed to train her, Courtney had to respond to the criminal activity caused by
Shadow Thief who was taking hostages to draw out a superhero. She managed to rout out Shadow Thief. When Stargirl returned home, she found that Shadow Thief arrived first, killed her brother, and wounded Barbara and Ted. Stargirl used this trauma to become a better superhero.
Amanda Waller later chooses Stargirl as the public face of the JLA's public relations campaign. After the JLA disbands in
Forever Evil, she joins
Justice League United. In
Doomsday Clock, Stargirl is among the superheroes who confront
Doctor Manhattan on the Moon. Stargirl appears with the Justice Society of America when Manhattan restores them and the
Legion of Super-Heroes.
DC Rebirth In
The New Golden Age, Stargirl helps rescue thirteen missing sidekicks known as the Lost Children, who the
Time Masters kidnapped in an attempt to rescue them from
Doctor Manhattan's alterations to the timeline. After discovering that the children cannot be returned to their own times or risk causing a time paradox, Courtney helps them find homes in the present day. In
Titans: Beast World,
Huntress and Stargirl battle various heroes who were mutated by
Beast Boy's spores. ==Powers and abilities==