Chronos is the name of several supervillains appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. These characters take their name from the Greek personification of time and have the ability to time travel. He is the archenemy of the Atom. Publication history The David Clinton version of Chronos first appeared in The Atom #3 and was created by Gardner Fox and Gil Kane. In 1974, Chronos was a founding member of the Injustice Gang. The Walker Gabriel version of Chronos first appeared in Chronos #1 and was created by John Francis Moore and Paul Guinan. Fictional character biography David Clinton The archenemy of the Atom (Ray Palmer), Chronos started his career as petty thief David Clinton, who attributed his consistent incarceration to his timing, or lack thereof. To improve his timing, he studied the rhythm of time pieces and by practice he learned to synchronize each of his actions with the beat of the prison clock. By the end of his sentence he had developed an extraordinary sense of timing which he resolved to use to further his criminal career. He then adopted the colorful costume and alter ego of Chronos, the Time Thief. Clinton had acquired an unhealthy fascination with time and he developed a series of gimmick weapons and deathtraps based on time pieces (clocks with blades as hands, flying sun dials). He liked to give time related puns, such as "Time is golden!" when spraying golden gas at Green Lantern. Chronos made his debut in Ivy Town, but was defeated by the Atom when he tried to steal an atomic clock because of an idea ironically given to him by Ray Palmer. He came close to deducing the Atom's secret identity when he realized the Atom attacked him soon after Ray saw him, and succeeded in capturing the Atom and placing him inside a watch. The Atom escaped the watch while Chronos was breaking into a vault, and used a trick to make him think he was wrong. However he escaped from jail by adapting a guard's watch, making the ticks so loud they broke open his cell door. He next tried to steal a collection of historic Hungarian clocks which each had a gem hidden inside, but was again defeated. The Atom has since thwarted all of Chronos' plans. Each appearance or new crime prompted an evolution in Chronos' weaponry. His study of time led