Who's This? A tipsy aristocrat.
The facts: Created for World's Finest Comics #251 (July 1978) by Gerry Conway and Trevor Von Eeden, Vertigo (his real last name - what do you expect from a guy from a country named Vlatava?) first fought Black Canary, then transferred his attentions to Green Arrow. His whole deal was being an aristocrat exiled by the Soviets, and so his inner ear problem was the result of blueblood inbreeding. The device that helped him compensate could be fiddled with to broadcast a his natural equilibrium. Being a Green Arrow villain kind of puts you on the C-list, but Vertigo would find more gainful employment as a member of the Suicide Squad, joining in the third year of John Ostrander's seminal run. It created many opportunities for him, in particular becoming Amanda Waller's Knight in Checkmate. Count Vertigo also appeared in animation in Batman the Animated Series, The Batman, and Young Justice.
How you could have heard of him: The New52 returned him to his roots as a Green Arrow villain, because by then he'd appeared on the Arrow show. Villain Month even chooses him as Green Arrow's replacement on the stands. After Rebirth, he again appears in Green Arrow, so his fortunes seem tied once again to Oliver Queen's fortunes (that's not a good thing).
Example story: World's Finest Comics #273 (November 1981) "Assault on Kastle Vertigo !" by Bob Haney, Trevor von Eeden and Larry Mahlstedt
What has gone before: Green Arrow finds Vertigo's corpse which, by way of a note, charges him with bringing it back to Soviet-occupied Vlatava. He does, with the help of a member of the Guardian Archers (would-be Speedy II, Duke Denicha), but there finds out that not only was Vertigo playing dead, to get at a MacGuffin that further modifies his powers to make his vertiginous illusions into vertiginous reality. The Soviets mobilize, but does GA need their help? As this chapter opens, Vertigo is compensating for his lack of political power in the region (above).
Ollie and Duke (it's quite the confusing surname in a story with a Count) having served their purpose, Vertigo flings them away, into the waiting arms of the Russians, who have orders to shoot them (well, everyone).
Seems the distraction was enough to keep the troops from Kastle Vertigo, and though the soldiers fire pointlessly into the sky, the rocket flies unimpeded toward Moscow. Vertigo doesn't get his revenges half-assed. But wait, it's extortion, as the ICBM flies 'round and 'round the Soviet capital until Vertigo's demands are met (presumably withdrawal of troops from Vlatava and his restoration as its ruler, even though his people still hate him). The missile even has a protective aura designed to repel American anti-ballistics, so the Russians can't shoot it down either. The only way to stop is to remotely activate its self-destruct from Kastle Vertigo. There are only 17 minutes of fuel, but the Count can drop its 50 megatons on Moscow any time before that. I guess it's up to Green Arrow to beat the clock... or the man.
A blunt arrow hits Vertigo on the chin and he's out like a light. Ollie cheated, of course, and I was like, "that's it?!" until I realized this was just an 8-pager. Just enough time for GA to explain Vertigo's new telekinetic chip was vulnerable to an electrical charge, then run into the Kastle and stop the missile (with arrows, cuz everything is apparently out of reach). And what about Vertigo?
Sent into the USSR's "tender system". Well, it's not like he's a U.S. citizen and didn't threaten to nuke a city. He'll keep.
Eventually, he'll escape and make his way back, get arrested and fall into Waller's clutches. But one can see how he was considered less than a shining light. When you're nemesis is only afforded back-up status (which was a case for Green Arrow in the Bronze Age), it's hard to really climb the ladder. But we see here that he was a ruthless bastard, a personality that could easily bloom in Task Force X, and did.
Who's Next? A blind painter.
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