The first superhero to ever be called Captain Marvel was actually a man, though at the time he was only a regular member of the Kree Empire’s military. The character’s name was Mar-Vell, and he fought for Earth because of his sympathy for its people. After he was infused with some of their genetic material by an alien weapon, his powers grew and he became one of the most powerful heroes in the universe.
He would have continued to fly around the galaxy protecting his planet and its inhabitants from various threats. He even had a couple of romances with other characters like Starfox, a starship ship medic and a member of the Skrull race, and Princess Anelle of the Kree. He also had a daughter named Phyla-Vell. On his deathbed, he promised that if anything happened to him, he’d take care of Elysius.
It’s important to note that, unlike other superheroes, Mar-Vell died not in a fight with a super villain but simply because of cancer. It was a very sad ending for a very popular character.
In an effort to capitalize on the popularity of the first Captain Marvel, Marvel created a female version in 1977. She was a young Pakistani American girl named Kamala Khan and had the power to enlarge her body. She also took the codename Binary and fought alongside the original Captain Marvel and the Avengers. Eventually her Binary powers faded and she went on to become the famous superheroine we know as Carol Danvers.