History Main / AnonymousBenefactor

* In ''[[Franchise/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica Justice League: Year One]]'', the League receives backing from a wealthy benefactor who wishes to remain anonymous, though he maintains contact with them through his representative Simon Carr. Through his backing, the League is given equipment, funding, a new headquarters, and even contacts with other members of the superhero community such as [[ComicBook/BlueBeetle Ted Kord]]. The end of the miniseries reveals said benefactor to be none other than [[ComicBook/GreenArrow Oliver Queen]] (though it was hinted at much earlier as Green Arrow is the one who introduces Simon to the League).

* At the start of Volume 9 of ''Literature/TheBeginningAfterTheEnd'', [[spoiler:Arthur ends up in Alacrya and is immediately put at the mercy of a KangarooCourt run by Blood Granbehl who blame him for the deaths of Kalon, Ezra, and Riah in the last volume. However, thanks to an unknown benefactor, Arthur is not only cleared of the charges, but is given refuge in Alacrya. It turns out this benefactor is none other than Scythe Seris Vritra. Arthur does not learn of Seris's connection to Caera and her pulling the strings so that he could survive incognito in Alacrya until the Victoriad]].

* ''Literature/ALittlePrincess'': Mr Carrisford watches over Sara without her realizing that it was the man next door to the school who was secretly delivering presents and gifts up to her room to keep her spirits up.

* In ''{{VideoGame/Deltarune}}'', the BonusBoss of Chapter 2, [[spoiler:Spamton G. Spamton is revealed to have been down on his luck earlier in his life. One day, he received a phone call, and suddenly his sales started shooting through the roof, getting to the point where he was a member of the {{Arc Villain}}'s posse. However, the phone calls eventually ended, leading to him losing all his riches, and being banished to the dump. All that is known about the caller is that, when Spamton was evicted, his phone was spouting garbage noise.]]

* The whole point of the 1955 CBS drama "The Millionaire." The title character, John Beresford Tipton, would anonymously send a check for $1 million each week to a random every-person, and each episode showed how this windfall affected those people. It was such a hit that viewers actually wrote CBS to ask for a $1 million check from him.

* ''Literature/ALittlePrincess'' has one for the main character.

** The Advisors of ''VideoGame/HalfLife2'' are the Orwellian propaganda variant. The only people to see them are (unlucky) rebels, Alyx Vance and Gordon Freeman. To everyone else, they are anonymous entities who oversee the situation on Earth.

* One early ''WesternAnimation/KingOfTheHill'' episode dealt with Hank's friends ditching him because they thought he was making too much of a big deal out of being accused of not returning a porno movie [[CassandraTruth he insisted he never rented]]. [[MyFriendsAndZoidberg He didn't care about Bill, because "he brings nothing to the fight,"]] though what hurt him the most, was Peggy, who told Hank to return the tape and pay the fine, ditching him too, after she got tired of telling him to pay back the video store. Later, a MysteriousStranger leaves Hank several porno movies at his doorstep, with a note claiming that the proof that he was telling the truth could be found in the tapes. After looking at the tapes, Hank discovers that the movie he was accused of never returning was released several weeks after Hank supposedly rented it. After winning in court, [[spoiler:Bill]] leaves another anonymous note congratulating Hank.

* The the Lair of the Shadow Broker DLC for ''VideoGame/MassEffect2'', Garrus's dossier reveals that his mother has a [[spoiler:terminal illness]]. In response, he donates some Collector tissue and has Mordin pull some strings to get special clearance on the research that might lead to [[spoiler:a cure for Corpalis Syndrome]]. At the end of the letter in the dossier, the doctor assures him that as per his request, his donations will remain anonymous.

Of course, not all gifts are ultimately good, and some may herald incredible changes to the recipient. If the gift is the SwordOfPlotAdvancement given to the TheChosenOne, it signals the start of their adventure -- whether they [[JumpedAtTheCall want to go]] or [[RefusalOfTheCall not]].

* [[WitchSpecies Every]] [[OurFairiesAreDifferent kith]] in ''TabletopGame/ChangelingTheDreaming'' can recharge his [[{{Mana}} glamour]] in different ways. Helping people with tedious and odious tasks is the Boggans trademark, especially if they can do it without the person knowing. The boggan cannot accept payment or thanks for work and preferably the person helped shouldn’t even be aware that the boggan was there.

Oh, woe is ThePollyanna! Her humble aspirations are practically a TragicDream because she's poor/[[HeartWarmingOrphan an orphan]]/[[TheWoobie meant to suffer]] at [[TheChewToy the whims of the cosmos]]. But what's this? She wakes up one morning to discover the exact thing she wanted/needed at the foot of her bed!

* Jameson's Metropolis counterpart, Perry White, became this in the Silver Age story "The Boy Olympics". Having heard that the ''Planet's'' rival paper is in danger of closing, [[Characters/SupermanJimmyOlsen Jimmy Olsen]] comes up with the idea to do an "Olympics" fundraiser [[NiceGuy to save the jobs of the employees]]. Midway through the rehearsal, he realizes he forgot about advertising costs - but then an anonymous package arrives with enough funds to cover it. Not until the end of the comic does Jimmy realize that his boss sent it, remaining anonymous so the other paper's editor wouldn't perceive it as "charity".

* An attempted [[InvokedTrope invocation]] occurs in ''VideoGame/TheSimpsons'' episode "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS11E15MissionaryImpossible Missionary: Impossible]]" when Homer attempts to anonymously donate $10,000 to end the Creator/{{PBS}} pledge drive as soon as possible, thinking that since he couldn't really afford the donation, he won't have to worry about them finding him. However, he DidntThinkThisThrough, as he forgot that he signed up for Insta-Trace, which soon identifies him for the station.

* Jameson's Metropolis counterpart, Perry White, became this in the Silver Age story "The Boy Olympics". Having heard that the ''Planet's'' rival paper is in danger of closing, ComicBook/JimmyOlsen comes up with the idea to do an "Olympics" fundraiser [[NiceGuy to save the jobs of the employees]]. Midway through the rehearsal, he realizes he forgot about advertising costs - but then an anonymous package arrives with enough funds to cover it. Not until the end of the comic does Jimmy realize that his boss sent it, remaining anonymous so the other paper's editor wouldn't perceive it as "charity".
* In an early issue of ''ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogArchieComics'', a distraught Tails tells Antoine that he lost a backpack with a Power Ring that Sonic told him to hold onto, and he can't go get it because it's late and dangerous and other, concerned-for-his-safety Freedom Fighters will never let him out of Knothole at this hour, but he can't ask Sonic for help because he's petrified of disappointing his hero. Antoine, sympathetic to his plight and gratified that his first choice for a Plan B was [[ButtMonkey the town laughingstock]], agrees to help. Throughout his search, Antoine is saved numerous times from certain doom by contrived coincidences he appears not to notice. Once he's returned with the backpack and sent Tails off to bed, he thanks Bunnie for running interference, who protests feebly but isn't fooling him.

* J. Jonah Jameson is a notorious skinflint, obnoxious boss, and all around {{Jerkass}} to Peter Parker (and worse to his alter-ego Franchise/SpiderMan). But when Peter was accused of murder Jameson made sure he got the best defense attorney money could buy - on the condition that Peter never find out who was paying the bills. He also secretly bankrolled the alternative newspaper ''Front Line'' during the Civil War, despite it competing directly with the ''Daily Bugle'', because his former top reporter was using it to criticize the pro-Registration side (something Jameson couldn't do directly).

* [[ComicBook/DisneyDucksComicUniverse Scrooge McDuck]] tend to make charity anonymously, because the more people think he's an heartless skinflint, the less people will try and beg or mooch off him.

* ''Film/NowYouSeeMe'' had a mysterious benefactor who brought the Four Horsemen together and gave them everything they needed. In the end, they find out it's [[spoiler:the federal agent who was pursuing them for most of the film, who was on a Roaring Rampage Of Revenge against the people he felt responsible for his father's death.]]

* A ChristmasEpisode of ''Series/{{MASH}}'' has [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold Charles Winchester]] as the Anonymous Benefactor, carrying on a Family Tradition from back in Boston. They'd leave a Christmas feast for some poor family at their doorstep. In Korea Charles leaves chocolate candy at the orphanage, which the head of the orphanage subsequently sells on the black market; when Charles discovers this and confronts the orphanage head, he learns the proceeds from the sale went for rice and cabbage (i.e., everyday food which the orphans ''really'' need much more than candy). Charles realizes that was the point of his tradition, to help ease the suffering. However, the rest of the unit didn't know about the tradition, and treated Charles like a greedy Scrooge since they were unaware he was the Anonymous Benefactor, or even that there was one.

* In the ChristmasEpisode of ''Series/{{Glee}}'' Season 2, the person who gives Artie the Re-Walk exoskeleton -- thus sort-of fulfilling Brittany's Christmas wish that he be able to walk again -- is not identified, but is strongly implied by the direction to be Coach Beiste.

* In ''Series/SirArthurConanDoylesTheLostWorld'', Marguerite is this to Challenger, initially. She finances his expedition for reasons for her own.
* On ''Series/PersonOfInterest'', Harold will sometimes takes this role for some of the POI's. Once he bought a hotel, then made a POI the manager (she was a maid in the hotel who had been studying hotel management). Another had him foot the bill for a young POI to go to a very exclusive private school.

* Jewish legends have a few variations on a story where a notorious miser dies, and is so disliked by his neighbors that he's buried in the section of the cemetery reserved for criminals and sinners. However, on the following Friday the town's rabbi suddenly gets multiple requests for money to help pay for the Sabbath meal; apparently, somebody had been secretly depositing money on the poor people's doors every week, but this week it was nowhere to be found. The rabbi quickly realizes that the miser was doing this charity in secret, and requests that when he dies, he be buried in the place of honor next to "the holy miser."

** The Advisors of ''VideoGame/HalfLife2'' are the Orwellian propaganda variant. The only people to see them are (unlucky) rebels, Alyx Vance and Gordon Freeman. To everyone else they are anonymous entities who oversee the situation on Earth.

* Around Christmas time 2011, department stores from all over the U.S. reported people going to the Layaway counter and either making considerable payments on other people's layaways, or paying them off entirely, allowing those families to provide Christmas presents to their children that they would not otherwise be able to.

* The Animorphs are this to the titular trio of ''Podcast/SporadicPhantoms''. They've helped them out, most notably in episode 7 [[spoiler:where Ax gives Kyle a recorder that reveals that one of the trio is a Controller]], but they know nothing of the overall goals, size, and structure of the Animorphs.

* Your gut flora could be considered a form of this. While most people don't even know they exist, without them it would be impossible to digest anything.

* [[WitchSpecies Every]] [[OurFairiesAreDifferent kith]] in ''TabletopGame/ChangelingTheDreaming'' can recharge his {}[[]][[{{Mana}} glamour]] in different ways. Helping people with tedious and odious tasks is the Boggans trademark, especially if they can do it without the person knowing. The boggan cannot accept payment or thanks for work and preferably the person helped shouldn’t even be aware that the boggan was there.

* Jameson's Metropolis counterpart, Perry White, became this in the Silver Age story "The Boy Olympics". Having heard that the ''Planet's'' rival paper is in danger of closing, [[NiceGuy Jimmy Olsen]] comes up with the idea to do an "Olympics" fundraiser to save the jobs of the employees. Midway through the rehearsal, he realizes he forgot about advertising costs - but then an anonymous package arrives with enough funds to cover it. Not until the end of the comic does Jimmy realize that his boss sent it, remaining anonymous so the other paper's editor wouldn't perceive it as "charity".

* In ''Anime/MaiOtome'', Sergay Wang supports Arika while she is at school without her knowing who he truly is. [[spoiler:When she and Nina find out he was her benefactor all along in the middle of Nagi's attack, this sets the stage for Nina's FaceHeelTurn]].