Beloved comic writer, Stan Lee, has died at 95

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Beloved comic writer, Stan Lee, has died at 95

Hank Johnson, Staff Writer


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Early this morning, the nationally beloved comic writer, Stan Lee, died at 95.

Born in New York in 1922 to Romanian immigrants, Lee, originally named Stanley Lieber began work at Timely Comics, which later became Marvel Comics, in 1939 and became interim editor in 1940. During WW2 Lee served domestically in the US army as a writer and illustrator.

Lee’s comic writing career began with “Captain America Foils the Traitor’s Revenge” in Captain America Comics #3, published in 1941. This began his longtime collaboration with Jack Kirby. For the next 20 years, Lee worked at Timely Comics which then turned into Atlas comics, producing mostly romances and westerns.

Then in the early 60’s, spurred by the popularity of the DC comics super team, The Justice League of America. He and Jack Kirby created the Fantastic Four. He introduced a new kind of superhero, complex, real, human feeling characters who had tempers, struggles, and problems that every person dealt with. Thus began the streak that Stan Lee is known for. In the following decades, he and Kirby created some of the most famous comic characters of all time, including, Spider-Man, Iron Man, Hulk, Dr. Strange, Black Panther, Black Widow, and so many more. He created a mind-boggling amount of characters.

As Marvel became more popular Stan Lee rose amongst the Marvel ranks, in 1972 he was promoted editorial director and publisher. He later moved to the West Coast to be involved in Marvel’s film ventures and eventually became chairman emeritus.

For the generation that didn’t grow up reading his comics, they instead saw his face through his cameos in every Marvel movie since The Incredible Hulk in 2008. It is reported that his cameos are filmed through Avengers 4. A fitting send off to a great man.

In his later years, Lee battled with multiple illnesses, culminating today, when he died. He will always be remembered as the happy man who was always a friend to his readers. From the saddest part of myself, I say this. Excelsior!