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Stan Lee: The irreplaceable loss of Marvel comic book legend

WION Web Team
New Delhi, Delhi, IndiaUpdated: Dec 24, 2018, 02:15 PM IST
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Photograph:(Reuters)

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The man behind Spider-Man, Iron Man, the Hulk, Black Panther and a number of other Marvel Comics superheroes, made his story a success story starting from almost nothing.

We saw a lot of loss of life this year but one that will stay for generations to come is that of Marvel comic book legend, Stan Lee. Died at the age of 95, the creative genius left the world on November 12, 2018. 

The man behind Spider-Man, Iron Man, the Hulk, Black Panther and a number of other Marvel Comics superheroes that became mythic figures in pop culture, made his story a success story starting from almost nothing. He turned a company that was declared bankrupt in 1996 to one that gained global recognition generating billions of dollars a year, with hard work and dedication. 

Lee was born as Stanley Martin Lieber in New York on December 28, 1922, the son of Jewish immigrants from Romania. At age 17, he became an errand boy at Timely Comics, the company that eventually became Marvel. He started with writing duties and promotions. He penned Western stories and romances, as well as superhero tales, and often wrote standing on the porch of the Long Island, New York, home he shared with his wife, actress Joan Lee, whom he married in 1947. 

As a writer and editor, Lee was key to the ascension of Marvel into a comic book titan in the 1960s when, in collaboration with artists such as Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, he created superheroes who would enthral generations of young readers. 

In a statement, at the time of his death, daughter J C Lee said: "He felt an obligation to his fans to keep creating. He loved his life and he loved what he did for a living. His family loved him and his fans loved him. He was irreplaceable."

Fans from all around the world including Hollywood’s A-listers who starred in films in the superhero roles he envisioned, took to their social media profiles, to pay tribute to the one and only, Stan Lee.

Apart from creating these characters, he also made cameo appearances in most Marvel films -- pulling a girl away from falling debris in 2002's ‘Spider-Man’ and serving as an emcee at a strip club in 2016's ‘Deadpool.’ In the 2018 box-office hit ‘Black Panther,’ which featured Lee's leading black superhero, he was a casino patron.

In 2008, Lee was awarded the National Medal of Arts, the highest government award for creative artists. He also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.