While Lee is known for being the grandfather of superheroes, it wasn’t always that way. As a teenager, he started working for Timely Publications as a “gofer.” Eventually, he worked his way into writing for their comics. From those humble beginnings, he revolutionized the comic book industry in the 1960’s and created a foundation for other comic book writers and artists to build upon. Many of his characters have become pop-culture icons, branching out into toys, video games, cartoons, and live-action films. Lee’s ability to create realistic, relatable characters with weaknesses and flaws proved his most powerful strength. Though they had extraordinary powers, they were people just like all of us, which made them even more real and beloved. Over the years, he’s created hundreds of superheroes and super-villains (Asbestos Man, anyone?), but of course, only a handful we’ll never forget. We’ll miss you, Stan Lee; thank you for everything! His psychedelic sorcery instantly set him apart from the heroes who had science-based origin stories, but it was also the very bizarre, transcendental stories that made him memorable and unique. During the early publication of the comics, many wondered if the Marvel writers were pot heads because the strange places the stories would go. Since his inception, he has become a prominent character, interweaving in and out of several other comics, television shows, and of course, eventually having his own film in 2016. Since that first issue, he has become a massive superhero character and played prominent roles in several other superhero comics, like X-Men and the Avengers. The popular comic changed and added team members as it progressed, eventually becoming a massive sensation, a popular cartoon, video game, and film series. Since then, he’s become Marvel’s most popular superhero, branching out into toys, video games, cartoons, and live-action films.
