Death of Stan Lee

The world of comic books will never be the same again after November 12, 2018. The Father of Marvel Comics, and of most of our childhood imaginations, Stan Lee, passed away on this fateful day. Nature itself seemed to mourn the loss of the real-life superhero, with that Monday being met with heavy rain and winds from morning until night. But Stan Lee left behind a great legacy, one that will forever live on through movies, books, and the famous word: Excelsior!

Stanley Martin Lieber was born December 28, 1922 to Romanian immigrants Celia and Jack Lieber, with only one younger brother, Lawrence Lieber.

Lieber would change his last name to “Lee” after acquiring a job as a writer and office assistant to Timely Comics in 1939. He would hold to his pen name as he also worked for the Army during World War II as a writer and illustrator, later becoming editor in 1942 and eternalizing his name as Stan Lee.

During the 1940s and 1950s, Lee started to create his first comics in Timely Comics (who was now known as Atlas), titles including The Witness, Jack Frost, and Black Marvel. In the 1960s, Atlas would change its name to Marvel Comics and asked Lee create comics that would compete with the leading comic at the time, Justice League of America by DC Comics.

Lee, along with artists Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, would create and write the time-honored favorites of today, including Spider-Man, the Incredible Hulk, Thor, the Fantastic Four, among many others that are still a part of pop culture today.

Stan Lee is survived by his wife, Joan B. Lee, his daughter Joan C. Lee, his brother, Larry Lieber, and of course by all of his iconic characters, dynamic stories, and creative writing that still touches the hearts, minds, and imaginations of millions across the world.