Although Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four revolutionized the comic book industry, Stan Lee still felt the sting of working in a third-class business at a time when most adults thought comic books were aimed at children. What Lee realized, though, was that college students in the 1960s and 1970s were responding to Marvel in a new way — gleefully reading and re-reading the otherwordly antics of the costumed heroes.
Read more1983 -- STAN LEE LAMENTS LACK OF FILM INTEREST IN MARVEL SUPERHEROES
Marvel icon Stan Lee laments how difficult it is to get Marvel superheroes turned into film franchises in 1983.
Read moreMeet Stan Lee -- October 12, 1991
Stan Lee and Spider-Man together at 1991 book signing event
Meet Stan Lee!
From the early 1960s until his death in 2018, Stan Lee was different than other celebrities — approachable and committed to staying connected to the fans that helped build Marvel into a global brand.
Marvel: Five Fabulous Decades of the World's Greatest Comics by Les Daniels
Les Daniels’ book — Marvel: Five Five Fabulous Decades of the World's Greatest Comics not only gave fans an inside look at Marvel’s history, but for those fans lined up at the Paramus Barnes & Noble, they were in for a treat — meeting Stan and Spider-Man!
Two heroes for the price of one!
To learn more about the Marvel maestro’s amazing life, please read Stan Lee: A Life, available wherever you like to purchase books.
Spider-Man Film Rights Tangled in Web (of Lawsuits) -- October 11, 1998
Stan Lee believed in Spider-Man as a film franchise, but the rights were tangled in a web of lawsuits
Spider-Man film rights stuck in legal quagmire
Stan Lee had a vision — an entire Marvel Universe on screen! He had worked for decades to get Hollywood executives and studio heads to believe him. As always, he placed his faith in his most successful co-creation — Spider-Man.
Stan Lee with his number one creation -- Spider-Man
Even a person as optimistic as Stan had a difficult time keeping his cool as a series of productions companies bought the rights to Spider-Man, but then fell into development hell as they attempted to figure out just how to bring the web-slinger to life.
The extensive licensing and rights deals attached to the character led to a series of high-profile lawsuits that stalled progress and infuriated Lee. At various points the legal battles included many of Hollywood’s greatest names, from MGM and Viacom to Sony and 21st Century. Even the great James Cameron — who would later become a hit-maker based on Titanic (1997) — couldn’t move the mountains necessary to make a Spider-Man film based on his 1991 treatment.
Stan Lee hoped James Cameron would make a Spider-Man film
The legal battles were not cleaned up until early 1999, when Columbia Pictures acquired the rights to all previous Spider-Man scripts in a deal with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Sony then purchased the rights from MGM. Sam Raimi was hired to direct the Tobey Maguire-starring vehicle in 2000 and the film came out two years later.
Spider-Man (2002) is finally made!
Spider-Man was 2002’s highest grossing film, generating more than $407 million in North America, while earning a staggering $418 million overseas. Wiping out all the doubts about whether a superhero film might work, Spider-Man soon became the highest-grossing superhero film of all time after its release, both domestically and worldwide.
Spidey turned Stan Lee’s dream into a reality!
To learn more about the Marvel maestro’s amazing life, please read Stan Lee: A Life, available wherever you like to purchase books.
Stan Lee Predicts Marvel's Future -- 50 Years Ago Today
Stan Lee Predicts Marvel’s Future in 1972!
Newspaper article on Marvel superheroes featuring Stan Lee
The power and global influence of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is pervasive today, but imagine having nearly every door in Hollywood slammed in your face at the mere thought that anyone would want to see Marvel superheroes on the big screen.
This was Stan Lee’s reality 50 years ago in 1972, even though comic books were a $200 million industry at the time. Ironically, the Dallas Times Herald journalist who interviewed Stan was named Bill Marvel, a daily reporter who had started his career in 1961, at the dawning of the Marvel comic book renaissance, which began with the launch of the Fantastic Four, co-created with artist Jack Kirby.
Stan Lee is prescient in forecasting Marvel's future
Despite being roundly ignored (or laughed out of the room) by Hollywood executives, Lee persevered, asserting that Marvel was in the midst of a major transformation from comic book company to media “hot property.”
Although he could not get producers to agree, Stan told the journalist that he viewed television and film as the future of the company. He was betting his own future on that vision after a lifetime in creating comic books and decades ahead of his peers at Marvel or in the entertainment industry.
“The next phase is where the much bigger money might lie.”
— Stan Lee
Stan Lee with the book Origins of Marvel Comics
Stan certainly did not have a crystal ball, but his tireless dedication to the basic notion that adults would enjoy films centered on Marvel superheroes eventually transformed the film industry around the globe. Lee was just decades ahead of his time!
To learn more about the Marvel maestro’s amazing life, please read Stan Lee: A Life, available wherever you like to purchase books.
When Robby Krieger Met Jim Morrison!
Fans of the Doors and rock ‘n roll history lovers have been waiting decades for Robby Krieger — Doors guitarist and songwriter extraordinaire — to write a memoir of his days and nights in America’s iconic rock band. Set the Night on Fire: Living, Dying, and Playing Guitar With the Doors came out in October 2021, but the paperback is set to publish October 25, 2022.
Read moreStan Lee on Cameos and Superheroes
Five Years Ago: Creating Superheroes and Cameos
Kids, teenagers, and adults of all ages got weak in the knees around Marvel icon Stan Lee. Yet, talking to them moments after meeting him, you could hear the joy in their voices. Some shed tears of happiness. Universally, they looked frozen in the moment of delight — as if they were opening Christmas presents or getting ready to blow out candles on their birthday cake.
I chatted with a 50-something father who confessed that taking his teen daughter to meet Stan was a bucket list kind of event, one that they were able to share together. He wiped tears from his eyes as he reminisced about watching Marvel films with his daughter and how Lee’s cameos were a bonding moment for them.
Stan Lee on cameos in Marvel films
These clips are from a September 26, 2017 newspaper piece on Stan's appearance at a comic book convention in Madison, Wisconsin, (about a year before he died).
The sentiment demonstrates his significance as the symbol of Marvel and Marvel Studios for so many fans. There has never been a phenomenon quite like Stan’s cameo roles. His brief blip on the screen frequently caused the audience to break out in applause. For many fans, the cameo was as necessary and elemental as the film itself. One could not exist without the other.
Anyone else remember going to a Marvel film and hearing spontaneous applause when Stan's cameo rolled?
Stan Lee's co-created superheroes an inspiration
Stan Lee's co-created superheroes have served as an inspiration for generations because he gave them human traits. This idea — so novel in the early 1960s — caught fire during an era where novelists, screenwriters, and others were challenging conventional norms about what it meant to be a superhero.
Learn more about Stan’s epic tale in Stan Lee: A Life (Rowman & Littlefield).
Stan Lee: A Life by historian and biographer Bob Batchelor
30% Discount on Stan Lee: A Life by Cultural Historian Bob Batchelor
Stan Lee: A Life is the epic tale of one of the world’s most important creative icons. With Spider-Man, the Avengers, Black Panther, and countless other Marvel superheroes he co-created, Stan introduced heroes that were complex and fallible – just like all of us. Championing Marvel for parts of ten decades, Lee revolutionized global culture.
Read moreSTRANGE DAYS: HOW THE DOORS AND JIM MORRISON CHANGED AMERICA
Candid, authoritative, and utterly absorbing, Roadhouse Blues by Bob Batchelor is the biography of a man, a band, and an era that set the tone for the contemporary world. Beyond the mythology, the hype, and the mystique around Morrison’s early, mysterious death, this book takes readers on a roller-coaster ride, examining the impact the band had on America as the nation leered from decadence to debauchery. “We’re gonna have a real good time!”
Read moreYoung Readers Edition of Stan Lee Biography
In this young adult edition of Stan Lee: The Man Behind Marvel, award-winning cultural historian Bob Batchelor offers an in-depth and complete look at this iconic visionary. Batchelor explores how Lee, born in the Roaring Twenties and growing up in the Great Depression, capitalized on natural talent and hard work to become the editor of Marvel Comics as a teenager. Lee went on to introduce the world to heroes that were complex, funny, and fallible, just like their creator and just like all of us.
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