Post by Erik Rupp on Nov 15, 2018 1:16:33 GMT -5
There was never anyone more important in the world of comic books.
But Stan Lee's impact went far beyond the comics. His creations (or, more accurately, co-creations) have impacted popular culture and have become box office giants. Stan's idea that these new characters would be flawed, and would have real world problems was revolutionary. It was unheard of - unthinkable in the industry. But he did it. And it changed comic books forever. In fact, his revolutionary ideas helped move comics past the kids' stuff that they had been and into a realm of literature. (Yes, literature. There were some great character arcs, excellent stories, and concepts that went far beyond that previous stereotypes of comic book storytelling.)
No one would confuse The Incredible Hulk with the works of Steinbeck, Faulkner, or Hemingway, but the basic concepts of something far greater than what had come before was there - and the foundation for more literary influences and elements to be added as time went on was laid.
Certainly, Stan didn't do it alone. He had a lot of help from co-creators Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko, and others. Without their input on the characters, not to mention visual flair, the basic ideas that Stan came up with likely wouldn't have become the iconic cultural phenomenon that Marvel Comics became with that great creative team working together. But Stan's basic ideas were revolutionary. The idea of a superhero team where members fight among themselves? The idea that one of them becomes a hideous monster with a heart of gold - but who couldn't get along with the group's youngest member, a hotheaded teenager? Crazy. Outlandish. Ridiculous! That was the initial response by the publisher to his ideas. But Stan persevered and got his way. Jack Kirby helped flesh out the group and worked with Stan to come up with their powers, and then Jack gave them their look. The Fantastic Four was born - and changed everything.
So next up was Stan's idea of a superhero who could crawl on walls. Remembering an old pulp magazine character called 'The Spider,' Stan decided on the name 'Spider-Man,' and told Steve Ditko that this would be a teenager who was a nerd. A wimp. His parents were dead and he lived with his elderly aunt an uncle. From there Ditko gave the character his look and visual style. It isn't clear who decided that Spidey would have super strength or shoot webs, but chances are that Ditko was heavily involved in those developments. Jack Kirby claimed to have been involved in the creation of Spider-Man as well, and his accounts of his involvement were that he took the idea (which he claimed was based on something he and Joe Simon came up with in the 50's) to Stan, but Stan rejected the look and overall concept before turning the project over to Ditko. It seems more likely that Stan remembered a character published by Archie Comics called The Fly and wanted to do something similar. Confusing matters further is the fact that Joe Simon and Jack Kirby created The Fly for Archie Comics! Ultimately, Stan is central to the creation of Spider-Man. He was instrumental in the initial rough idea (a superhero who could walk on walls and was named 'Spider-Man,' after that pulp magazine hero), and went to Jack Kirby whose take on the character didn't work for Stan or the publisher Martin Goodman. So Stan tweaked the idea (it was at this point that Stan changed him from an adult lawyer to a teenage high school nerd) and turned the project over to Steve Ditko, who hit the ball out of the park! It was Stan's basic ideas and Ditko's visual flair and storytelling style that made Spider-Man a phenomenon. Ditko would co-plot the stories with Stan and then draw the panels, to which Stan would add the dialogue and narration.
In the 1960's Stan always had a great instinct for what would work - and what wouldn't.
Stan pushed for more female characters and for a more diverse group of heroes (Stan co-created Black Panther), and he pushed the stories forward further into more mature and sophisticated storytelling, culminating in his non Comics Code approved Spider-Man storyline where Peter Parker's best friend Harry Osborn develops a drug problem. That storyline was unthinkable just five years earlier, but Stan kept pushing the boundaries for comics, and that led to a new generation of comic artists and writers who would build on this more sophisticated brand of comic book storytelling.
After his time as a comic book writer were over Stan became the publisher and editor in chief for Marvel Comics, and he became something of an ambassador for the entire industry to the media. His personality was a driving force in the more widespread acceptance of comic books as more legitimate forms of both literature and art.
His importance cannot be overstated. And his appreciation of the fans was well known and very real.
He will be missed.
But Stan Lee's impact went far beyond the comics. His creations (or, more accurately, co-creations) have impacted popular culture and have become box office giants. Stan's idea that these new characters would be flawed, and would have real world problems was revolutionary. It was unheard of - unthinkable in the industry. But he did it. And it changed comic books forever. In fact, his revolutionary ideas helped move comics past the kids' stuff that they had been and into a realm of literature. (Yes, literature. There were some great character arcs, excellent stories, and concepts that went far beyond that previous stereotypes of comic book storytelling.)
No one would confuse The Incredible Hulk with the works of Steinbeck, Faulkner, or Hemingway, but the basic concepts of something far greater than what had come before was there - and the foundation for more literary influences and elements to be added as time went on was laid.
Certainly, Stan didn't do it alone. He had a lot of help from co-creators Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko, and others. Without their input on the characters, not to mention visual flair, the basic ideas that Stan came up with likely wouldn't have become the iconic cultural phenomenon that Marvel Comics became with that great creative team working together. But Stan's basic ideas were revolutionary. The idea of a superhero team where members fight among themselves? The idea that one of them becomes a hideous monster with a heart of gold - but who couldn't get along with the group's youngest member, a hotheaded teenager? Crazy. Outlandish. Ridiculous! That was the initial response by the publisher to his ideas. But Stan persevered and got his way. Jack Kirby helped flesh out the group and worked with Stan to come up with their powers, and then Jack gave them their look. The Fantastic Four was born - and changed everything.
So next up was Stan's idea of a superhero who could crawl on walls. Remembering an old pulp magazine character called 'The Spider,' Stan decided on the name 'Spider-Man,' and told Steve Ditko that this would be a teenager who was a nerd. A wimp. His parents were dead and he lived with his elderly aunt an uncle. From there Ditko gave the character his look and visual style. It isn't clear who decided that Spidey would have super strength or shoot webs, but chances are that Ditko was heavily involved in those developments. Jack Kirby claimed to have been involved in the creation of Spider-Man as well, and his accounts of his involvement were that he took the idea (which he claimed was based on something he and Joe Simon came up with in the 50's) to Stan, but Stan rejected the look and overall concept before turning the project over to Ditko. It seems more likely that Stan remembered a character published by Archie Comics called The Fly and wanted to do something similar. Confusing matters further is the fact that Joe Simon and Jack Kirby created The Fly for Archie Comics! Ultimately, Stan is central to the creation of Spider-Man. He was instrumental in the initial rough idea (a superhero who could walk on walls and was named 'Spider-Man,' after that pulp magazine hero), and went to Jack Kirby whose take on the character didn't work for Stan or the publisher Martin Goodman. So Stan tweaked the idea (it was at this point that Stan changed him from an adult lawyer to a teenage high school nerd) and turned the project over to Steve Ditko, who hit the ball out of the park! It was Stan's basic ideas and Ditko's visual flair and storytelling style that made Spider-Man a phenomenon. Ditko would co-plot the stories with Stan and then draw the panels, to which Stan would add the dialogue and narration.
In the 1960's Stan always had a great instinct for what would work - and what wouldn't.
Stan pushed for more female characters and for a more diverse group of heroes (Stan co-created Black Panther), and he pushed the stories forward further into more mature and sophisticated storytelling, culminating in his non Comics Code approved Spider-Man storyline where Peter Parker's best friend Harry Osborn develops a drug problem. That storyline was unthinkable just five years earlier, but Stan kept pushing the boundaries for comics, and that led to a new generation of comic artists and writers who would build on this more sophisticated brand of comic book storytelling.
After his time as a comic book writer were over Stan became the publisher and editor in chief for Marvel Comics, and he became something of an ambassador for the entire industry to the media. His personality was a driving force in the more widespread acceptance of comic books as more legitimate forms of both literature and art.
His importance cannot be overstated. And his appreciation of the fans was well known and very real.
He will be missed.