All fans of the Avengers comics probably know an elderly eccentric barbel that appears in the episodes of each picture about the adventures of superheroes. This is Stan Lee, the ex-president of Marvel’s board of directors. The comic book creator recently celebrated his 94th birthday. Stan never denied himself the pleasure of appearing as a cameo in the next film of the Marvel universe. Either he is an express delivery driver, or a war veteran, showing off his exploits to Thor. In the article we will describe a brief biography of a talented screenwriter and actor.
Childhood
Stan's parents, the Jews Jack and Celia Libera, arrived in the United States from Romania. The boy's father worked as a cutter. But soon the Great Depression came , and Jack had practically no work. At the end of 1922, Stan Lee was born in an apartment on 98th Zapadnaya Street (he still had the surname Liber). Soon, due to financial difficulties, Celia and Jack had to move to easier housing on Fort Washington Avenue. In 1931, another boy appeared in the Liberian family - Larry. With money it became even more difficult, and the family moved to a one-room apartment in the Bronx.
Work
In his youth, Stan tried his best to make money: he delivered sandwiches, sold a subscription to newspapers, composed obituaries and press releases for the tuberculosis center. Then the future screenwriter got a job as a clerk at Martin Goodman’s publishing house. In part, the uncle of the boy, Robbie Solomon, contributed to this. At first, Stan's duties were prosaic. At that time, artists used ink and a pen. The boy made sure that the ink tanks were full all the time. He also sharpened pencils, brought meals to employees and made proofreading.
Stan's debut comic book was released in mid-1941. The publication first appeared now popular "Captain America". From that moment on, Stan changed the surname Lieber to Lee and began to use it as a pseudonym. Then no one knew yet that the Golden Era of comics would soon come.
Stan Lee worked in tandem with Jack Kirby (artist). Soon, the latter left the publishing house because of disagreements with Goodman. 19-year-old Lee took up the post of interim editor and proved himself not only in the composition of comics, but also in business. The leadership drew attention to his success. Soon, Stan became a permanent editor, and then he was promoted to art director of Marvel.
Military "playwright"
In 1942, the hero of this article joined the ranks of the US Army. Lee served in the communications forces — repairing telegraph poles and other communications equipment. Later, the young man was transferred to the training division. There Stan drew caricatures, invented slogans, wrote scripts of educational films and teaching aids. In the state, he was listed as a "playwright" and served in the army until the fall of 1945.
In the mid-50s, Stan wrote stories in several genres at once - satire, suspense, horror, science fiction, western, medieval adventures and melodrama. In collaboration with artists (Steve Ditko and Jack Kirby), Lee created many popular comic book characters - X-Men, Fantastic Four, Daredevil, Hulk, Iron Man, etc.
Actor and producer
With the beginning of the film adaptation of his works, Stan increasingly appeared in cameo films. He was involved in episodes of such films as Ant-Man, Guardians of the Galaxy, Captain America: The First Avenger, Iron Man, X-Men, Spider-Man, etc. In addition, Lee was involved in producing all the films and the series of the Marvel Universe. The comic book creator also played himself in other projects. For example, in "Party People from the Supermarket."
Hobbies
The creator of Marvel, Lee Stan, loved to read from childhood, giving preference to the works of William Shakespeare, Herbert Wells, Charles Dickens and Mark Twain. Of today's writers, screenwriters most like Stephen King and Harlan Allison. Now, due to his considerable age, Stan's vision has deteriorated, so he is deprived of the joy of reading.
Personal life
1947 - this is the year when the author of the Marvel comics married to Joan Buccock. The creator of the superhero universe was very happy with his lover. After a couple of years, the couple purchased a two-story three-bedroom mansion in West Broadway. In 1950, the couple had a daughter - Celia. Another baby, Yang, died three days after birth.
Joan and Stan moved from place to place many times (inside New York). But in the early 80s, they decided to finally settle in West Hollywood, having bought a mansion there.
Interesting Facts
- When in an interview with Stan they asked what kind of superheroes he wanted to be friends with, the screenwriter named Silver Surfer, Dr. Strange and Iron Man.
- The creator of the Marvel comics is a fan of films featuring the legendary Bruce Lee.
- At the beginning of 2010, the health of the screenwriter inspired fear in doctors. Two years later, he underwent surgery, having implanted a pacemaker in his heart.
- Stan appeared in a cameo in one of the episodes of the animated series The Simpsons.
- In 1995, the hero of this article was included in the Jack Kirby Hall of Fame.
- The same letters - this is what is characteristic of the surnames and names of some characters in the comics of "Marvel". The creator, of course, called them so deliberately. Here are the most striking examples: Happy Hogan, Karl Creel, Kurt Connors, Otto Octavius, Blackagar Boltagon, Stefan Strange, Bruce Banner, Warren Worthington, Susan Storm, Reed Richards, Peter Parker, etc.