By Annette Cole Mastron, Communications Director for Southern Writers Magazine
I heard of Stan Lee’s death from my daughter-in-law via text. She
was understandably upset. She is the Marvel Superhero expert in our family. She
participates in and attends Comic Con International conventions. She has
expanded my limited knowledge in the field. It’s a joy to watch her talk about
the experiences. To quote her, “He (Stan Lee) either created or co-created
almost all of my favorite Marvel heroes.”
I’m in awe of the creativity of the mind of Stan Lee. Something I
did not know was that Stan Lee “took over as Editor in Chief of Marvel Comics
in 1941 at age 19.” Can you imagine? His rise to editor was a combination of
talent but mainly due to historical events. At age 19, Lee worked in the mail
room of Marvel Comics when most of the senior Marvel writers were going off to
WWII. His appointment as editor forever shaped Marvel Comics future. He was a
writer with an unlimited imagination.
Actor “Hugh Jackman, who benefited from Stan Lee’s writing, paid
tribute to a man who had a massive impact on his career: Stan Lee. The actor
and Late Show host Stephen Colbert shared kind words and memories of the Marvel
Comics creator, who died at the age of 95 this week. ‘To the family and to the
legions of fans, I remember Stan as a true gentleman who had this glint in his
eye,’ Jackman said. ‘He’s a creative genius, he thought outside the box, he
created a whole universe, he changed the lives of many people, mine included.’”
“Jackman recalled, ‘If you ever want to get a clear understanding
of where you are in the world, and you think, ‘I’m Wolverine, I’m walking into
Comic Con, this is my spot, right? This is a good day for me,’ I was on a red
carpet and I was the only one on there and no one was taking my photo because
at the other end was Stan Lee.’”
A recent article in Business Insider shows how world events
contributed to Stan Lee’s creativity that equated to success for Marvel Comics.
“Lee's time in the Army came just after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
The Army installed the young Stanley Martin Lieber (Lee's birth name, he changed
it to his pen name later) as a telephone pole lineman. After realizing it made
a mistake, he was moved to the training film division to create posters and
worked as a writer of films, shorts, and comics for the duration of the war.
Throughout his life, Lee would use his experiences to influence his characters
and his later works — and the Army was a small but significant part of it.”
Clearly, Stan Lee’s fans are everywhere. Another fan was my local
barista. The day after Stan Lee’s death, I placed an order in the drive through
of my local coffee shop. After taking my order, the barista repeated my order
and then said, “You’re a superhero.” I smiled and said “Stan Lee fan?” The
barista replied, “Absolutely.” This random exchange makes me smile. It makes me
want to explore the world of Stan Lee’s creation. What an author of immense
creativity, who created worlds for us all to enjoy. Can you imagine a world without the stories of Spider-Man,
the Fantastic Four, Hulk, Thor and the X-Men?
Thank you, Stan Lee. Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!
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