this legend brought comic books to the
mainstream welcome to watchmojo.com and
today we’ll be counting down the top 10
things that make Stanley awesome hey
kids
I’ve got to admit this isn’t the best
story we’ve ever done but we’ve given
you so many good ones before we think
you owe it to us to buy this one also
number 10 modernizing the superhero
kicking off our list is a factoid about
the psychological complexity of
Stanley’s Marvel characters in the 1960s
we pioneered the idea of creating
multifaceted comic personas quite a
change from the standard simply written
in flexible and morally uptight Heroes
comic book superheroes up until 1961
were cardboard characters they didn’t
really have a sense of humor
there was no texture to it these
protagonists had human flaws which they
slowly overcame through a continuous
narrative while sometimes running into
each other within the interconnected
Marvel Universe number 9 the legend Stan
entered the comic book scene way back in
1941 at the age of 16 starting off as an
assistant editor at timely comics he
quickly became the youngest editor in
the biz to safeguard his reputation he
changed his name from Lieber
to lead thinking that comics would
prevent him from becoming a famous
novelist ironically he did become one
just not in the traditional sense
Stan and I memories to say we’ve worked
on comics I said I was a I was no
straightest dad said he was a writer
never magic comics number eight creative
force Stan Lee became a central figure
in the comic book world not only did he
redefine the genre the outre created and
co-created almost every Marvel character
we know and love today alongside
partners Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko
among these his most groundbreaking and
beloved included the Hulk the Fantastic
Four the x-men and spider-man
you know I guess one person
number seven above sidekicks what
separated Lee’s approach to comic
creation from others was the fact that
he despised sidekicks he felt they took
something away from the heroes as a
result almost no Marvel hero is
accompanied by a partner sure
Iron Man occasionally works with war
machine but you won’t find the Hulk
working alongside a prepubescent boy in
tights number six respects his fans part
of what made Stan Lee a legend was his
respectful and intelligent treatment of
his fans with that philosophy in mind
he nearly quit the comic world when he
was asked to use simpler words during a
time when comics were seen as child’s
play planning for the Fantastic Four to
be his last comic creation he rebellious
Lee upped the complexity but when the
series became a financial success sold
out every copy the publishers gave him
their full support that can’t be done
get out of here
number five unafraid to tackle the
issues there was a time when comics
steer clear of sensitive social issues
that changed when we pushed through a
1971 amazing spider-man storyline where
Peter Parker’s friend Harry Osborn
almost died from a drug overdose while
the comics code Authority had been
unwilling to allow negative portrayals
of substance abuse after the acclaim and
healthy sales of this storyline they
changed their position number for
creative juggernaut think you don’t have
any free time during Lee’s first 25
years at Marvel he switched it up by
serving his editor art director and head
writer scripting between 2 and 5
complete comics per week his creative
output is still considered the largest
by any single writer incredibly he even
found time to write for newspapers radio
and television to penned screenplays and
to have a satisfying marriage since 1947
number three rather write than lead you
may not know this but not only did Stan
Lee lead the expansion of Marvel Comics
from a small division into a massive
corporation but he also briefly served
as the company’s president despite the
glamour power and rock and parking space
he stopped when he decided that worrying
about finances in
acted what he did best writing comics
few would have the cojones to do the
same number to Where’s Waldo named
Stanley yeah nice try buddy there’s a
really Stanley proud and tied to his
creations Lee ensured he had a special
clause added to his contract he
specified that he must appear in any
movie based on one of his characters
this became a major source of amusement
for fans as they eagerly spotted him as
everything from a street vendor to a
rejected wedding guest and even as a man
who’s mistaken for Hugh Hefner by Tony
Stark
security would have be beefed up a lot
more in a place like this number one
excelsior
taking the top spot on our list is that
special something that keeps fans coming
back for more
I love you earlier I said you’re like a
father the best example of what makes
Stanley special is his trademark comic
sign-off catchphrase excelsior since he
jokingly claims that he doesn’t even
know the mottos meaning with his wit
offbeat nature and inspirational
messages Stan Lee is known to many as
the granddaddy of modern comics and in
fact many comic lovers wish Stan the man
were their grandfather too I created
are you a Stanley fan do you see him as
a real-life superhero for more great top
tens be sure to subscribe to
watchmojo.com good talking to you keep
up all the good work you keep reading
them I’ll keep writing them
Please follow and like us: