Stan Lee is a name synonymous to Marvel, especially among Marvel fans out there from the comic days. Born as Stanley Martin LIeber, Lee was born in New York City on 22nd December 1922. Lee’s passion in his creating his superhero characters was so great and transcendent that they have lasted for generations. He is the main reason why so many of our childhood heroes (Spiderman, Avengers, X-Men) are now internationally famous and have their movies, TV shows and cartoon shows. He is excellent in bringing fictional characters to life; he didn’t just make them perfect, he created them with imperfections and insecurities like normal, average people…like you and I. In creating flaws in his comic book characters, he was able to help us, the readers to relate ourselves to them even though they are fictional characters that exist in comic books. This is particularly inspirational and encouraging to ordinary people like us, to make us realize that out heroes, in spite of their abilities are only human, and that we too can aspire and inspire others to be better.
1. Spiderman was one of his favourites
Spiderman is not just a superhero with spider-like powers. Spiderman aka Peter Parker started off as a teenager who have to juggle other responsibilities such as studies, family and friends alongside his role as a friendly neighbourhood superhero.
Source : Fandom
2. Stan’s trademark catchphrase- Excelsior!
A reminder of a man who would never give up, and by not giving up, is therefore responsible for the reason why superhero movies are so relevant in our current pop culture. Lee was a living proof that success is possible through relentless hard work, and is therefore a lesson that everyone can learn from. Excelsior is a Latin word that means “ever upwards”. It is something like a signature, after he finish writing a comic book column. He started to use this word in the1960s as a way to prevent his competition from copying him, but it later became his motto, not just in his career but in life. We can easily see that in the positive energy that he radiates, when he pushes his creativity and imagination in the creation of his characters but also in the way he interacts with his fans.
Source: Fandom
3. His cameo has stirred the anticipation of many movie-goers since 1989
Source: cbr.com
2016 Captain America: Civil war –are you Tony Stank? (so cute)
Source: Independent.co
Not just in Marvel movies, but also in TV shows like The Big Bang Theory.
Source : imdb
4. He makes imperfections, perfect
He was able to address social problems through his comics. For instance, he challenged the issue of racism and bigotry through heroes like the X-Men, because in X-Men stories, they face prejudice and persecution from those that they protect.
Apart from his superhero characters, which as mentioned, are created with very relatable human flaws, the villains that he created in opposition to the heroes as also relatable even though they are the “bad guys” in the story. Stan Lee expresses his talent for complex characterization even for the bad guys, that no one can really hate the villains for the bad things they have done. For example, in the X-Men, supervillain Magneto, who is also a mutant like many of his kind. He wants to protect his race from humans who constantly seek to persecute and kill mutants. Thus, in the earlier days of the X-Men comic series, they are usually engaged in a battle to protect the human race from Magneto who wants to kill the humans. However, Magneto’s character is complex in the sense where while the reader who should technically oppose his actions, some would also empathize him for his past and his intentions in order to protect his own kind from those who harm their very existence.
5. He’s a funnyman
When Lee was 89 years old, he has to be fitted with a pacemaker in his heart. Despite of his serious health issues, he treated the problem with hilarity. Lee quoted: “Your leader hath not deserted thee! In an effort to be more like my fellow Avenger, Tony Stark, I have had an electronic pacemaker placed near my heart to insure that I will be able to lead thee for another 90 years”. Such positive attitude in spite of adversity. Definitely something we can learn from!
