Marvel legend Stan Lee, who revolutionised pop culture as the co-creator of iconic superheroes such as Spider-Man and The Hulk, has died. He was 95.
Lee, the face of comic book culture in the United States, died early Monday in Los Angeles, his daughter confirmed to US entertainment outlets, including The Hollywood Reporter.
He had suffered a number of illnesses in recent years.
Born Stanley Martin Lieber, he started his career in comics as an office assistant at a comic publisher in 1939.
Stan Lee arrives at the Los Angeles premiere of "Spider-Man: Homecoming" at the TCL Chinese Theatre on Wednesday, June 28, 2017. Source: Invision
Lee ended up in the business by accident, thanks to an uncle who got him a job when he was a teenager filling artists' inkwells and fetching coffee.
"I felt someday I'd write the 'Great American Novel' and I didn't want to use my real name on these silly little comics," he once said, explaining why he had forsaken his given name, Lieber.
His first Marvel Comics piece was Captain America #3 in 1941 writing alongside Joe Simon and Jack Kirby, before enlisting in the US Army during WWII, where he served alongside Oscar-winner Frank Capra, Pulitzer-winner William Saroyan and Theodor Geisel - Dr Seuss - in the Signal Corps.
From Spidey to Black Panther to the X-Men and the Fantastic Four, Lee collaborated with other authors and illustrators to put his lively imagination on the page.
Comic book creator Stan Lee stands beside some of his drawings in the Marvel Super Heroes Science Exhibition at the California Science Center in 2006. Source: AP
Iron Man, Thor and Doctor Strange would follow - and today, all three heroes have multi-film franchises that rake in hundreds of millions of dollars.
Lee also made numerous cameo appearances in the most recent string of Marvel films and television projects, alongside many of these heroes.
In 2017, Lee was honoured as a Disney Legend for his career in film and publishing.
Chris Evans, who plays Captain America in the Marvel films, Robert Downey Jr, who plays Iron Man, and Kevin Feige, Marvel producer, have all praised the incredible legacy Lee left the world.
CEO of Walt Disney Bob Iger said Lee was a "super hero in his own right".
“Stan Lee was as extraordinary as the characters he created. A super hero in his own right to Marvel fans around the world, Stan had the power to inspire, to entertain, and to connect. The scale of his imagination was only exceeded by the size of his heart," he said in a statement.
The Tributes have started to flow in for the much-beloved comic icon.
- With AFP
