His shameless self-promotion outdistanced only by his affability, Lee may have only recently gained worldwide fame, thanks to the blockbuster business of the “Spider-Man” and “X-Men” movies. But to long-time fans, he has been a staple for decades, appearing in the backs of Marvel Comics in his monthly column, “Stan’s Soapbox,” dispensing news of coming attractions as well as his own musings on events of the day. He forged a personal connection to his creations, not unlike Walt Disney.

Born and raised in New York, Stan Lee dreamed of being a novelist or newspaperman, and like many young men in the 1940s with journalistic aspirations, he was hired right out of high school, at the age of 17, for Timely Comics--which just happened to be owned by his cousin's husband. The comic book industry at the time was just getting its legs, with robust sales of “Superman” and “Batman,” and several publishers were keen to cash in on their success with similar titles. Among the more unique fellow costumed heroes were “Captain America” and “The Human Torch,” both published by Timely. Lee’s first paid writing assignment was a “Captain America” story, and he was promoted to editor soon thereafter while still in his teens, a stint temporarily interrupted by wartime service stateside.

Comic book sales were brisk throughout the 1950s, but with concerns that a rising tide of juvenile delinquency was brought on by comic books filled with violence, gore, horror and fantasy, only relatively tame superhero books continued, with relatively bland and upbeat storylines. Even the monster comics of the day, many of which were published by Timely, were fairly white-bread by then-current standards. Editor Lee complained to his publisher that he was going to leave the business out of boredom, when his wife Joan persuaded him to give comics one more try, and tell stories that he always wanted to tell, no matter the risk to sales. And thus superhero legends were born.

Along with artist and co-creator Jack Kirby, whom he had known since the days of “Captain America” (whom Kirby had co-created in the 1940s with partner Joe Simon), in 1961 Lee created “The Fantastic Four” in response to the success of DC’s superhero team “The Justice League of America”– a superhero book notable for a few key distinctions: The characters went by their real names—Reed Richards, Ben Grimm, Sue Storm and Johnny Storm—as much as their superhero monikers—Mr. Fantastic, The Thing, Invisible Girl and the Human Torch—and they initially wore civilian clothes instead of the traditional colorful uniforms, although they eventually adopted blue costumes emblazed with a “4” symbol. But what really distinguished the series (along with Kirby’s revolutionary, mind-blowing artwork) was that the characters, which were ultimately a dysfunctional family unit rather than a group of previously published solo characters gathered together like most team books, never lost their individuality and their flaws, often fighting each other as often as the menace of the day. Thus was born Marvel Comics and its template for success: superhuman heroes who were as much human as hero.

In a burst of sheer creativity nearly unmatched in any medium, Lee and Kirby followed their foursome with a flood of amazing characters, including Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Daredevil, a revival of Captain America and more super-teams, the Avengers and the X-Men. But was with the 1962 debut of “The Amazing Spider-Man” in the canceled anthology Amazing Fantasy #15 that Lee—with artist and collaborator Steve Ditko (with whom he also created the mystic Dr. Strange)—delivered his masterpiece. The first teenaged costumed character who wasn’t an adult superhero’s sidekick, the brainy, sensitive and much-bullied high school student Peter Parker epitomized adolescent angst and neurosis, until a bite from a radioactive spider infused him with fabulous arachnid like powers, which allowed him to escape from his daily troubles into the uncertainty and joy of being a costumed superhero. Balancing “Spidey’s” personal dramas with a penchant for genuinely funny and clever wisecracks, Lee also injected a genuine note of pathos and morality into the character when, while he initially used his powers and guise to make money as a TV celebrity, he became a superhero after his beloved uncle was murdered by a burglar Spider-Man had selfishly refused to capture earlier that day. Thus was born one of the most oft-repeated credos in comic book history: With great power comes great responsibility.” Spider-Man would ultimately join Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman as one of the most recognized and iconic superheroes in the pop culture pantheon

Along with a deft sense of humor and a keen eye for melodrama that worked its way into his scripts (Lee pioneered the “Marvel style” of writing, creating a plot for, with of from the artist, letting the artist illustrate the story and then adding dialogue to the finished pages), Lee had a singular talent for hyperbole and self –promotion that allowed him to peek out from the pages of his comics and emerge as a personality that become well-known to--and even beloved by—his typically youthful readers. His jolly, chummy persona and alliterative or rhyming nicknames for himself and his collaborators (he was know to fans as, alternately, “Smilin’ Stan” and “Stan the Man”) was punctuated by blasts of goofy if meaningless catchphrases (“Excelsior!” “Face front, True Believers!” “’Nuff said!”) in much of his writing in comic book captions, cover copy, credit boxes, letter columns and, later, his regular “Bullpen Bulletins” column and hooked a legion of brand-loyal fans who became known as “Marvel zombies.” The writer/editor also delighted in vexing Marvel’s chief rival, DC—known to Marvel fans as “the Distinguished Competition”): whenever DC would pick up on and imitate a Marvel trend that seemed to be selling comics—filling covers with enticing copy, for example—Lee catch wind of it and immediately do the opposite, and his books would still outsell DC’s. In-house he was just as impish: when his publisher suggested that the popularity of the comics hinged on Lee's knack for coming up with evocative hero names, Lee deliberatley created the ridiculous-sounding war title "Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos" and with Kirby's art and a groundbreaking interracial cast, it too became a top-seller. With such high-spirited antics, Lee transformed himself into one of the first comic book superstars—for example, his acrimonious split with Jack Kirby was received by their Baby Boomer fans with as much dread significance as the breakup of John Lennon and Paul McCartney.

As Marvel Comics grew, Lee eventually hired more writers and artists, and stepped into a more editorial role, eventually moving on to publisher. Lee won notoriety and accolades for tackling stories about drug abuse and civil rights. In large part due to Marvel’s success, the comic book industry grew, too, and artists began to speak out for fair credit for their creative contributions, better pay, and ownership of their work. In the center of the controversy were Kirby and Ditko, who bitterly parted company with Lee over indivisual disputes, both suggesting Lee had claimed the lion’s share of credit for the Marvel characters and insisting they were the ones primarily responsible for crafting the Marvel legacy. After their defections, neither Kirby (whose "Fourth World" series of titles for DC was both profound and admired but also undersold) nor Ditko (whose subsequent creations failed to catch fire) equaled their earlier commercial successes (even in brief but frustrating returns to Marvel in the 70s) while Lee continued to collect accolades for such efforts as his relevant storytelling in "Silver Surfer" and a Comics Code Authority-defying drug storyline in "Amazing Spider-Man" that attracted national headlines. His image grew to Walt Disney-esque proportions in the industry--while the company did not bear his name, Stan Lee and Marvel Comics became nearly indistinguishable in the popular viewpoint. In recent years, Lee more openly applauded the efforts of his former co-conceptualizers--he seemed to make a tenuous peace with Kirby before the latter's death in 1994, but even an apparently heartfelt letter from Lee and a co-creator credit on the "Spider-Man" films failed to move Ditko, who as a J.D. Salinger figure within the comic book industry known for his strict adherence to Ayn Randian Determanism and increasingly didactic artwork, mysteriously maintained near-total silence on the issue, refusing to grant interviews or accept offered work on the Spider-Man character.

Although big screen success has been a recent phenomenon, Lee had designs on conquering television and movies almost from the start. Several television cartoons were produced in the 60s and 70s, but it wasn’t until 1981 that Lee made a permanent trip to the West Coast, setting up Marvel Productions. Several live action television projects followed, including the 1977 CBS hit telepic “The Incredible Hulk,” which starred Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno and spawned a popular ongoing series (1978-1982). Lee’s high-energy personality reached an ever wider audience when he served as the narrator for the Ruby-Spears cartoons “Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends” (NBC, 1981-1986) and “The Incredible Hulk” (1982). He would frequently appear as a voice actor or narrator in episodes of various subsequent animated versions of the Marvel characters (he even had a 2002 guest spot on “The Simpsons”), as well as on screen as an actor in usually low-budget films made by admirers of Lee’s work—perhaps most notably his turn as himself in writer-director Kevin Smith’s “Mallrats” (1995).

Lee eventually departed from Marvel Comics completely, although he remained Chairman Emeritus and continued to draw a $1million annual salary. He created his own company, Stan Lee Media, which promised to bring superhero storytelling to the Internet but became a victim of the dot-com bust when it filed for bankruptcy and principal Peter Paul was charged with defrauding the investors. Lee, who had no part in the wrongdoing, emerged unscathed, and continued to executive produce and/or consult on Marvel Comics movies based on his creations--including three “X-Men” movies (2000, 2003, 2006), three “Spider-Man” films (2002, 2004, - ), “The Incredible Hulk,” (2003) “Daredevil” (2003) and “The Fantastic Four” (2005)—and some of the Marvel properties he didn’t originate (the “Blade” franchise and “The Punisher”), appearing in cameos in most. By matching the richly drawn characters with A-list filmmakers including Brian Singer. Sam Raimi and Ang Lee, the Marvel heroes soared at the box office and reinvigorated the action/fantasy genre, Marvel launched its own Marvel Productions company and Lee—who was once embarrassed to tell people at parties what he did for a living—became, at long last, a genuine household name. He also scored cameos in most of the films based on his creations, most notably playing the Fantastic Four's enthusuastic mailman Willie Lumpkin.

After the phenomenal success of the “Spider-Man” films, Lee later won a $10 million lawsuit against his former employer over a dispute from profits derived from the franchise. In 2003 the energetic octogenarian teamed with sex symbol Pamela Anderson to create the animated series “Stipperella” for the Spike network, with Anderson providing the sultry voice of the titular character Erotica Jones, a pole dancer by night and a superhero by "later at night." With a prominent guest-writing gig for rival DC Comics, where he reimagined icons such as Superman and Batman in one-shot issues, and with the creation of yet another company, Kapow Comics, Lee remained a formidable and legendary presence in the world of comic books, and one with more enthusiasm and energy than many other creator a third of his age, revered by fans—many of whom went on the become film and television professionals—who were grateful for the role he played in the mythologies of their childhoods. Lee's status as both an icon and a brand name came into play again when he was tapped to fill the Donald Trump-like role of host and judge in Sci-Fi's reality TV series "Who Wants to Be a Superhero?" (2006- ), in which contestants in costume competed in various challenges deisgned to reveal their true heroic qualities in hopes of being featured in their own Dark Horse Comics comic book and a Sci-Fi television movie. At first glance the show seemed to be an excercise in cheesy camp, but it revealed clever twists in the challenges and many of the contestants' genuine respect and admiration for Lee--particularly the first season winner, Matthew "Feedback" Atherton, who had used Lee as fantasy father figure after the suicide of his own father as a young boy--gave the quirky show a heartfelt and surprisingly touching element. Lee, who communicated to the contestants entirely via plasma screen video, was an affable and quick-witted host who also struck just the right tone when delivering more serious-minded lessons on exactly what kind of inner characteristics truly make a superhero. That same year Marvel Comics celebrated Lee's 65th anniversary of employment with the company with a series of "Stan Lee Meets..." one-shot comic books in which the writer teamed up with several of his most famous creations, including Spider-Man, The Thing, the Silver Surfer, Dr. Strange and Dr. Doom.