Stan Lee, genius behind Spider-man, X-men superheroes, dead at 95

WASHINGTON: Stan Lee, the creative force at Marvel Comics who dreamed up the comic book heroes Spider-man, the Incredible Hulk and the X-men, is dead at 95, Marvel Entertainment confirmed on Monday.

Upon hearing of his death, Marvel Entertainment posted on Twitter:”today, we pause and reflect with great sadness on the passing of Stan Lee.”

Lee’s personal Twitter account posted a picture with the years of his birth and death alongside the word “Excelsior!” in reference to one of his famous catchphrases and the title of his 2002 memoir.

Born in 1922 as the son of Romanian immigrants, Stanley Martin Lieber- known by his pen-name Stan Lee - issued his first story “Captain America Foils the Traitor’s Revenge” in May 1941 while working as an assistant at a comic book publishing company in New York.

In the 1950s, Lee worked for the company that would become Marvel Comics, and in 1961, he co-created his first superhero breakthrough,the Fantastic Four, with artist Jack Kirby.

The Fantastic Four were unlike the perfectly genial Superman, a character belonging to rival DC Comics. Some comic book fans believe these characters and others Lee created reinvigorated the comic book and the superhero at a time when television was gaining a foothold.

The superheroes’ own weaknesses and human-like insecurities -Spiderman’s self-doubt and the Incredible Hulk’s inability to control the anger which made him strong - helped endear them to readers and fans.

Later, Lee continued to work with artists at the company to create several of its best-known characters, many of whom, like Spider-man,have been given fresh relevance in recent years thanks to a series of movies featuring Marvel characters.

Active to the end, Lee performed cameos in many of the movies.

“A super hero in his own right to Marvel fans around the world, Stan had the power to inspire, to entertain, and to connect,” said Bobiger, chairman and chief executive of the Walt Disney Company, according to a statement issued on Marvel’s website. Marvel is a subsidiary of Disney.

Many of Lee’s fans, including celebrities, also reacted to Lee’s death.

“There will never be another Stan Lee. For decades he provided both young and old with adventure, escape, comfort, confidence,inspiration, strength, friendship and joy,” posted Chris Evans, who played Captain America in recent movies.