Stan Lee: A Life in Comics

<i>"The pleasure of reading a story and wondering what will come next for the hero is a pleasure that has lasted for centuries and, I think, will <b>always</b> be with us."</i> -- Stan Lee<br /><br />Smilin' Stan Lee. Stan 'The Man' Lee. 'Generalissimo.' Call him whatever moniker you may like, but relatively few in the superhero / comic book industry have the worldwide name recognition like the individual originally known as Stanley Lieber. (Lee had commented he planned to use his birth name once he finally wrote his 'serious' novel, which never came to fruition.) Author Leibovitz's <i>A Life in Comics</i> is billed as a biography of Lee, though while his personal life is discussed the accent is more on the possible / probable inspirations for the popular Marvel Comic characters he created or co-created in the 1960's - the Fantastic Four, the Hulk, Spider-Man, the X-Men, Black Panther, Silver Surfer, etc. - and how some of their personality traits, backgrounds, and/or storylines may have been drawn from Biblical / Talmudic stories via the Hebrew religion. Despite its relatively brief length (approx. 162 pages) this was a nicely detailed and speculative little slice of our pop culture.

Nice background on his iconic characters

"Стен Лі. Життя як комікс" Ліел Лейбовіц - ✅<br /> <br />Про що книга: Біографія відомого автора коміксів Стена Лі, яка розглядається через призму його шедеврів. Це інтерпретація життя художника та сценариста в контексті створення ним Людини-Павука, Фантастичної четвірки, Людей Ікс і так далі.<br /><br />Мої враження: Реальність переплітається з вигадкою, вигадка стає реальністю. Комікси - це дуже недооцінена художня річ. Мені здається, що дещо подібна ситуація лише з аніме (хоч я і дивився за життя всього з десяток). Вангую - через багато років комікси та аніме займуть значно вагомішу нішу в глобальній культурі, ніж зараз.<br /> <br />Але вже та ситуація, яка складається зараз, сильно рухає культуру коміксів вперед. Комікси екранізуються, групи фанатів розширюються, напрями сегментуються, і найголовніше - гроші на цьому заробляються. Шалені гроші! <br /><br />Чи не найважливішу роль в цьому успіху зіграли комікси Marvel. Стен Лі - це той, хто вдихнув життя в цей процес, запустив його, наділив душею (без перебільшення). Якщо майже 100 років тому комікси сприймались як щось дитяче або несерйозне, то після того, як Стен Лі почав створювати своїх персонажів і нові сюжети, гра перевернулась. Власне, ця книга описує життя Стена Лі - його кохання, його дружбу, його начальників та підлеглих, його непростий характер та войовничий запал. Це була неординарна і яскрава особистість з когорти тих, в яких або закохуються, або ненавидять. <br /> <br />І задум книги дуже цікавий - все зосереджується не на біографії, а на частинах історій з життя, які перегукуються з персонажами, яких створював Лі. Важливу роль тут відіграє історія та релігія. Ми бачимо, що шлях був тернистий і непростий, особливо коли ти один з першопрохідців. Але життя Стена видалось неймовірно насиченим, мабуть, це можна назвати американською мрією. <br /> <br />Щодо США. Книга все ж більше для американців, адже тут дуже багато аспектів, які будуть цікавими саме їм. Недоліки тут є, мені от бракувало інформації про екранізації і про новітні часи, після 90-х. Ну і блін, чому тут немає малюнків, це ж книга про комікс! :)<br /> <br />Кому читати: фанатам Marvel, любителям коміксів та попкультури.

Єдине, чого мені не вистачило в цій книзі — біографічних фактів. Хотілось більше почитати про життя Стена Лі, його батьків, його зростання. Тут все досить фрагментарно та загально, акцент зміщений на аналіз коміксів, героїв, того, звідки ноги ростуть у всіх марвелівських мотивів та сюжетів.<br /><br />Але хай там як, але навіть в такі формі читати було цікаво. Тут вам і історія становлення Марвел, і замальовки до їхню конкуренцію з DC, і секрети внутрішньої кухні створення коміксів. Читати, навіть не дивлячись на деяке перевантаження елементами літературного аналізу, було цікаво!<br /><br />А сам Стен Лі — ще та загадка! Хтось називав його успішним маніпулятором, який вдало використовував таланти інших людей, а хтось вважав неперевершеним генієм. В будь-яко��у випадку, його заслуга в успіху всесвіту Марвел — неоціненна.<br /><br />Мені цікаво було дізнатись, що сам Стен Лі обожнював читати. Він якось навіть мріяв стати письменником, написати щось величне. З цим і пов'язано те, що його герої коміксів — глибокі, не примітивні, як були на початку в культурі коміксів. Він любив додати драми, мотивації та сенсу. Це певним чином і зумовило його успіх.<br /><br />Проте мені складно радити цю книгу кожному прихильнику коміксів. Хіба що якщо ви відразу налаштуєте себе на те, що тут буде чимало авторських розмірковувань про єврейські мотиви в образах супергероїв?<br /><br />Все ж , з цієї книги ви відкриєте і чимало нового!

If you love Comic Con or Michael Chabon's book The Amazing Adventures of Cavalier and Klay, then you will enjoy this biography of Stan Lee (Stanley Lieber). The book traces the relationship between Jewish publishers and the comic book industry as well as the themes from Judaism that informed the development of the super hero genre. Lee was ahead of his time in developing his Marvel comic book characters which more popular today than they ever were.

Stan Lee was, like Walt Disney, part visionary and part huckster. Like Disney, Lee had a profound impact on pop culture but also exploited others and took credit for their work. As Leibovitz points out, Stan Lee's greatest talent was in self-promotion and the most enduring character he created was himself. <br />A poor, Jewish kid from the wrong side of the tracks transformed himself to a hip spokesman for a nerdy counterculture. Ironically, the wealthier and more famous Lee became, the less influence he had on Marvel's works. Eventually, he became a product spokesman not unlike Dave Thomas was for Wendy's. <br />It was the acquisition of Marvel Entertainment by the Disney corporation in 2009 that led to a revival of the fortunes of both Marvel and Lee when the heavily-promoted movies proved giant hits with an audience much larger than the base of comic book fans. Stan Lee's cameo appearances in each of these films made him a familiar figure to those who never picked up a copy of Fantastic Four or Spider-Man.<br />Leibovitz gives a compelling account of Lee's rise to fame but never really unlocks the enigma of his personality. Superficially, extroverted and charming, Lee rarely revealed his inner thoughts. It may not be possible to know if he had a higher purpose in creating his iconic characters or if he was just trying to distinguish his company from rivals and sell more product. <br />Leibovitz's book goes off the rails when he tries to portray Stan Lee as some kind of modern day Jewish prophet, reinterpreting biblical and Talmudic stories for comic book audiences. There is really no evidence that Lee or his collaborators were particularly religious or had a moral agenda other than adhering to the Comics Code Authority. <br />Nevertheless, Stan Lee: A Life in Comics is a worthy addition to a growing list of popular and scholarly volumes on the comics industry.

Мабуть, кожен чув про Стена Лі, а особливо фанати Marvel. Адже саме він створив таких відомих персонажів як Людина-Павук, Залізна людина, Галк, Фантастична четвірка та інші.<br />⠀<br />Але хто знає, що справжнє ім'я Лі - Стенлі Мартін Лібер? Хто знає, що він народився в родині євреїв-іммігрантів, яким довелося в житті не так і легко? А чи знали, що Стен Лі дуже любив читати і навіть хотів стати письменником? Чи знаєте, що спочатку Стен Лі робив каву своєму напарнику, а згодом затьмарив його своїм успіхом? Або чи знаєте ви, хто був начальником Стена Лі та як йому працювалось у компанії, яку зараз ми всі знаємо як Marvel Comics?<br />⠀<br />Про це та багато іншого можна дізнатися із книжки про життя відомого Стена Лі - редактора коміксів, сценариста, творця найбільш відомих супер героїв, які нині в кінотеатрах по всьому світові збирають мільйони глядачів.<br />⠀<br />Мені ця книга дуже сподобалася. Вона написана легкою мовою, читається ну дуже швидко, а інформація така цікава, що відкласти книгу в бік взагалі немає бажання.<br />⠀<br />Не даремно Ліел Лейбовіц назвав книгу "Стен Лі. Життя як комікс", адже тут він не так розповідає про самого Лі, про його життя, як про його творчість та його персонажів. Зокрема, велику увагу приділено окремим коміксам - Капітану Америці, Фантастичній четвірці, Галку, Людині-Павуку тощо. Автор аналізує ці роботи в контексті життя Лі. Мені б хотілось більше біографічних даних і менше аналізу коміксів у контексті віри, але все одно - це було дуже цікаве читання.<br />⠀<br />Так, читач може дізнатися:<br />⠀<br />- чому герої Marvel стали більш популярними за тих самих Супермена та Бетмана від DC;<br />- як тодішні події в Америці випливали на характери персонажів та на події коміксів Стена Лі;<br />- як віра (Стен Лі єврей) впливала на мотиви та які посили вкладав творець у свої роботи, зокрема, в багатьох із них простежується паралель із релігійними темами;<br />- як працював Стен Лі, які в нього були стосунки з колегами;<br />- якою людиною був Стен Лі.<br /><br />Дуже пізнавальна, інформативна книга. Мені хочеться більше. Я закрила останню сторінку й не могла відпустити цю особистість. Стен Лі - приклад для наслідування. І було дуже цікаво почитати про нього.<br />⠀<br />Крім того, мені сподобалось, що автора книги дуже детально над нею працював. У ній використано багато джерел (зі списком можна ознайомитися в кінці).<br />⠀<br />Однозначно книга варта уваги ?

He created heroes that had what he’d been looking for in the comics he read. Heroes who were complex, deep, layered, and were far from perfect. <br /><br />He noticed how comics during the great depression really represented the way people felt. Anti-government etc<br /><br />They’re literally all created by Jews (and a lot of Jews worked in comics cuz no one else would hire them!!) <br /><br />Superman— a Jewish kid, the creator’s dad was shot in an armed robbery. That’s Superman’s first comic strip. Character was bought by Stan Lee’s uncle who he worked for, and this hero is the first one to have a comic book rather than strips in a paper. Superman vs Marvel Heroes— Jesus vs Moshe— lonesomeness vs togetherness, togetherness being very Jewish.<br /><br />In general, the lonesomeness of DC heroes and the absolute perfection of them is much more Christian than the very fallible Jewish heroes. At the same time, the first generation immigrant created a character of an immigrant who spends all his life hiding who he is from the “gentiles,” who he knows will persecute him based on his identity. <br /><br />The same guy who created Superman later created Captain America as someone determined to take action unlike majority of Americans that wanted to pursue isolation before America entered World War II, which horrified him as a Jew, the child of European immigrants<br /><br />He wanted readers to care as much about Steve Rogers as they did about Captain America.<br /><br />Lee fashioned his storytelling after that of the Talmud— purposely confusing, purposely vague as a way of keeping readers involved and to bring their own interpretations, stops it from ever being boring <br /><br />The Thing (before the Hulk) is the Golem, a protector. Complicated, physical but still emotional and complex. Created by Kirby, not Lee. In one story, he gets a Magen David necklace so the protector can be protected. He proves that special people are persecuted and that heroes are flawed (brings in King David to prove this). <br /><br />Mr. Fantastic represents dveikus— being so caught up that you sometimes disconnect from reality. He lets his madness harm those around him. “Possessed” by a foreign element (the joy of chassidus/his superpowers). Both things cause you to disconnect from your environment. Mr. fantastic literally flies off to the “heavens” at the beginning— all about elevation. <br /><br />Bruce Banner, the Hulk, is the First Adam and Second Adam, based on Soloveitchik. First Adam (made in Hashem’s image) has things much clearer. Second Adam (appointed as custodian of Earth) is constantly questioning who he is, how he was made, and why. Soloveitchik says the Second Adam found peace in community, and the Hulk does the same in the stories with a teenager and a girl that help him get through it and explain to him what’s going on. The two Adams need to realize they’re the same being in order to find peace. <br /><br />Spiderman is Cain!! We do not choose good or evil but how we respond to every situation. And his sin didn’t come from arrogance but from believing it wasn’t his problem “am I my brother’s keeper?” Same thing when Peter doesn’t go after the burglar who proceeds to kill his uncle. He then takes on a lifetime of heroism, determined to always use his power (with great power comes great responsibility) almost in a sort of exile, just like Cain. <br /><br />The X-men represent racism and anti-Semitism (in that era, very closely related as the SNCC was originally a group made of the two before Jews were banned (together with all white members) and the group proceeded to create anti-semitic propaganda. Professor X represents dealing with that hatred but recognizing the value of all humanity and trying to show them that the mutants are never inherently bad. His older brother, who tries to kill him, is called Cain Marko (mark of Cain). <br /><br />Scarlet Witch comes from a small village, specifically in Europe, that was burned to the ground. The language used then is “never again.” Very clear connection to the Holocaust. <br /><br />Magneto, opposition to Prof X, believes the way to deal with the anti-mutant racism is violence. He’s the one who says “never again” to Wanda. Later, Magneto is given a backstory where he’s forcibly moved to the Warsaw Ghetto and watches his whole family be executed while he is deported to Auschwitz. He later marries, has a child, and the neighbors (scared of his powers) burn down his house with the child inside, but the wife dies soon after either way, but first she gives birth to twins. Magento goes to Israel where he helps survivors in psychiatric hospitals. He uses Nazi gold to start his vengeance against all humans, who he now believes are only capable of evil and hate. <br /><br />The Fanstatic Four’s fight against the Silver Surfer and Galactus is compared to the miraglim, who didn’t have faith in themselves and God— not only in negatively reporting the land, or exaggerating the strength of the people there, but also downplaying their own strength “we were like grasshoppers before them!” That insecurity is part of why they didn’t want to even try. <br /><br />The Watcher (part of the Silver Surfer’s story) is part of a race that’s tasked with spreading wisdom throughout the universe while exiled. <br /><br />A woman tries to convince Silver Surfer that earth is worth saving. He argues it has no relative value. She argues the earth is ours, for us to value and appreciate and live with— like the story with Rabbi Eliezer, who had a different opinion from all the other Rabbis, but Hashem agreed with him— but Torah is down here, for people to decide, not Heaven!<br /><br />When the Silver Surfer finally stands up to Galactus, it’s not to betray him but to protect him from making a decision that harms those who are innocent— like Avraham Avinu talking to Hashem before Sedom. <br /><br />Iron Man, Tony Stark, are the two Adams again— one who is egotistic, ready to take on the world, confident in himself, the other who is figuring out what he’s supposed to be doing here, what his actions mean, and what his responsibilities are. Dealing with loneliness and faith, and again needing other people to survive. “Redemption comes only when human beings get together and pursue common goals, even if—or especially when— they couldn’t make much sense of existence.” Instead of waiting for a redeemer, the book argues that Judaism wants us to focus on our relationships with each other and with God, a message which Iron Man delivers. <br /><br />Obama’s election was representative of Superman (he even compared himself to the hero when joking that he was born on Krypton), the perfect person stepping in to heal America. Iron Man was the contrast to that, the reply imperfect person there, doing his best, sometimes being selfish and stupid, using violent weapons but also compassion to lead the way. He was never just one thing but a complicated mix of different emotions and values.

For this and other book reviews, visit <a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="http://www.bargain-sleuth.com">www.bargain-sleuth.com</a><br /><br />Back in August, I reviewed another Stan Lee biography, A Marvelous Life. I thought it was good, but still left me wanting to know more. When NetGalley offered me Stan Lee: A Life in Comics, I jumped at the chance. All opinions in this review are my own.<br /><br />From the publisher:<br /><br />This illuminating biography focuses as much on Lee’s ideas as it does on his unlikely rise to stardom. It surveys his cultural and religious upbringing and draws surprising connections between celebrated comic book heroes and the ancient tales of the Bible, the Talmud, and Jewish mysticism. Was Spider-Man just a reincarnation of Cain? Is the Incredible Hulk simply Adam by another name? From close readings of Lee’s work to little-known anecdotes from Marvel’s history, the book paints a portrait of Lee that goes much deeper than one of his signature onscreen cameos.<br /><br />About Jewish Lives:<br /><br />Jewish Lives is a prizewinning series of interpretative biography designed to explore the many facets of Jewish identity. Individual volumes illuminate the imprint of Jewish figures upon literature, religion, philosophy, politics, cultural and economic life, and the arts and sciences. Subjects are paired with authors to elicit lively, deeply informed books that explore the range and depth of the Jewish experience from antiquity to the present.<br /><br />Stan Lee: A Life in Comics is part of the Jewish Lives series. While Lee’s Marvel characters are explored, they are compared and contrasted with the tenants of Jewish faith. During the early days of comic books, the majority of artists, inkers and writers were Jewish. Why? Because they couldn’t get a job in advertising or marketing or newspapers because of discrimination. “We couldn’t get into newspaper strips or advertising,” Al Jaffee recalled (he would later find fame with MAD magazine. “Ad agencies wouldn’t hire a Jew. One of the reasons Jews drifted into the comic-book business is that most of the comic-book publishers were Jewish. So there was no discrimination there.”<br /><br />Stan Lee refused to talk much about his faith or how it shaped him and the characters he created. When asked about it, he talked in circles. He once told a radio reporter during an interview “You know, I have no idea. I never really thought of it. It is strange when you mention it that the best-known characters were done by Jewish writers.”<br /><br />For example, Lee himself attended DeWitt Clinton High School in New York. Two other Jewish students that were several years ahead of him were Will Eisner and Robert Kahn, who later changed his name to Bob Kane. Eisner and Kane were responsible for The Spirit, one of the most influential comics ever created, and Batman.<br /><br />All one has to do is look over the Stan Lee creations to see that he thought differently than other comic book creators: Iron Man, Thor, Incredible Hulk, Fantastic Four, Spider-Man and the X-Men. All his characters weren’t perfect like Superman, they all had flaws, and struggled with their abilities. Those struggles are what made Marvel Comics so important to teens and college-aged kids who were going through some of those same struggles.<br /><br />One thing I appreciated in Stan Lee: A Life in Comics that was missing from A Marvelous Life was a little more detail about the Marvel Cinematic Universe, beginning in 2008’s Iron Man, which I very much appreciated since I don’t actually read many comics.<br /><br />Stan Lee was ahead of his time, until time caught up to him in the 1960’s. He wrote an editorial in November 1968 that could be used to describe culture in America today: “Bigotry and racism are among the deadliest of social ills plaguing the world today. But, unlike a team of costumed supervillains, they can’t be halted with a punch in the snoot, or a zap from a ray gun. The only way to destroy them is to expose them–to reveal them for the insidious evils they really are. The bigot is an unreasoning hater–one who hates blindly, fanatically, indiscriminately. If his hang-up is black men, he hates all black men. If a redhead once offended him, he hates all redheads. If some foreigner beat him to a job, he’d down on all foreigners. He hates people he’s never seen–people he’s never known–with equal intensity–with equal venom. Now, we’re not trying to say it’s unreasonable for one human being to bug another. But, although anyone has the right to dislike another individual, it’s totally irrational, patently insane to condemn an entire race–to despise an entire nation–to vilify an entire religion. Sooner or later, we must learn to judge each other on our own merits. Sooner or later, if man is ever to be worthy of his destiny, we must fill our hearts with tolerance. For then, and only then, will we be truly worthy of the concept that man was created in the image of God–a God who calls us all–His children. Pax et Justitia, Stan.”<br /><br />Stan Lee, you will be missed, but your legacy lives large in our society’s popular culture.

For more reviews and bookish posts please visit: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="http://www.ManOfLaBook.com">http://www.ManOfLaBook.com</a><br /><br />Stan Lee: A Life in Comics by Liel Leibovitz is a short biography of one of the icons of American mythology. This book is part of the award winning Jewish Lives series.<br /><br />This is a short biography on one of the most influential men in American pop-culture, and a true American success story. The book tries to tie Stan Lee’s stories and ideas to Jewish culture and Jewish religious book, some of the passages are a stretch, but all of them are interesting and show an understanding of the author of the characters he created.<br /><br />Stan Lee: A Life in Comics by Liel Leibovitz tells of how a poor Jewish kid from The Bronx transformed himself to be the face of geek culture. As his fame grew, Stan Lee found himself being distanced further and further from the creative work which he found so fulfilling, ending up being a Marvel spokesman with very little control over the creative efforts.<br /><br />Stan Lee loved being a spokesman, he loved interacting with his audience and went on a college tour. He hung out with his fans and tried to implement their ideas, and wishes, when he got back to Marvel’s creative team.<br /><br />The book follows Stan Lee throughout his career, focusing on some of the biggest characters he created and how his and Jack Kirby’s poor background, and Jewish heritage might have influenced their inception. It’s important to note that this is all conjuncture by the author, Stan Lee have always been purposely ambiguous about these issues, mainly because he wanted fans to have their own ideas. I remember seeing him retelling the origin of Spiderman, ending it with “I told this story so often, one day it might actually be true”; telling the frustrated host “you want the truth or a good story?”<br />We all want a good story.<br /><br />Some of the chapters tell of Stan Lee’s contribution to the character Captain American (a Jack Kirby creation) and his own creations of the Fantastic Four – Mister Fantastic (Reed Richards), the Invisible Woman (Susan “Sue” Storm), the Human Torch (Johnny Storm),and the Thing (Ben Grimm) – the original X-Men with the civil rights counterparts (Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X), and Spiderman which, at the time, was the antithesis to everything which screamed “comic book hero”.<br /><br />Marvel has been in decline (as a former share owner, I can still see my shares disappear), but when Disney bought the company it has a revival with Iron-Man (a second rate character in the comics), and the Marvel Cinematic Universe became one of the biggest grossing, if not the biggest, franchise in movie history. Stan Lee, of course, has become the cameo king of the movie world.