Comic book enthusiasts and movie lovers alike are mourning the loss of legendary writer, editor, and publisher Stan Lee, who died at the Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre in Los Angeles, California on November 12, 2018.
The 95-year-old, responsible for creating iconic superheroes such as Spider-Man, Iron Man, The X-Men, The Avengers and The Fantastic Four, leaves a “marvel-ous” legacy that will live on forever.
Stanley Martin Lieber was born in Manhattan, NY on December 28, 1922 to Romanian immigrants Celia and Jack Lieber. Upon graduating from DeWitt Clinton High School, the 16-year-old was hired at what was then called Timely Publications.
The company was best known for inexpensive fiction, or “pulp,” magazines. In 1941, when given his first chance to author a story - a short text for Captain America 3 – he signed his name as “Stan Lee.” 
The creative genius later explained he had only changed it to save his real name for serious literature that he dreamed of writing some day. However, the pseudonym stuck, and soon after became his legal name.
Promoted editor of the comic book division at the age of 19, Lee spent the next decade writing a variety of genres. In 1960, disillusioned by his nondescript writing career, Lee was contemplating leaving when he was asked to create a superhero character to compete with DC Comics’ successful Justice League.
Lee partnered with artist Jack Kirby, the co-creator of Captain America, to launch the Fantastic Four. The comic book was an instant hit, leading to the development of other superhero characters such as Iron Man, Thor, The Hulk, Spider-Man, Doctor Strange, Daredevil, and the X-Men.
In addition to starring in their individual comic book adventures, the superheroes began cropping up in each other’s fictional worlds – forcing fans to buy multiple series to get the whole story. The success of the intermingling universes led to The Avengers launching as a stand-alone title in September 1963.
Unlike previous superheroes who were depicted as perfect, Lee’s creations were endowed with human flaws, thus making them more relatable to fans. For example, characters such as Spider-Man, who debuted in 1962, had multi-faceted defects. The crime-fighting superhero was confident and adventurous, while his alter-ego, Peter Parker, was a shy, awkward, high school student – something that most teenagers could identify with. (Internet)