Stan Lee was an American comic book writer, editor, publisher, and executive vice president of Marvel Comics.

Stan Lee was born Stanley Martin Lieber in New York City, NY, to Jack Lieber, a dress cutter, and Celia (Solomon). Lee’s parents were Romanian Jewish immigrants. Lee co-created Spider-Man, the Hulk, Doctor Strange, the Fantastic Four, Iron Man, Daredevil, Thor, the X-Men, and many other fictional characters, introducing a thoroughly shared universe in superhero comic books. In addition, he challenged the comic industry’s censorship organization, the Comics Code Authority, indirectly causing it to update its policies. Lee subsequently led the expansion of Marvel Comics from a small division of a publishing house to a large multimedia corporation.

He is most popularly known for his cameo appearances in many Marvel film and television projects. A few of these appearances are self-aware and sometimes reference Lee’s involvement in the creation of certain characters.

On July 16, 2017, Stan Lee was named a Disney Legend, a hall of fame program that recognizes individuals who have made an extraordinary and integral contribution to The Walt Disney Company. This became possible because of Disney’s acquisition of Marvel Comics in 2009.

Stan Lee was married to Joan Lee for almost 70 years, until her death on July 6, 2017. The couple had two children. Stan Lee died on November 12, 2018, in Los Angeles, CA.