By Chris Ryall
December 23, 2002
A Birthday Card for Stan
Well, Stan Lee, the father of Marvel Comics as we know it, turns 80 this week. December 28, to be exact. So let's take a break from whatever else this column ever tries to be each week and spend this one discussing the man they call, well, "The Man," and just what his contributions have meant to my life.
(*Disclaimer: Yes, I know all about Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko being the driving forces and co-creators and equally statured comic folk that helped Stan develop concepts like Spider-Man, the Hulk, the X-Men, the Fantastic Four and so on, so let's avoid any ugly accusations that Jack or Steve did all the work and that Stan was just the figurehead, or whatever accusations publications like THE COMICS JOURNAL like to espouse; we know, they were all in it together, and while everyone has an opinion on who did what, there should be no argument that Stan is the reason super-hero comics are what they are today. After all, you ever read SPEEDBALL? CAPTAIN VICTORY? DEVIL DINOSAUR AND MOONBOY? These artists needed Stan as much as he needed them)
The first Marvel Comic I read was an old (very old, probably 1971) issue of the FANTASTIC FOUR, as I mentioned a couple columns ago. And that comic possessed my 5-year-old mind: I needed to read more. My older brother had already called "dibs" on SPIDER-MAN (I was only allowed to collect books he didn't -- younger brothers have it rough but they comply so their older brother will like them) so the "FF," as they were called, was my book. But I wanted to read SPIDER-MAN, too, somehow...So, what to do?
The solution was the first trade paperbacks of their day, an initial series of three books called ORIGINS OF MARVEL COMICS, SON OF ORIGINS and BRING ON THE BAD GUYS. These books, 200+ pages for $6.95 with a clothbound cover that was painted by John Romita Sr. on all three counts, were pretty amazing things to my little-kids mind. 200 pages? Painted cover art? I barely knew comics, and yet, here were these fill-cover, thick primers to clue me in on who was whom. Not to mention offering up some of the comics that were already legendary books. This was around 1975-76 when these books first came out, the modern Marvel universe about 15 years old, and already the issues they reprinted were selling for thousands of bucks.
 |
It was there I read the first appearances of these characters, and like every little kid that read it, I related to Spider-Man the most -- a quiet, nerdy (this word wasn't actually in the vernacular yet, as far as I knew) kid who nevertheless uses great powers responsibly. These were big ideas for a kid, you know. These characters fought with each other as much as the bad guys--they bickered, got jealous, were selfish...they were regular people, with the addition of colorful costumes, flashy powers and, in one particular case, rocky orange scales all over his body. I know, this is the same thing everyone has said about Marvel Comics forever, but as a guy who actually experienced these stories, it was a huge thing.
And all the stories were written by one guy. Stan Lee.
Now, when you're a little kid, how often do you every know a writer's name? Especially in the case of comic books -- I didn't even know that one guy would write and another would draw -- comics seemed like PEANUTS or any newspaper strip, the work of one guy. I mean, I met one of SUPERMAN's creators around 5 or so also, I think. I got his autograph on a comic con program and still have that today -- "To Chris, from the artist/creator of Superman, Joe Shuster" I had no idea what that meant.
But I knew who Stan Lee was. Stan wrote the intros to those collections. Stan was all over these Marvel Wall Calendars from that same time; Mighty Marvel Fun Books had Stan all over them; Stan introduced Marvel cartoons; he wrote a ton of comics and he "presented" EVERY Marvel comic; he wrote a column, "Stan's Soapbox," in each comic; he was a booster for a Marvel fan club, F.O.O.M. and he took friendly shots at the "other" comic companies out there -- he had me at "Hello, True Believer." What, I was going to read comics about SUPERMAN or BATMAN with all this going on? I dabbled in the occasional DC Comic, and it was...too much. I didn't get that I could read one SUPERMAN comic that was numbered in the 200s and then the next week I'd read one that was in the 400s (I had no idea that ACTION COMICS and SUPERMAN were different comics).
You know what Stan gave me, more than anything? Oh, sure, his writing was dynamic enough, fast-moving to the point of dizziness, to give me a sense of wonder and whimsy that has carried through to this day. He could tell stories of so many different characters and styles that all felt the same and yet were completely different and enticing. When we got to Norse mythology in school, well, man, was I ravenous for more of that. Edith Hamilton, no offense, but I would NOT own your book right now if not for Stan. See, I'd been reading these comics about Thor, Loki, Odin, the Midgard Serpent and all of these wild things...and then I see that these characters are "real"? Let me just say, not only did I nail that class but I also spent time in libraries, searching out other books on Norse mythology. (You purists could take your Greek myths and choke on 'em...let me cross my Rainbrow Bridge to Bifrost and I was all too happy).
You know how a trip to the zoo as a kid made you search out a Tasmanian Devil to see if it really looked like the whirling dervish in the cartoons? Well, Stan had me doing the same with science concepts. Cosmic rays gave the Fantastic Four their powers in the comic. So I was in encyclopedias (some day, I'll have to explain to kids what "libraries" and "encyclopedias" are and why I didn't just use the 'Net for my research.) reading about cosmic rays. And gamma rays. (Turns out there were no documented cases of these rays causing people to stretch or catch fire or turn invisible or transform, when angry, into giant green men in purple pants, but that was probably just a cover-up) Oh, yeah, I was gone -- comics and the things surrounding them were my life. Not in a bad way--it didn't affect me hanging with friends (non-comics readers, all of 'em, until college) or playing outside or anything else kids need, but it did kick-start my reading habit. I was, and am, a voracious reader. Which brings me to the main thing Stan influenced:
My vocabulary.
That sounds stupid to say, that I'm well-spoken (humble, too!) and have a decent vocabulary as a result of reading comic books, but it's very true. Nowadays, there are comics for little kids (that go mostly unread, except by adults with arrested development), comics for all ages (read mostly by adults) and comics for adults (read by kids who can sneak them in case there's some nudity or curse words, and adults). But back then, there were Just Comics. Stan wrote comics that were to appeal to a 5-year old or a 35-year old. Stan never wrote down to his audience, but rather, he would write things that often drove me right to a dictionary:
"Indeed, you are correct! The entire topography and flora are electronically-controlled mechanical apparatus! The very branches about us are composed of delicately constructed wires, while the flowers which abound here are highly complex buttons and dials! Even the boulders can be heard to hum with the steady pulse of computer dynamos!"*
*Incidentally, the first one, if anyone can, to name what issue this quote came from, will get a copy of Stan's "bio-autography," EXCELSIOR! The only hint, to make it no easier, is that it's from one of the Stan-penned comics I've mentioned above.
Working for "The Man"
I made myself a couple promised when I was a kid: that I would, someday when I had the money, own a copy of FANTASTIC FOUR #1, the comic that officially started Marvel Comics as we know it (Marvel/Timely Comics published books in the '40s, with characters like Captain America and art by a young Jack Kirby, but until Stan relaunched the line in 1961, things were pretty much done); my other pledge was that I would meet Stan and, I dunno, thank him or something. (Granted, these weren't quite as lofty goals as Jim Carrey writing himself a $10 million check) So, how'd I do?
Well, kinda took care of them both in 1997. But there's more to the story.
I BOUGHT FF#1, yes, but I decided not to wait until I could actually afford it. I went to the San Diego Comic Con for the first time in 1997. Stan was a featured guest, signing autographs and such. I'd gotten lucky a few years before and found an old HULK #6 for thirty bucks, which was nothing. I brought that, and an old FANTASTIC FOUR #100 I bought at 12 for $10 (amazing how vivid this all is--I had to promise my mom I'd take good care of it and not throw it around like my other comics -- couldn't do that with this expensive a book) for him to sign. And then...
...and then I walked past a dealer selling old comics. As in, books from 1961. As in, FANTASTIC FOUR #1. He had a copy for $1200. I looked at it. I asked to see it. I held it (well, I held the mylar snug that encased it, anyway). I was a good mark -- I told the guy my tale that "someday I will own this." He said, "Well, Stan's here, you know, you could have him sign IT." And we bartered. I got him "down" to $900. For a single comic book. And I had a credit card.
An hour later, I was in line to see Stan. It was packed, and they were rushing us along. He had a big stack of DeFalco/Bagley SPIDER-MAN comics he was signing if you had nothing else (one item only, please!). They kept the line rushing through. I got up and presented him my copy of FF#1, freshly bought. I was numb. He stopped and asked where I got it. They rushed him and wanted it to keep moving. He told them to realx, that when someone buys a copy of FF#1 just to meet him, he would get a few minutes. He choked on the $900 amount (as would I, when that Visa bill showed up later) and said that he got his first copy for 9000 times less than that. He was nervous about signing it, but I had him do it on the cover anyway -- I realize that this has an adverse affect on the value, but I didn't buy this as a speculator, but rather, a fan. He also further held up the line by signing HULK 6, too, adding an "Excelsior!" to that one.
So that could have been it for my Stan stories, except it wasn't, at all. I'll try to tell this quickly. Stan was just starting up STAN LEE MEDIA in, what, 1997? Something like that...I saw an ad in a trade publication that he was starting this company in the valley, which was doable by car (2 or more hours, sure, but doable. Stan.) I had no idea what sort of job to look for, but I tried anyway. My letter, the worst possible business letter I could send, started with, "Whosoever reads this letter," a take-off on an inscription from Thor's hammer from a comic from, like, 1964, that no one in Stan's H.R. department would ever recognize. Yet they called me.
I went in and was being looked at for...Stan's assistant! Now, I'd already gotten some decent work experience in marketing and advertising, so I wasn't really aspiring to open mail or type letters. But...Stan. His lobby had red carpet with yellow and orange flames on it. I was brought in to meet with scummy Peter Paul, currently hiding out in South America. He was my first real "Hollywood" experience, and man, did he fit the part: black t-shirt and silver suit, young blonde wife (in pictures on his desk), pony tail, wall of pics with him with celebrities...and an office filled with kick-ass Marvel Comics memorabilia. We talked, he said my role would be to answer Stan's e-mail in Stan-speak, and asked if I could do that. You bet, effendi!
And then Stan called -- was in New York meeting with Marvel, but he checked in and Peter handed me the phone and soon I was talking to Stan about working right under him.
Peter then got into the money, which was ten grand less than the already-tough-to-live-on salary I was making. I couldn't do it -- I couldn't make it work. But...Stan. So I e-mailed Mark Evanier (found his e-mail in CBG) and asked his opinion. His opinion was that I should work for Stan. I had no idea how to make it work. Which was fortuitous, because after that, Peter and I talked about adding to my role and thus adding to the salary, and that was the last I heard from him. At least, on the way out, he gave me a poster from Stan's 75th birthday party, a photo of Stan surrounded by John Romita Rs.-drawn characters, and signed by "The Man."
What a Dick
In 2000, I was offered a job with Dick Clark Communications (yeah, that Dick Clark, which is a whole other story, and not a good one). I took it...and it just so happened that one of our accounts (the Communications division handled corporate affairs, parties and launches -- I wrote marketing plans and even speeches and program outlines and such) was STAN LEE MEDIA. Now, this was a huge draw for me taking the position, but at least this time there was money to go with it. Little did I know that no money would be worth working there...but at any rate, I went to a few meetings at STAN LEE MEDIA. The first one, I was in an office talking to someone when I heard the familiar voice down the hall...that had to be Stan. And it was. I just happened to be out in the hallway when he walked by, so I stopped him and introduced myself to him and gave him my card. Whatever else would happen, Stan Lee now had my business card.
 |
He told me to walk with him, so we rode the elevator down to his car, and talked a bit about things -- comics, me being the fool who bought FF#1 for $900 (he didn't remember, of course, but he gave me the jokey "Oh, yeah, you were wearing the brown shirt, right?" that I'm sure he gives everyone who wants him to remember them) and whatever else. Just talked. Afterwards, I got a tour of the offices, now fully operational. He even had a full "bullpen" set up, with people like Shawn McManus working on his web comics -- it was the closest feeling to what Marvel Comics back in its heyday was probably like.
I got back over there a few other times, had a few other conversations with Stan, but things pretty much tapered off. Peter Paul was already far into his machinations, bilking all kinds of money out of the company and killing any planned events (Stan's company once held the rights to the televised Hollywood Christmas Parade and planned a big to-do around it), so we never really did any projects for them. I left the company soon after, but, for once, that decision wasn't Stan-based.
I used to write for Comic Book Galaxy, too, and did an interview with Stan for that site -- at the end of it, he gave me a nickname like he did all his old writers -- I was "Capricious" Chris Ryall. Just wanted to mention that.
Stan's recent output, his DC comics and his planned Pam Anderson cartoon STRIPPERELLA may not be anything to get people to forget his past accomplishments, and, in fact, it's led some people to talk the usual nonsense about the guy, but let's face it: Stan's name should be held up in the company of someone like Walt Disney. And it's great to still see him going today -- even at 80, in public, there's maybe no better and more enthusiastic promoter of comics than Stan. His optimism and drive is something that many creators today could learn from, and that everyone should appreciate. The man was thmuping comics in public long before it was ever "cool" (which isn't really true, anyway) to read them, and without his endless (say "shamless" if you want, but it worked and worked well) promotion of comics did more for the industry than any page Jack or Steve ever drew. I'm saying these guys all needed each other, but Stan is, to me, the Most Important Name to Ever Work in the Comics Industry. And he's still going strong. Now that's a super hero. Happy birthday, True Believer!
Happy Holidays
So here we are, Christmas week. I realize a lot of people have this week off and are traveling and spending time with the family, but some of you either aren't doing that or aren't celebrating Christmas or are stuck working regardless, so we're gonna still be here for you. From now until New Year's Day, the regimented schedule might vary a bit -- Ken Cuperus' I GOT ISSUES comics column will run today rather than Wednesday, as will Thom Fowler's usually Friday ABOUT TOWN -- but we WILL still have new daily content for you every day. Also today, you'll get a new RENAISSANCE MAN from Antony Teofilo. Antony, whose cameo in JERSEY GIRL I just saw, is taking a break from his JG coverage to bring you some exclusive CHICAGO columns, including this week's Catherine Zeta-Jones interview. And I'm here with more TV Recommendations and also a new readers-scripted/me-kibbutzed MAIL SHOOT. Patrick Storck also offers up his third Christmas piece, with his look at some never-aired Christmas shows.
Later this week, we'll have Michael Crawford's TOY BOX review of Vash the Stampede, a Christmas day LEGENDS OF THE FAIRNESS SQUAD, and a lot of the other regular columns and daily news you're used to from us. Not to mention the first of a series of Paul Dini-written holiday columns, too.
Through it all, I'd just like to wish everyone a very happy holiday and hope you all finish the year strong, however you choose to celebrate it. It's been a great half-year of running this place, and your patronage is very appreciated (and welcome back in 2003, of course!). We're looking at bringing back a message board of some kind and making some other changes, updates and additions...as well as continued daily updates, of course, but we can get into all that later. For now, enjoy and happy 2002!
Next Week: Some of the typical year-end blather...
/chris
Book of the Week: BRADBURY: AN ILLUSTRATED LIFE, by Jerry Weist
Comic of the Week: HAWAIIAN DICK by B. Clay Moore and Steven Griffin, published by Image Comics
DVD of the Week: AN EVENING WITH KEVIN SMITH ('natch)
Movie of the Week: MAX, distributed by Lions Gate Films
E-MAIL THE AUTHOR |
ARCHIVES
