Stan Lee [author]

Calvin

Welcome to Headstones and Microphones where we use AI to step into the past through a researched, first-person simulation of history's most interesting people. I am your host, Calvin. While we’ve added some creative storytelling, our goal is to inspire your own study of these fascinating lives. Now, let’s meet our guest.

Calvin

I am beyond excited today. We are sitting down with a man who didn't just write stories; he built an entire universe. For those who may somehow not know who you are... who are you?

White Male Guest

Hi Calvin. I’m Stan Lee, the fellow who had the incredible luck of co-creating characters like Spider-Man, the X-Men, Iron Man, and the Incredible Hulk. I’ve spent most of my life as a writer, editor, and publisher, trying to bring a little bit of magic and humanity to the colorful pages of comic books.

Calvin

You certainly did that! Let's go back to the very beginning. When and where were you born?

White Male Guest

I made my grand entrance into the world on December 28, 1922. I was born in a small apartment on West 98th Street in Manhattan, New York City.

Calvin

And what was your given name at birth?

White Male Guest

My parents named me Stanley Martin Lieber.

Calvin

Is there a story behind your birth name?

White Male Guest

Not a particularly long one, but there is a story about why I changed it! You see, back then, comics weren't exactly seen as "high art." I dreamed of being a "serious" novelist one day, so I used the pen name "Stan Lee" for the funny books, saving "Stanley Martin Lieber" for the Great American Novel I planned to write. Eventually, Stan Lee became so synonymous with who I was that I just made it legal!

Calvin

That worked out pretty well for us! What was your hometown like growing up?

White Male Guest

New York was a different world then. We moved around a bit, eventually landing in Washington Heights in the Bronx. It was the Depression era, so things were tough for everyone. The streets were crowded, but they were full of life and character. That city energy definitely stayed with me.

Calvin

What was your family life like?

White Male Guest

My parents were Jewish immigrants from Romania. My father, Jack, was a dress cutter, but work was very scarce during the Depression. My mother, Celia, was the one who really encouraged my love for reading. It was a modest life, often stressful because of money, but there was a lot of love and a lot of books.

Calvin

What kind of kid were you?

White Male Guest

I was a dreamer! I always had my nose in a book or was sitting in a movie theater watching Errol Flynn. I was energetic and always looking for a way to help out. I worked all sorts of little jobs just to bring home a few extra cents for the family.

Calvin

What were your biggest fears growing up?

White Male Guest

Honestly? My biggest fear was seeing my father unemployed and unhappy. It instilled a deep-seated drive in me to always be working, to always be productive. I was afraid of being idle because, in my house, being idle meant you weren't surviving.

Calvin

What did you dream of becoming as a child?

White Male Guest

I wanted to write! I wanted to be like Mark Twain or Arthur Conan Doyle. I wanted to create something that would last, something that would make people feel the way I felt when I watched those big adventure movies.

Calvin

What were some of your favorite activities in school?

White Male Guest

I loved English, naturally! I was also quite fond of the high school newspaper and the magazine. Anything involving words and storytelling was where I felt most at home.

Calvin

What was your first job?

White Male Guest

Oh, I had a million of them! I delivered sandwiches for pharmacies, I was an office boy for a trouser manufacturer, and I even wrote obituaries for a news service. But my first "real" job in the industry was as an assistant at Timely Comics in 1939.

Calvin

Was there a moment where you realized you were different from everyone else?

White Male Guest

I don't know if I felt "different" in a grand way, but I realized I had a knack for seeing the human side of things. When I started writing, I didn't want the heroes to be perfect. I wanted them to have bad hair days and worry about their rent. That realization—that people want to see themselves in their heroes—that was a turning point.

Calvin

What’s a decision that changed everything for you, but felt small at the time?

White Male Guest

In the early 60s, I was ready to quit. I was tired of writing the same old "hero versus monster" stories. My wife, Joan, told me, "If you're going to quit anyway, why not write one story the way you want to write it?" So, I created the Fantastic Four. I gave them flaws and family squabbles. I thought it would be my last book, but it changed everything.

Calvin

What was your biggest break?

White Male Guest

It was definitely that moment with the Fantastic Four. It proved that there was an audience for "The World Outside Your Window." It led to Spider-Man, the Avengers, and the whole Marvel Age.

Calvin

What were your biggest struggles before success?

White Male Guest

For years, comics were looked down upon. I used to be embarrassed to tell people what I did for a living! People thought they were just for kids or for people who couldn't read well. Fighting that stigma was a long, uphill battle.

Calvin

Did you ever consider quitting?

White Male Guest

Many times! Right before the Fantastic Four, I was truly at the end of my rope. I felt like I was stuck in a creative rut. I'm so glad Joan talked me out of it.

Calvin

Were there any specific daily habits or routines that you feel are essential to your success?

White Male Guest

I never stopped writing. Even when I was an executive, I’d be jotting down ideas. I also made it a point to communicate with the fans. The "Stan’s Soapbox" column and the letters pages were essential. I wanted the readers to feel like they were part of a club.

Calvin

What job would you have had if fame never happened?

White Male Guest

I probably would have been a schoolteacher or a very mediocre novelist. I loved explaining things and I loved stories, so I would have found a way to work with words.

Calvin

What was your life like before fame?

White Male Guest

It was quiet. I was a family man. I spent my days at the office and my evenings with Joan and our daughter, JC. I was just a guy trying to meet a deadline.

Calvin

How did relationships change after success?

White Male Guest

For the most part, they didn't! I stayed married to my wonderful Joan for 69 years. Success just meant I got to meet more people who loved the stories as much as I did.

Calvin

Did fame bring happiness?

White Male Guest

The fame itself was nice, but the real happiness came from the impact. Seeing a kid's face light up because of Spider-Man, or hearing how the X-Men helped someone feel less alone—that was the real joy.

Calvin

What was the downside of becoming famous?

White Male Guest

You lose a bit of your privacy, and sometimes people expect you to have all the answers. I’m just a writer! And of course, there were the legal battles over credits and characters later on, which were never fun.

Calvin

What misconceptions did people have about you?

White Male Guest

Some people thought I did everything by myself. I always tried to shout it from the rooftops: I worked with geniuses! Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko, Don Heck... these artists were my co-creators. Marvel was a team effort.

Calvin

What was your darkest moment?

White Male Guest

Losing my daughter Jan, who passed away only days after she was born, was devastating. And of course, losing my Joanie in 2017. She was my entire world.

Calvin

What past regrets did you carry, that you spoke about?

White Male Guest

I wish I had been more careful with some of the business side of things early on. And I always wished I had spent even more time just being a "fan" with the fans.

Calvin

What’s something people misunderstood about your life?

White Male Guest

People see the cameos and the big movies and think I was a billionaire. I did well, but I was an employee for a long time! I did it for the love of the characters, not just the paycheck.

Calvin

Tell me about a time when everything went wrong and how did you handle it?

White Male Guest

There was a period in the late 40s when the comic book industry almost collapsed because of censorship and the "Comics Code." We had to reinvent ourselves entirely. I handled it by just keeping my head down and writing whatever was needed—romance, westerns, anything to keep the lights on until the heroes could come back.

Calvin

Did fame and fortune change your life?

White Male Guest

It gave me a bigger platform to spread a message of inclusion and excitement. It didn't change who I was at my core, but it certainly made the ride a lot more interesting!

Calvin

Who had the biggest influence on your life?

White Male Guest

My wife, Joan. She was my inspiration, my critic, and my best friend. Without her, there would be no Marvel Universe as we know it.

Calvin

What was life like in your final years?

White Male Guest

I stayed busy! I loved doing those cameos in the Marvel movies. It was like a giant party where everyone was invited. I was surrounded by people who cared about me, and I spent as much time as I could interacting with the "True Believers."

Calvin

What were you working on in your career before you passed away?

White Male Guest

I was always developing new characters through my company, POW! Entertainment. I was also helping plan out the future cameos and just enjoying seeing the MCU become the biggest thing in the world.

Calvin

When and where did you pass away?

White Male Guest

I passed away on November 12, 2018, at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.

Calvin

What’s a random fact about you most people have never heard?

White Male Guest

I once wrote a series of comics for DC! It was called "Just Imagine..." where I reimagined their characters like Batman and Superman. It was a hoot!

Calvin

What’s the craziest rumor ever told about you?

White Male Guest

Oh, there were rumors that I didn't actually write anything and just took the credit. If only they knew how many late nights I spent hunched over a typewriter until my fingers cramped!

Calvin

What was your most unique habit?

White Male Guest

I used to love pacing. I couldn't think sitting down. I’d walk circles around the office or my home, acting out the dialogue as I thought of it.

Calvin

What was your favorite food?

White Male Guest

I was a simple man. Give me a good Nathan's hot dog or a nice piece of fish, and I was happy.

Calvin

What was your favorite book?

White Male Guest

I loved anything by William Shakespeare or Edgar Allan Poe. The classics never go out of style!

Calvin

Did you have any known rivalries?

White Male Guest

People loved to invent a rivalry between me and DC Comics, but it was all in good fun. We called them "The Distinguished Competition." It kept us all on our toes!

Calvin

Tell us a story nobody talks about.

White Male Guest

When I was in the Army during WWII, my official classification was "Playwright." There were only nine of us in the whole Army with that title! I spent the war writing training films and manuals. I like to think I helped win the war with my typewriter.

Calvin

What’s your funniest behind-the-scenes moment?

White Male Guest

Filming the cameos was always a laugh. One time, I had to play a guy who gets his drink spiked with Asgardian liquor in an Avengers movie. I wasn't even acting—I was just having the time of my life!

Calvin

Did you ever prank someone?

White Male Guest

I was more of a joker than a prankster. I loved giving everyone at the office nicknames. "Jolly" Jack Kirby, "Sturdy" Steve Ditko... it made the workplace feel like a family.

Calvin

What was the most outlandish purchase you made?

White Male Guest

I wasn't a very flashy guy, but I did enjoy a nice house in the Hollywood Hills. Coming from a tiny apartment in the Bronx, that felt pretty outlandish to me!

Calvin

What advice would you give people chasing success?

White Male Guest

Don't just try to be successful—try to be useful. If you create something that people need or something that makes them happy, the success will follow. And never, ever give up on your "Fantastic Four" moment.

Calvin

Stan, this has been an absolute honor. Before we sign off, do you have any closing remarks or stories you'd like to share with our listeners?

White Male Guest

Just this: The world is a big, beautiful, crazy place. Be a hero in your own story. You don't need a cape to stand up for what's right or to be kind to a neighbor. Keep dreaming, keep creating, and most importantly... Excelsior! Thank you for having me, Calvin. It’s been a blast!

Calvin

Truly legendary. We’ve been talking to the one and only Stan Lee about the power of storytelling, the importance of human flaws, and why you should always listen to your wife! Thank you again, Stan. And that wraps up another conversation from beyond the grave. Thanks for joining us on The Headstones and Microphones Podcast. Remember—legends may die, but their stories never do. Please help spread the word by sharing and following the pod.