By Madelyn Novick
Comic book fans across the world are having to cope with the tragic loss of comic book legend, Stan Lee.
Stan Lee was a very well-known comic book artist and creator. Many consider him the Godfather of comic books due to his various famous creations.
Lee’s cause of death was recently revealed, even though the famous artist died on November 12th after being rushed to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. His death certificate lists his cause of death to be both heart and respiratory failure caused by aspiration pneumonia, which occurs when food, saliva, or stomach acid is inhaled into your lungs.
Lee was the creator of various famous Marvel comic book characters during his time as Editor-in-Chief of Marvel Comics, including Spider-Man, Iron Man, Black Panther, Thanos, the Fantastic Four, The Avengers, The X-Men, and so many more. It’s almost impossible to find a corner of Marvel comics he was not involved in creating.
During his time, Lee’s passion could be felt by the fans. Lee also made various talks about topics that mattered to him, such as redefining the Comics Code Authority, discrimination, intolerance, and drugs.
Lee was also a World War 2 veteran from the Signal Corps Training Film Division. The Signal Corps is mostly known for its war changing inventions such as radars and the extremely useful walkie-talkie.
Later on, in the war, Lee learned how to string together communication lines, and helped in the research to help bounce radio waves off of the moon. Lee was assigned to the Film Corps division of the Signal Corps, where he and 8 others worked on making propaganda, public relations pieces, and information sharing documents.
Lee recalled, “I wrote training films, I wrote film scripts, I did posters, I wrote instructional manuals, I was one of the great teachers of our time!” Notably, Lee worked with Theodor Giesel, better known as Dr. Seuss.
Many people believe Lee’s time in the war is what gave him the idea for Captain America.
Lee’s death has affected many due to his impact on the entertainment world as a whole. Many of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s cast have tweeted out their condolences.
Robert Downey Jr., otherwise known as Tony Stark, posted on Instagram, “I owe it all to you,,,Rest in Peace Stan.” Chris Evans, who portrays Captain America, also went on to tweet, “There will never be another Stan Lee. For decades he provided both young and old with adventure, escape, comfort, confidence, inspiration, strength, friendship and joy. He exuded love and kindness and will leave an indelible mark on so, so, so many lives. Excelsior!!”
One of the more in-depth posts came from Hugh Jackman, the actor of Wolverine, who tweeted, “We’ve lost a creative genius. Stan Lee was a pioneering force in the superhero universe. I’m proud to have been a small part of his legacy and …. to have helped bring one of his characters to life,” and then stated on The Tonight Show, “I remember Stan as a true gentleman who had this glint in his eye. He’s a creative genius. He thought outside of the box. He created a whole universe that changed the lives of many people – mine included.”
While we will all miss the creator of many childhoods, we must remember that he lived a good life, and had the privilege to be able to influence us fans. So, in remembrance of Lee, let us all remember his favorite phrase, “Excelsior!”
