Reflecting on 'Stan the Man.'
When I was in sixth grade, I traded a book for a comic book. The novel was 'Pimp; the Story of My Life' by Iceberg Slim. If your eyes bugged out at that, remember that I was a voracious reader and yes, I read everything. The comic book was an X-Men by Marvel Comics, and the friend with whom I swapped books still swears that the exchange changed both of our lives. I agree.
Up until that swap, the comic books I'd read were Archie, Richie Rich, and DC Comics. All of these featured White characters who lived mostly perfect existences. I didn't identify with any of them, which explains why I wasn't much of a comic book reader.
That X-Men book though, it was different. The characters were flawed, imperfect, and they were social outcasts based on things they couldn't control, like the skin they were born in. Whoa. Wait? What? Alcoholism, orphans, anger management issues, unrequited love, etc. These characters were deeper than their surface appearances, and I was introduced to the world of Marvel Comics and a man named Stan Lee.
Kids from the inner city couldn't and didn't identify with Superman (Son of Ja?), Batman (Billionaire), and the super heroes of DC Comics. There were no commonalities with them, and they were vanilla, white bread, unseasoned chicken, and bland potato salad. But the X-Men? Black Panther? The Falcon? Wow. Mutants? We all bought in, and we became lifelong fans of Marvel Comics.
Stanley Lieber was a Jewish gentleman, who abhorred racism and classism. Stan Lee was his pseudonym, which he later adopted legally as his name. When the sun set on his wonderful life, I was thankful that he and his creations had been part of my life. Dig, the characters Professor X and Magneto were based on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and Malcolm X. Can't you tell? Stan Lee acknowledged their greatness and their vision, and the characters mimic the different perspectives of those two giants.
Who's your favorite character? T'Challa? Storm? Captain America? Deadpool? The Hulk? Spiderman? Antman? Wolverine? The list of possibilities is endless. For the record, my favorite character is Tony Starks aka Ironman.
My bowling family wore Marvel t-shirts on Sunday to acknowledge and honor the legacy of Stan Lee and Marvel Comics. He influenced our minds, our perceptions, pop culture, and his creations are timeless. There will never be another Stan Lee, but his influence will be felt for generations. One hundred years from now, some kid who feels underrepresented, unwanted, and underappreciated, will pick up a Marvel comic book. He'll wonder at the name 'Stan Lee' and then he'll begin reading. A smile will spread slowly across his face as he becomes familiar with characters who have the same issues he faces in his life...
That's the legacy of Stan Lee, a tender-hearted genius who made kids from the hood see the possibilities that the world has to offer. Thank you brother for everything.
