The Fall of a Hero

The Stan (The Man) Lee Marvel Value Stamp, one of many stamps running from 1974-1976, was one of the Series B stamps.

Marvel Value Stamps

The Stan (The Man) Lee Marvel Value Stamp, one of many stamps running from 1974-1976, was one of the Series B stamps.

On Monday, November 12th, Marvel lost one of their most iconic employees: Stan Lee. Lee was the co-creator for many of Marvel’s best-known heroes, including Iron Man, Thor, Spider-Man, The X-Men, and The Fantastic Four. In 1939, a 17-year-old Lee took up the job of being an assistant at Timely Comics, which would later become Marvel, and worked with the franchise up until his death. By 1972, Lee was the publisher for and face of Marvel.

Recently, Lee went through a pneumonia diagnosis and sexual misconduct accusation. He had been announced dead earlier in the year and was even reported to have had his blood stolen in order to sign collectible comics.

In 2017, he lost his wife, Joan Lee, to a stroke. In 2016, he announced that he could no longer read his own comics and that he failed to make a cameo appearance in the 2017 film Logan.

After taking over as the publisher for Marvel, Lee made an effort to stay in touch with fans which included writing a column that he called “Stan’s Soapbox”. During these, he often used his catchphrase “Nuff Said” and the sign-off “Excelsior!” Later, he turned to Twitter for communication with his fans.

This sign-off became Lee’s sign-off from his loving fans upon his passing, including several celebrities. Elon Musk and Lin-Manuel Miranda were among the celebrities crying out on Twitter in mourning for the late icon, and among those using the sign-off were Chris Evans and DC Comics. “There will never be another Stan Lee,” Evans took to Twitter to announce. “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!!”

The official cause of death is still unknown, but it’s believed that Lee died of pneumonia. In early February, he was rushed to the hospital for breath shortness and irregular heartbeat, both of which are symptoms of pneumonia.

It’s time to pull out the old Marvel movies and play a game of ‘Where’s Lee’ in search of his famous cameos with a box of tissues and ice cream. Excelsior, Stan Lee.