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| Stan Lee and the Rise and Fall of the American Comic Book | 
 enlarge | Authors: Jordan Raphael, Tom Spurgeon
Publisher: Chicago Review Press
Category: Book
List Price: $16.95
Buy New: $6.49
You Save: $10.46 (62%)
New (22) Used (10) from $5.84
Avg. Customer Rating:  19 reviews
Sales Rank: 236440
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 320
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 8.8 x 5.9 x 0.8
ISBN: 1556525419
Dewey Decimal Number: 741.5092
EAN: 9781556525414
ASIN: 1556525419
Publication Date: September 1, 2004
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
Based on interviews with Stan Lee and dozens of his colleagues and contemporaries, as well as extensive archival research, this book provides a professional history, an appreciation, and a critical exploration of the face of Marvel Comics. Recognized as a dazzling writer, a skilled editor, a relentless self-promoter, a credit hog, and a huckster, Stan Lee rose from his humble beginnings to ride the wave of the 1940s comic books boom and witness the current motion picture madness and comic industry woes. Included is a complete examination of the rise of Marvel Comics, Lee’s work in the years of postwar prosperity, and his efforts in the 1960s to revitalize the medium after it had grown stale.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 14 more reviews...
 Good On Older History Of The Industry, Apologists For Mr. Lee? October 9, 2007
21 out of 23 found this review helpful
This is an intruiging narrative of Stan Lee's career & his influence on the American comic book industry. The title is a bit of an oversimplification, the industry went through many business cycles of highs & lows over the twentieth century. Marvel went from an IPO, bankruptcy, & than an unexpected resurgence in the past decade or two.
The author gives you a not so surprisingly "Marvel centric view," which is fine up to a point. I did find his describing the creation of Spiderman & the X-men very good. The former remains my favorite character. Had there been more on DC Comics Superman, European, & Japanese influences I might have given it 5 stars? But, Stan Lee & his cocreators at Marvel provides the reader with a deep & vivid life at the prolific & hectic early years with Lee presiding as editor & writer over many artists who worked slavishly for low pay.
I can see why so much bitterness & controversy erupted over the decades about Mr. Lee's putting his name on most Marvel productions was certainly shameless self promotion. On the whole, the writing is fairly measured to impart a balanced account. Noting that in the old system where work-for-hire was not well defined & comic book artists had little profile in the limelight. Tod McFarlane & Frank Miller appear to be the exceptions. as you get deeper into the book, you get the sense that Sstan Lee sided with the corporate side over the petitions by the artists out of necessity rather than malice on his part. Perhaps, Mr. Lee's convivial nature hid his own insecurities about his own talents?
I got the feeling that some points were discarded & the book is only a half history. Nonetheless, it fills the void in an industry that never got the respect it deserved & I give it four stars. Perhaps, someday someone will write a complete history of this fascinating topic?
A Great, Concise Comix History BUT... June 23, 2006
This book has some pluses and minuses. It DOES desperately need illustrations; however it's well-written and a fascinating read. Raphael and Spurgeon do a great job of overviewing the history of comic books, describing the business side of the industry, and explaining the importance of Stan Lee's contribution. However the authors' finale is, IMHO, unfairly negative. Lee gets needled here, not I think out of bias, but as a bit of fudging the truth for entertainment purposes...
Comic books were invented in 1934 and the first superhero, Superman, debuted in 1938. Stan Lee entered the field shortly afterwards as a go-fer at the publishing house of his cousin, Martin Goodman. Lee soldiered on for Goodman as the boom times gave way to bust, and essentially single-handedly kept Marvel going during the mediums' '50s decline. If Lee hadn't been Goodman's cousin, or if Lee had just given up on the medium and looked for other work, the history of comic books would have been VERY different. Instead Lee created the environment in which superheroes were reinvented in the '60s, reinvigorating the mainstream. He then became essentially a PR person for Marvel in Hollywood.
Lee is an engaging and relentless promoter of the medium in general and Marvel in particular, and in the cynical '80s he was castigated for taking too much credit for his role in creating characters produced by the collaborative model he invented for comic-book production. Raphael and Spurgeon give a qualified defense of Lee against these charges but are not, IMHO, entirely fair in evaluating Lee, particularly in the terms of the complex circumstances surrounding Jack Kirby's claims on the "Marvel Universe." Ultimately the authors condemn Lee as a phoney and almost a hack, a conclusion I think is very unfair.
As someone who was reading comics from the late '60s into the '70s, I don't remember fans of the MEDIUM under-appreciating the contributions of Kirby or Ditko. On the contrary, those interested in comics as an art form tended to give FAR more credit to the artists of the mainstream than to Lee and his fellow editor-writers at DC etc. Fans of the Marvel LINE undoubtedly did worship Lee - and therefore bought the comix, which was really the whole point of the Lee persona! As for Lee not giving credit to his collaborators, Marvel was THE comix publisher that trumpeted who the artists were: try reading a '60s Dell, Gold Key, Tower, or even DC comic and try to figure out who the penciller, inker, writer, or colorist were!!! Lee, editor, writer, office manager, chief-cook-and-bottle-washer, put that info on page one, in BIG letters: step one to getting the artists the credit and remuneration that even Bill Gaines never gave away. Kudos to Stan Lee!
 Not just for true believers June 5, 2006
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
An awful lot of fun to read. Moves quickly without leaving major gaps. It's a balanced telling of Lee's growth and influence within the comic book industry while addressing the changes the industry also went through. The book doesn't lay the story down in black and white. We hear of wise choices and poor choices made by most parties involved through Stan's years. If you have grievances with the man, you may feel it falls a little short; if you are a fan, you'll feel twinges of regret when some thoughts, actions, and motives are revealed. In either case, it's hard to dismiss the infectious spirit and nature Stan Lee carries with his work and you have to admit his influence continues to be felt in the comicbook/storytelling world.
Great overview of Lee and Marvel August 18, 2005
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
This book gives an excellent overview of Stan Lee and his contribution to Marvel and the history of comics. It came across as a balanced view, praising Lee's strengths as well as showing his weaknesses (and we all have them.)
As I read, though, I wanted more detailed information on the 1960s glory years of Marvel; instead, this decade had the same amount of information as the rest and sometimes not as specific. I would've liked some interviews with others as to what they thought of Lee's working relationship with Kirby and Ditko, for example. Overall, though, highly recommended!
Comprehensive and balanced account of a controverisal figure April 13, 2005
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
Stan Lee has been the center of debate in the comic book world for years as to his being an innovative genius or a credit-stealing hack. As this book ably demonstrates the truth is closer to the middle. The authors use extensive research and in-depth interviews to make their case that despite Lee's grabbing of other credit that belonged to other artists, Lee's legitimate contributions to comic books should establish him as true innovator. The book asserts that Lee was able to create unique personalities and dialogue for his characters that distinguished them from other comic books as well as each other. This approach made Marvel's characters different from the cookie cutter personalities that DC had to offer at this time. However, Lee failed to acknowledge the invaluable contributions of other artists to his "Marvel Method," and this has hurt his reputation significantly. This book is balanced in its treatment of both Lee and his critics.
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