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True believer : the rise and fall of Stan Lee / Abraham Riesman.

By: Material type: TextTextPublisher: New York : Crown, [2021]Edition: First editionDescription: 394 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some color) ; 25 cmContent type:
  • text
Media type:
  • unmediated
Carrier type:
  • volume
ISBN:
  • 9780593135716
  • 0593135717
Subject(s): Genre/Form:
Contents:
Overture : what it takes -- Ambition and its discontents. Escape at any cost (To 1939) ; Means of ascent (1939-1945) ; Quiet desperation (1945-1961) -- Mister Marvel. What price victory? (1961-1966) ; Lonely at the top (1966-1972) ; Chafing in the C-suite (1972-1980) ; Lost in Hollywood (1980-1998) -- Get rich quick. The great experiment (1998-2001) ; Spotlight and shadow (2001-2017) ; Disintegration (2017-2018).
Summary: "The definitive, revelatory biography of Marvel Comics creator Stan Lee, an artist and entrepreneur who reshaped global pop culture at a steep personal cost. Stan Lee-born Stanley Martin Lieber in 1922-is one of the most beloved and influential entertainers to emerge from the twentieth century. He served as editor in chief of Marvel Comics for three decades and, in that time, launched more pieces of internationally recognizable intellectual property than anyone other than Walt Disney: Spider-Man, the Avengers, the X-Men, Black Panther, the Incredible Hulk, Iron Man, Thor...the list seems to never end. On top of that, his carnival-barker marketing prowess more or less single-handedly saved the comic-book industry and superhero fiction. Without him, the global entertainment industry would be wildly different-and a great deal poorer. But Lee's unprecedented career was also pitted with spectacular failures, controversy, and bitter disputes. Lee was dogged by accusations from his longtime collaborators Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko over who really created Marvel's signature characters-icons for whom Lee had always been suspected of taking more than his due share of credit. A major business venture, Stan Lee Media, resulted in stock manipulation, bankruptcy, and criminal charges. And in his final years, after the death of his beloved wife, Joan, rumors swirled that Lee was a virtual prisoner in his own home, issuing cryptic video recordings as a battle to control his fortune and legacy ensued. Abraham Riesman is a veteran culture reporter who has conducted extensive new interviews and research, turning up never-before-published revelations about Lee's life and work. Lee's most famous motto was: "With great power comes great responsibility." True Believer chronicles every triumph and every misstep of an extraordinary life, and leaves it to readers to decide whether Lee lived up to the responsibilities of his own talent"-- Provided by publisher.
Holdings
Item type Home library Collection Call number Materials specified Status Date due Barcode Item holds
Adult Book Adult Book Dr. James Carlson Library Biography LEE, S. R561 Available 33111009792405
Adult Book Adult Book Main Library Biography LEE, S. R561 Available 33111010486286
Total holds: 0

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

The definitive, revelatory biography of Marvel Comics icon Stan Lee, a writer and entrepreneur who reshaped global pop culture-at a steep personal cost

"Abiography that reads like a thriller or a whodunit . . .scrupulously honest, deeply damning, and sometimes even heartbreaking."-Neil Gaiman

Stan Lee was one of the most famous and beloved entertainers to emerge from the twentieth century. He served as head editor of Marvel Comics for three decades and, in that time, became known as the creator of more pieces of internationally recognizable intellectual property than nearly anyone- Spider-Man, the Avengers, the X-Men, Black Panther, the Incredible Hulk . . . the list goes on. His carnival-barker marketing prowess helped save the comic-book industry and superhero fiction. His cameos in Marvel movies have charmed billions. When he died in 2018, grief poured in from around the world, further cementing his legacy.

But what if Stan Lee wasn't who he said he was? To craft the definitive biography of Lee, Abraham Riesman conducted more than 150 interviews and investigated thousands of pages of private documents, turning up never-before-published revelations about Lee's life and work. True Believer tackles tough questions- Did Lee actually create the characters he gained fame for creating? Was he complicit in millions of dollars' worth of fraud in his post-Marvel life? Which members of the cavalcade of grifters who surrounded him were most responsible for the misery of his final days?

And, above all, what drove this man to achieve so much yet always boast of more?

"The definitive, revelatory biography of Marvel Comics creator Stan Lee, an artist and entrepreneur who reshaped global pop culture at a steep personal cost. Stan Lee-born Stanley Martin Lieber in 1922-is one of the most beloved and influential entertainers to emerge from the twentieth century. He served as editor in chief of Marvel Comics for three decades and, in that time, launched more pieces of internationally recognizable intellectual property than anyone other than Walt Disney: Spider-Man, the Avengers, the X-Men, Black Panther, the Incredible Hulk, Iron Man, Thor...the list seems to never end. On top of that, his carnival-barker marketing prowess more or less single-handedly saved the comic-book industry and superhero fiction. Without him, the global entertainment industry would be wildly different-and a great deal poorer. But Lee's unprecedented career was also pitted with spectacular failures, controversy, and bitter disputes. Lee was dogged by accusations from his longtime collaborators Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko over who really created Marvel's signature characters-icons for whom Lee had always been suspected of taking more than his due share of credit. A major business venture, Stan Lee Media, resulted in stock manipulation, bankruptcy, and criminal charges. And in his final years, after the death of his beloved wife, Joan, rumors swirled that Lee was a virtual prisoner in his own home, issuing cryptic video recordings as a battle to control his fortune and legacy ensued. Abraham Riesman is a veteran culture reporter who has conducted extensive new interviews and research, turning up never-before-published revelations about Lee's life and work. Lee's most famous motto was: "With great power comes great responsibility." True Believer chronicles every triumph and every misstep of an extraordinary life, and leaves it to readers to decide whether Lee lived up to the responsibilities of his own talent"-- Provided by publisher.

Includes bibliographical references (pages [341]-376) and index.

Overture : what it takes -- Ambition and its discontents. Escape at any cost (To 1939) ; Means of ascent (1939-1945) ; Quiet desperation (1945-1961) -- Mister Marvel. What price victory? (1961-1966) ; Lonely at the top (1966-1972) ; Chafing in the C-suite (1972-1980) ; Lost in Hollywood (1980-1998) -- Get rich quick. The great experiment (1998-2001) ; Spotlight and shadow (2001-2017) ; Disintegration (2017-2018).

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