Stan Lee was born Stanley Martin Lieber, and he was an American comic book writer, editor, publisher, and producer who helped in the evolution of Marvel Comics. Lee was born in Manhattan, New York City, to Romanian-born Jewish parents; he was raised in a Jewish family. His father, who was a dress cutter, could not find a job after the Great Depression, and the family had to move to Washington Heights. Lee's love for reading and writing started in his childhood, with books and movies as his primary source of inspiration; he was fond of heroes of the times, such as Errol Flynn.

Lee got his first job in the comic book industry in 1939 when he joined the staff of Timely Comics, which later on became Marvel Comics. He started at the bottom and worked his way up; his first credited work was the text story "Captain America Foils the Traitor's Revenge," in Captain America Comics #3, published in 1941. Lee was in the U. S. Army during World War II and worked as a writer of training manuals and films. After the war, he returned to Timely, which later became Atlas, and then Marvel Comics.

In the 1960s, with the help of artists like Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, Lee transformed the comic book industry by giving depth and real-life-like characteristics to the characters. It includes Spiderman, the X-Men, Iron Man, Thor, the Hulk, the Fantastic Four, Black Panther, and Daredevil. These characters and their stories brought a more realistic and down-to-earth feel to the superhero comics; they focused on issues in the real world and the characters' imperfections. Lee's writing and how he edited the articles helped build a community between the readers and the creators.

Lee impacted not only comic books but also television and movies. He was involved in developing Marvel characters for other platforms, which culminated in the creation of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Lee was also an iconic figure, making many special appearances in the Marvel movies and series. He faced many legal fights and personal struggles in his career, but his influence on pop culture did not wane.

In the last years of his life, Lee had issues of elder abuse, and there were lawsuits over the ownership of his creations. Nevertheless, he remained a very productive artist and in 1971, he established POW! Entertainment to create new heroes and plots. Lee succumbed to cancer on November 12, 2018, and to date, he is still a source of motivation to millions of fans. He has received several accolades and honors in his career, such as being named into the Will Eisner Award Hall of Fame and Jack Kirby Hall of Fame, and even received the National Medal of Arts.