Marvel pays tribute to Stan Lee on his 100th birthday

Stan Lee is well known as one of the founding fathers of Marvel Comics, alongside artists such as Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko, and many others, who created the original building blocks of the Marvel Universe starting with Fantastic Four #1 over 60 years ago. And now, to mark what would have been the late writer's 100th birthday on December 28, Marvel is running a special tribute page included in some of its December 2022 releases, starting with comics coming out on December 7.

Drawn by longtime Marvel artist Humberto Ramos, the image features Stan Lee standing proudly among dozens of the Marvel Comics characters he created - heroes and villains alike - including Scarlet Witch, Doctor Strange, Thor, the Inhumans, the Fantastic Four, the X-Men, Baron Zemo, Kingpin, Black Panther, Galactus, Silver Surfer, Spider-Man, and many more, along with the message "100 years and still inspiring us all. We love you, Stan!".

Even for those who don't read comics, where Lee was one of the first creators to make himself and his co-creators as much a personality and a draw as the characters they depicted in their stories, he's well known as the face of Marvel Comics thanks to his traditional cameos in Marvel movies.

Lee began working in comics back when Marvel was still called Timely, back in the '40s. His first superhero story was a text-only Captain America tale that included the first instance of him throwing his shield. Alongside artist Jack Kirby, Lee created Fantastic Four #1, the comic that launched the Marvel Universe. 

Lee passed away in 2018 at the age of 95.

Stan Lee co-created some of the best Marvel characters of all time.