Stan Lee, in my mind, has to be one of the
all time most recognizable individuals in
the "Comic Book Industry". Most lovers of
comic books have known his name all their
collecting lives. For those of you who don't
know his name, I am sure you have heard
of his creations. The X-Men, the Fantastic
Four, the Incredible Hulk, Daredevil, and
the very well known Spider-Man are all from
the mind of Stan Lee. For the last forty
years or more and as an employee of Marvel
Comics, he has entertained us through the
art of comic book imagination.
Well, by now you would think that an
individual of this caliber would be taken
seriously and treated with respect from
his employers. Apparently not! In 2002
Stan Lee decided he had to file a lawsuit
against the comic giant, Marvel. It appears
the agreement between Lee and Marvel was
that 10% of the income generated from
TV and movies using Lee characters, was
to be his. Seems Marvel didn't see it
that way. Typical of conglomerates, isn't
it? The boys in the suits seem to want
to make all the rules. Stan at one time
had even been a suit. Among other positions
held at Marvel, Lee had even been president
of the company for a while.
Years ago when Stan Lee had created
most of his characters, he had done it
through a write-for-hire agreement, so
he doesn't own the characters. Stan was
then, just a "meat and potatoes" kind
of guy, trying to put meat and potatoes
on the table. But over the years, he was
very instrumental in putting Marvel Comics
on the map.
When the 10% deal was formally put together,
apparently most individuals involved didn't
realize the windfall that comic book character
movies would become. Now is that any reason
to hold back Stan's piece of the pie?
I think not. Just corporate bigwigs trying
to increase their lot in life. Now this
is just my opinion so don't rant back
at me as being unfair.
As luck would have it, a federal judge
agreed and ruled in favor of Lee. How
much monetary compensation does this mean?
Well to put it in perspective, the two
Spider- Man movies thus far, have reaped
on the order of 800 million dollars apiece,
in world wide ticket sales. This settlement
could mean tens of millions of dollars
for Lee, but the battle is not over. Marvel,
will quite probably appeal the verdict
and the case may be tied up in the courts
for years.
Now don't go feeling too badly for Stan
Lee. He is still pulling down a salary
from Marvel on the order of a million
dollars. Still not to shabby in my mind.
And Lee has mixed feels because he has
been loyal to Marvel for 60 years. To
have his lifelong employer trying to,
shall we say, stiff him, for being so
loyal, I'm sure, does hurt. Had it not
been for Lee, Marvel may not have been
in the financial position they are today.
At 82, Stan Lee does have a comfortable
and successful life. And if even his settlement
is held up in the courts for years, Stan
won the first round. He didn't bow down
to the corporate hammer. Just another
"Joe working class hero" yelling out,
hey guys, let's play by the rules.
Dave Gieber, a former rocket engineer,
has decided to take up residency on the
Internet. He is the owner and editor of
several websites, one of which was built
around one of his childhood passions;
www.comic-book-collection-made-easy.com
. You can visit here to keep up to date
on the world of comic books and comic
book collecting. Feel free to sign up
for my comic book ezine.
