Media Release -- With the recent release of films on Thor and Captain America, and next summer's Avengers movie looming, interest in Stan Lee is at an all-time high. A new book from TwoMorrows Publishing mixes rare interviews with "The Man" behind the Marvel Comics universe, along with memorabilia from his archives, to take readers on a trip through a veritable vault of items by and about Stan Lee. The book is scheduled to be released to the general public on November 9, 2011, but a limited number of pre-release copies will be on sale at this week's New York Comic-Con, at Booth #2839.
Edited by Stan's colleagues Roy Thomas and Danny Fingeroth, The STAN LEE UNIVERSE presents a colorful portrait of the co-creator of some of the most iconic pop-culture characters ever created (Spider-Man, the X-Men, Iron Man, Thor, the Hulk, and others). As writer, editor, and art director of Marvel Comics in the 1960s, he worked with fellow creators like Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko to create the immensely popular Marvel Comics line, and spread the word about Marvel on radio, television, and in countless publications. This book compiles a plethora of memorabilia direct from Stan's personal archives, including rare photos, sample scripts and plots, and many other unseen items.
Included are such treasures as: Personal correspondence between Stan and such prominent figures as JAMES CAMERON, OLIVER STONE, RAY BRADBURY, ALAIN RESNAIS, and (Sinatra lyricist and pal) SAMMY CAHN. Transcripts of 1960s radio interviews with Stan during the early Marvel era—one co-featuring JACK KIRBY, and one with Stan debating Dr. Fredric Wertham's partner in psychological innovation and hating comics. Rarely seen art by legends including JACK KIRBY, JOHN ROMITA SR. and JOE MANEELY, including plot, script, and balloon placements from the 1978 SILVER SURFER GRAPHIC NOVEL. Also included are notes by RICHARD CORBEN and WILL EISNER for Marvel projects that never came to be, and more, including commentary and anecdotes from JOHN ROMITA SR. & JR., TODD McFARLANE, ROY THOMAS, DENNIS O'NEIL, GENE COLAN, AL JAFFEE, LARRY LIEBER, JERRY ROBINSON, and MICHAEL USLAN discussing his vital importance to the field he helped shape.
It's Stan Lee's universe—we just dream in it. If you have an interest in comics, super-heroes, or pop culture in general—or of course, in Stan Lee in particular—the STAN LEE UNIVERSE is must-reading.
SOFTCOVER:
176-page Trade Paperback with Color
Print version: $26.95 cover price
Digital Edition: $8.95
ISBN-13: 978-1-60549-029-8
Diamond Comic Distributors Order Code: APR111201
HARDCOVER:
192-page Hardcover with 16 additional Color Pages, dust jacket, and custom endleaves
Print version: $39.95 cover price
Digital Edition: $9.95
ISBN-13: 978-1-60549-030-4
Diamond Comic Distributors Order Code: APR111202
In anticipation of the issue's release, TwoMorrows Publishing is letting readers download a FREE PDF PREVIEW of the issue at this link:
http://www.twomorrows.com/media/StanLeeUniversePreview.pdf
The full book is available for pre-ordering as a PRINT or DIGITAL EDITION directly from TwoMorrows at this link (print customers will receive a free link to the digital edition):
http://twomorrows.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=933
THE STAN LEE UNIVERSE will be in comic and book stores on Wednesday, November 9.
About editors DANNY FINGEROTH and ROY THOMAS:
DANNY FINGEROTH was a longtime editor and writer for Marvel Comics. He is the author of Superman on the Couch: What Superheroes Really Tell Us About Ourselves and Our Society; The Rough Guide to Graphic Novels; and co-author (with Mike Manley) of How to Create Comics from Script to Print. Danny is Sr VP of Education at New York's Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art (MoCCA), and has spoken on comics at venues including The Smithsonian Institution and The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
ROY THOMAS is the editor of TwoMorrows' Alter Ego magazine and is the author of The All-Star Companion Volumes 1-4, as well as other books examining comics history. He began his career in comics as Stan Lee's right-hand man at Marvel Comics in 1965, becoming their star writer in the 1970s, and eventually editor-in-chief of the company. A 2011 inductee into the Will Eisner Comic Awards Hall of Fame, Roy still writes numerous comics today.
