Stan Lee Reaches Deal With Marvel

[EdwardKnoxII 0]

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/a...spider_man_suit

 

Cartoonist Lee Reaches Deal With Marvel

 

By PAT MILTON, Associated Press Writer

2 hours, 47 minutes ago

 

 

 

NEW YORK - Superhero creator Stan Lee is feeling rather super himself after reaching a settlement with Marvel Enterprises. The cartoonist had sued in November 2002 to share profits generated by the company's TV and movie productions — particularly the box-office smash "Spider-Man," which earned more than $800 million worldwide, and its super successful sequel.

 

Terms of the settlement were not disclosed.

 

"We are very, very happy with the resolution," Lee's lawyer, Howard Graff, said Thursday.

 

Graff had said previously that the potential payday from Marvel could be in the tens of millions of dollars.

 

John Turitzin, Marvel's general counsel, called Lee "one of the founders of today's comic book industry" and said the company was happy to have resolved the dispute.

 

The 82-year-old legend, who created the indelible Marvel heroes Incredible Hulk, X-Men and Fantastic Four as well as Spider-Man, had claimed in the lawsuit that his contract with Marvel gave him a 10 percent share of the Hollywood profits. He said that specifically included proceeds from the movie and TV productions and DVD sales and other movie-based merchandise deals.

 

Marvel attorneys had vigorously contested Lee's claims.

 

In January, U.S. District Court Judge Robert Sweet in Manhattan ruled that Lee was entitled to 10 percent of Marvel's proceeds generated since November 1998 from any movie or TV production based on a Marvel character.

 

Graff said previously that Lee, who already earns $1 million a year from Marvel as part of the contract signed four years ago, was saddened that things became so acrimonious.

 

He said the agreement, reached April 22 and made public on Thursday, cements Lee's future relationship with Marvel.

 

Lee's "friendly neighborhood Spider-Man" turned out to be quite a friend, said Graff

[Highland 0]

I had no idea he was that old. I thought he was only in his 60's.

[SuperJerk 0]

He's been working in comics since World War 2.

[Guest Salacious Crumb]

He was a soldier in WWII.

[reign 0]

Why wouldn't Marvel give him his share anyways...he did CREATE nearly every main character in existence especially said Spiderman..if I created Spiderman, Incredible Hulk and the X-Men I'd want more than a million a year too..why are Marvel such pricks about their money? ...they still give McMahon trouble with Hulk Hogan even thought nobody in their right mind would confuse the two....

[Dimensions 0]

I thought Stan Lee was like the owner of Marvel...I guess I confused him with creating marvel and creating the characters.

[Guest Salacious Crumb]

No, he was a big reason for Marvels push to the top in the 60s but he was never the owner. Marvel Comics have been around a lot longer than people realize. They've been around since the late 30s as Timely Comics.

[Crimson Platypus 0]

It absolutely blows my mind that Marvel would try to screw Stan Fucking Lee out of his share of the profits from movies based on characters the he created. What a bunch of assholes.

[Guest Salacious Crumb]

Oh please. The guys that created Superman didn't get shit until the 70s and even then it wasn't what they were worth. This isn't anything new.

[Crimson Platypus 0]

That doesn't make it okay.

[Guest Salacious Crumb]

No, it doesn't but crying about Stan Lee not getting some money is pretty stupid compared to a lot of guys that have gotten completely hosed over the years. At least he's gotten money for his creations unlike many.

[starvenger 0]

It absolutely blows my mind that Marvel would try to screw Stan Fucking Lee out of his share of the profits from movies based on characters the he created. What a bunch of assholes.

Seeing as Stan screwed over Kirby and Ditko it's not really that surprising.

[bobobrazil1984 0]

This lawsuit was a case where Marvel actually did have a contract with Stan Lee that they were trying to get out of.

 

THey had the contract, they should follow it.

 

Good on Stan.

[Some Guy 0]

Why wouldn't Marvel give him his share anyways...he did CREATE nearly every main character in existence especially said Spiderman..if I created Spiderman, Incredible Hulk and the X-Men I'd want more than a million a year too..why are Marvel such pricks about their money?

Because they nearly went bankrupt a few years ago. They need all they can get. Nobody buy comics anymore. Despite the massive success of the X-Men and Spider-Man movies is has meant little to the comic book sales.

 

Stan Lee co-created most of the characters you mentioned and as Starvenfger pointed out Lee fucked over both Kirby and Ditko, so I suppose what goes around comes around.

[Black Lushus 0]

I thought Stan Lee was like the owner of Marvel...I guess I confused him with creating marvel and creating the characters.

that's exactly what I though...that he WAS marvel...

[Steviekick 0]

Why wouldn't Marvel give him his share anyways...he did CREATE nearly every main character in existence especially said Spiderman..if I created Spiderman, Incredible Hulk and the X-Men I'd want more than a million a year too..why are Marvel such pricks about their money?

Because they nearly went bankrupt a few years ago. They need all they can get. Nobody buy comics anymore. Despite the massive success of the X-Men and Spider-Man movies is has meant little to the comic book sales.

 

Stan Lee co-created most of the characters you mentioned and as Starvenfger pointed out Lee fucked over both Kirby and Ditko, so I suppose what goes around comes around.

Lee totally fucked with Ditko and Kirby...after they left Marvel most of their original art that they asked to be returned wound up as "missing"

[Jingus 0]

So, to sum up:

 

1. Lee is a fucktard for screwing the artists.

 

2. Marvel is still a fucktard for not paying the man what they legally owed him.

 

3. The American civil court system occasionally makes the right decisions.

 

4. DC was a fucktard for screwing over its artists.

 

5. The centuries-old cycle of greedy suits screwing artists continues.

 

Right?

[starvenger 0]

Why wouldn't Marvel give him his share anyways...he did CREATE nearly every main character in existence especially said Spiderman..if I created Spiderman, Incredible Hulk and the X-Men I'd want more than a million a year too..why are Marvel such pricks about their money?

Because they nearly went bankrupt a few years ago. They need all they can get. Nobody buy comics anymore. Despite the massive success of the X-Men and Spider-Man movies is has meant little to the comic book sales.

Partially true. The movies and merchandise sales have definitely helped Marvel's bottom line, but people still buy comics. They just don't go apeshit over every single new comic that comes out like they did in the 90s.

 

As for new readers, I never bought into the logic that people would buy comics just because they liked the movies. That's like expecting everyone who watches Star Wars or Star Trek to buy the novels. The way I see it, if you want to get somebody to start reading comics, you need to drag them into a store or a convention to see what it's all about, and let them decide for themselves.

[Some Guy 0]

Why wouldn't Marvel give him his share anyways...he did CREATE nearly every main character in existence especially said Spiderman..if I created Spiderman, Incredible Hulk and the X-Men I'd want more than a million a year too..why are Marvel such pricks about their money?

Because they nearly went bankrupt a few years ago. They need all they can get. Nobody buy comics anymore. Despite the massive success of the X-Men and Spider-Man movies is has meant little to the comic book sales.

Partially true. The movies and merchandise sales have definitely helped Marvel's bottom line, but people still buy comics. They just don't go apeshit over every single new comic that comes out like they did in the 90s.

 

Both companies shot their wads in the 90s. DC killed Superman and crippled Batman and Marvel had Magneto take out the adamantium (sp?) from Wolverine (did he ever get it back?). I collected from about 92-95 and lost interest, but my uncle who has been collecting since the 60s has dropped a lot of titles that he had every (or nearly every) issue of including X-Men and Batman. I'll take his word for it when he tells me that the comics are now poorly written and far, far fewer people buy them than ten years ago.

 

As for new readers, I never bought into the logic that people would buy comics just because they liked the movies.  That's like expecting everyone who watches Star Wars or Star Trek to buy the novels.  The way I see it, if you want to get somebody to start reading comics, you need to drag them into a store or a convention to see what it's all about, and let them decide for themselves.

 

Except that Star Wars started out as a movie and Star Trek as a TV show and they spawned comic books and novels that only the true die hards read. Comics started as comics and spawned movies (usually loosely) based on them. The logic, while faulty because it requires an imagination and reading to read comics and only requires the ability to sit still for 2 hours to watch a movie is that people will see the movie, love it and then buy the book. Sort of like how WWE uses it's TV to sell PPVs. The problem is that people, by and large just aren't interested in comics.

 

The way I started collecting was a fluke. I started hearing about Superman dying on the news and then an issue of Guy Gardner, of all things caught my eye at Osco Drug. I bought it, read it, and was hooked. A few years later the love wore off as the price skyrocketed, although I still enjoy the movies and TV shows.

 

I think it would actually be good for kids to read comic books. As I said it requires reading and imagination which are two things that kids are sorely lacking now.