By Naeisha Rose
New York City lawmakers were among the millions who paid their respects to comic book legend Stan Lee, who died on Veterans Day in Los Angeles.
Lee, born Stanley Martin Lieber, was 95.
Immediately after his death there was an outpouring of love on social media for the comic book writer-editor, who placed several of his characters in New York City, including Peter Parker/Spider-Man, who lives in Forest Hills.
Tom Holland, the current actor playing the web-slinger on the big screen, paid tribute to the late icon on Twitter shortly after his passing.
“There will never be another Stan Lee. For decades he provided both young and old with adventure, escape, comfort, confidence, inspiration, strength, friendship and joy. He exuded love and kindness and will leave an indelible mark on so, so, so many lives. Excelsior,” Holland said.
City Councilman Paul Vallone (D-Bayside) also offered his condolences Monday on Twitter.
“Stan Lee gave us childhood memories of superheroes, precious comic books and collectables, and an ever growing movie universe. All of these have and will continue to be passed on from generation to generation, and I am forever thankful. Rest in peace our superhero brother,” Vallone said.
Mayor Bill de Blasio and Gov. Andrew Cuomo each thanked Lee for using New York City as the backdrop for so many of his stories.
“Stan Lee created some of the most incredible and enduring characters of our time, and he chose New York City as the place to tell their stories,” de Blasio said on Twitter. “On behalf of his hometown, I want to express our deepest condolences to his family and loved ones.”
Aside from Spider-Man, several of characters Lee created have New York City roots. Daredevil calls Hell’s Kitchen home and the Fantastic Four’s headquarters are located in Manhattan.
“(Stan Lee) was a true New Yorker whose limitless imagination helped create some of the most beloved characters in popular culture and made NYC just as big of a character. Excelsior! Mr. Lee and condolences to his many fans on behalf of the New York Family,” Cuomo said in a Nov. 12 tweet.
The comic book writer-editor, who was born in Manhattan, served in the U.S. Army in the Signal Corps repairing communication equipment during World War II (1942-1945), according to the U.S. Army.
After he left the service, he was responsible for the creation of a slew of some of the most popular comic book characters alongside comic book artist Steve Ditko at Timely Publications — now known as Marvel Comics — starting in the 1960s, including Spider-Man, a character depicted as being from Forest Hills.
According to the Licensing Letter in 2014, the character earns Marvel Comics $1.3 billion annually from licensing alone.
Bob Iger, the chairman and CEO of The Walt Disney Company, the parent company of Marvel, paid tribute to Lee.
“Stan Lee was as extraordinary as the characters he created. A super hero in his own right to Marvel fans around the world, Stan had the power to inspire, to entertain, and to connect. The scale of his imagination was only exceeded by the size of his heart,” Iger said.
Reach reporter Naeisha Rose by e-mail at nrose
