Bob Batchelor's Blog, page 6
October 18, 2022
EXCLUSIVE -- Excerpt from Stan Lee: A Life
Fans who have been waiting to catch Stan Lee: A Life by award-winning cultural historian and biographer Bob Batchelor can now read an exclusive excerpt at Forces of Geek, one of the premiere pop culture websites publishing today. Over the years, millions of fans have been entertained by FOG, which delivers outstanding columnists and opinion, reviews, and insightful analysis of geek culture from today and our nostalgia-tinged youths.
Exclusive! Read an Excerpt From Stan Lee: A Life by Bob Batchelor
Stefan Blitz is FOG editor-in-chief. In the introduction to the excerpt, he also revealed that Batchelor “will be joining the site next year.” He will be writing a column on Gen X and other popular culture topics.
On Stan Lee: A Life, Blitz explains, “Take the opportunity to check out an exclusive excerpt from his fantastic book, which might be the last word on one of pop culture’s most inimitable icons.”
The excerpt, “How the Marvel Universe Conquered the Globe,” is the first chapter from Stan Lee: A Life.
Forces of Geek — your home to discover and embrace the unknown, the forgotten, and the beloved from popular culture — has published an exclusive excerpt from Stan Lee: A Life (Rowman & Littlefield, 2022).
“While there are generations of great science fiction films and action movies, the difference between the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and the others is voice…The Marvel feeling is so ingrained in the heads of fandom that it feels subconscious. It’s driven by Lee’s voice. No matter who directs an MCU film or plays a superhero or supervillain, the internal consistency prevails: Thor’s humor and stilted formality, Iron Man’s snark, Spider-Man’s relentless patter and earnestness. This is Stan’s enduring legacy.”
— Bob Batchelor
While some readers might never have thought of the term “voice,” Batchelor breaks it down via the way the concept is outline by eminent writer Jerome Charyn, one of the most important voices in American literature today.
Charyn describes voice as “music.” Charyn’s concept, although focused on books, can be applied to Lee’s comic book writing:
“Writing…is about the music, it’s about the voice. This is what predominates. The music is all, the music is total, it’s absolute.”
— Jerome Charyn
Stan’s dialogue provided Marvel with a kind of music that readers could hear and matched their internal rhythms, resulting in an experience that transformed them. “It’s music alive with extreme sympathy,” Charyn explained, “there is no space between you and the text.” As a result, readers could feel the Marvel style, while simultaneously that Lee patter paralleled the cultural explosion booming across society. We hear this in the Beatles’ “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band,” Stanley Kubrick’s Dr. Strangelove and 2001: A Space Odyssey, and J. D. Salinger’s short stories.
October 14, 2022
Stan Lee Spreads the Gospel of Marvel Comic Books
Stan Lee claims Shakespeare and Michelangelo would be great comic book creators
Although Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four revolutionized the comic book industry, Stan Lee still felt the sting of working in a third-class business at a time when most adults thought comic books were aimed at children. What Lee realized, though, was that college students in the 1960s and 1970s were responding to Marvel in a new way — gleefully reading and re-reading the otherwordly antics of the costumed heroes.
Stan Lee was in demand as a college lecture speaker
While he lamented that adults didn’t understand Marvel or superheroes as stories they could enjoy, Lee turned his attention to teenagers and college students, crisscrossing the nation to give lectures, like this one held at the prestigious Johns Hopkins University on October 14, 1975.
At the lectures, Stan did what he always did best — give attendees an inside look at comic books, Marvel history, and his firsthand account of the industry. What set him apart was his exuberance, unparalleled enthusiasm and excitement. Students found Lee’s spirit infectious, which made them love Marvel — and him — even more.
Lee had keen insight into American culture, understanding that the meaning of success in contemporary pop culture necessitated that he embrace the burgeoning celebrity culture. If a generation of teen and college-aged readers hoped to shape him into their leader, Lee would gladly accept the mantle, becoming their gonzo king. Fashioning this image in a lecture circuit that took him around the nation, as well as within the pages of Marvel’s books, Lee created a persona larger than his publisher or employer.
As a result, he transformed the comic book industry, essentially transforming into the face of the industry for comic book readers and the general public. The college appearances led to invitations to do television shows and a constant stream of media stories regaling the success of Marvel superheroes and the editor who they credited for making it all happen.
Stan Lee delivers "immutable laws" of Marvel comic books
While many adults looked down on Lee for writing comic books, especially early in his career, he developed a masterful style that rivals or mirrors those of contemporary novelists. Lee explained:
“Every character I write is really me, in some way or other. Even the villains. Now I’m not implying that I’m in any way a villainous person. Oh, perish forbid! But how can anyone write a believable villain without thinking, “How would I act if he (or she) were me? What would I do if I were trying to conquer the world, or jaywalk across the street?...What would I say if I were the one threatening Spider-Man? See what I mean? No other way to do it.”
Over time, Stan’s voice — the literal words in the mouths of comic book superheroes — became a part of popular culture and eventually transforming into a kind of American folklore.
October 13, 2022
1983 -- STAN LEE LAMENTS LACK OF FILM INTEREST IN MARVEL SUPERHEROES
Marvel icon Stan Lee with artisti John Romita
Stan Lee looked West and saw Hollywood as the future of Marvel. The superheroes he and his colleagues had created were part of modern American folklore. While studio executives showed interest, none of the comic book characters had yet made it to the big screen.
Lee was in an odd position in Hollywood. He was already a big name, which made it difficult (if not impossible) for him to learn the business from the ground up. Lee had the mighty Marvel content, which opened doors, but simultaneously raised expectations on the part of his bosses that the path to success would be smooth. Lee was also used to calling the shots, but Hollywood simply didn’t work that way. Stan had to attempt to win over skeptical television executives.
Stan Lee laments the challenges of turning superhero characters into films
Yet the winds of change seemed to help. In addition to Marvel’s ascension to the top of the comic book world and Lee’s pervasive influence on popular culture, science fiction and fantasy films and television shows were wildly popular. On the small screen, The Six Million Dollar Man (1974-1978) proved that audiences would respond to a superhero-like lead. Steve Austin (actor Lee Majors) developed into a pop culture phenomenon, spawning comic books (featuring artwork by Lee’s friends Howard Chaykin and Neal Adams), albums, and action figures. The spinoff The Bionic Woman (1976-1978) expanded the cyborg adventures, featuring Jaime Sommers (actress Lindsay Wagner). Her popularity also meant a merchandise line, ranging from action figures and a board game to lunchboxes (a must-have item for elementary school kids).
The Six Million Dollar Man lunchbox, an essential for every kid in the 1970s
The late 1960s had paved the way for superhero and science fiction narratives. In 1968, for example, the films 2001: A Space Odyssey and Planet of the Apes thrilled audiences, generating strong box office returns. These films reinforced a new style of storytelling. Later, a film like Logan’s Run (1976) demonstrated how science fiction could be enhanced by technology and special effects. In 1977, George Lucas’ Star Wars showed the world the genre’s vitality. After all, didn’t Luke Skywalker seem like a futuristic version of Spider-Man, an outsider who must deal with possessing extraordinary powers? And Darth Vader’s similarities to Dr. Doom were clear.
A year later, the mighty Superman (actor Christopher Reeve) flew into the theater, touting the use of special effects to blow the audience’s mind. Just as it had with the Superman and Batman television shows, DC beat Marvel to the punch by getting its superheroes into theaters.
These films proved that technology improvements could power plots and characters. Special effects were finally catching up with the imaginations of writers and artists, opening doors for science fiction and fantasy on large and small screens. The time was ripe for comic book characters to make the transition.
Christopher Reeve as Superman
Lee crisscrossed the nation, attempting to keep his fingers on the comic book division, while increasingly focused on Hollywood. Los Angeles was “Nirvana,” a celestial utopia enabling him to launch a new path without discarding his accomplishments. The trepidation of leaving New York City got swept away in the excitement about the work and sheer magnificence of the West Coast – warm breezes blowing off the Pacific Ocean and hidden hillside enclaves deep in thick woods.
October 12, 2022
Meet Stan Lee -- October 12, 1991
Meet Stan Lee!
From the early 1960s until his death in 2018, Stan Lee was different than other celebrities — approachable and committed to staying connected to the fans that helped build Marvel into a global brand.
Marvel: Five Fabulous Decades of the World's Greatest Comics by Les Daniels
Les Daniels’ book — Marvel: Five Five Fabulous Decades of the World's Greatest Comics not only gave fans an inside look at Marvel’s history, but for those fans lined up at the Paramus Barnes & Noble, they were in for a treat — meeting Stan and Spider-Man!
Two heroes for the price of one!
To learn more about the Marvel maestro’s amazing life, please read Stan Lee: A Life, available wherever you like to purchase books.
October 11, 2022
Spider-Man Film Rights Tangled in Web (of Lawsuits) -- October 11, 1998
Spider-Man film rights stuck in legal quagmire
Stan Lee had a vision — an entire Marvel Universe on screen! He had worked for decades to get Hollywood executives and studio heads to believe him. As always, he placed his faith in his most successful co-creation — Spider-Man.
Stan Lee with his number one creation -- Spider-Man
Even a person as optimistic as Stan had a difficult time keeping his cool as a series of productions companies bought the rights to Spider-Man, but then fell into development hell as they attempted to figure out just how to bring the web-slinger to life.
The extensive licensing and rights deals attached to the character led to a series of high-profile lawsuits that stalled progress and infuriated Lee. At various points the legal battles included many of Hollywood’s greatest names, from MGM and Viacom to Sony and 21st Century. Even the great James Cameron — who would later become a hit-maker based on Titanic (1997) — couldn’t move the mountains necessary to make a Spider-Man film based on his 1991 treatment.
Stan Lee hoped James Cameron would make a Spider-Man film
The legal battles were not cleaned up until early 1999, when Columbia Pictures acquired the rights to all previous Spider-Man scripts in a deal with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Sony then purchased the rights from MGM. Sam Raimi was hired to direct the Tobey Maguire-starring vehicle in 2000 and the film came out two years later.
Spider-Man (2002) is finally made!
Spider-Man was 2002’s highest grossing film, generating more than $407 million in North America, while earning a staggering $418 million overseas. Wiping out all the doubts about whether a superhero film might work, Spider-Man soon became the highest-grossing superhero film of all time after its release, both domestically and worldwide.
Spidey turned Stan Lee’s dream into a reality!
To learn more about the Marvel maestro’s amazing life, please read Stan Lee: A Life, available wherever you like to purchase books.
October 10, 2022
Stan Lee Predicts Marvel's Future -- 50 Years Ago Today
Newspaper article on Marvel superheroes featuring Stan Lee
The power and global influence of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is pervasive today, but imagine having nearly every door in Hollywood slammed in your face at the mere thought that anyone would want to see Marvel superheroes on the big screen.
This was Stan Lee’s reality 50 years ago in 1972, even though comic books were a $200 million industry at the time. Ironically, the Dallas Times Herald journalist who interviewed Stan was named Bill Marvel, a daily reporter who had started his career in 1961, at the dawning of the Marvel comic book renaissance, which began with the launch of the Fantastic Four, co-created with artist Jack Kirby.
Stan Lee is prescient in forecasting Marvel's future
Despite being roundly ignored (or laughed out of the room) by Hollywood executives, Lee persevered, asserting that Marvel was in the midst of a major transformation from comic book company to media “hot property.”
Although he could not get producers to agree, Stan told the journalist that he viewed television and film as the future of the company. He was betting his own future on that vision after a lifetime in creating comic books and decades ahead of his peers at Marvel or in the entertainment industry.
“The next phase is where the much bigger money might lie.”
— Stan Lee
Stan Lee with the book Origins of Marvel Comics
Stan certainly did not have a crystal ball, but his tireless dedication to the basic notion that adults would enjoy films centered on Marvel superheroes eventually transformed the film industry around the globe. Lee was just decades ahead of his time!
To learn more about the Marvel maestro’s amazing life, please read Stan Lee: A Life, available wherever you like to purchase books.
September 30, 2022
When Robby Krieger Met Jim Morrison!
Fans of the Doors and rock ‘n roll history lovers have been waiting decades for Robby Krieger — Doors guitarist and songwriter extraordinaire — to write a memoir of his days and nights in America’s iconic rock band. Set the Night on Fire: Living, Dying, and Playing Guitar With the Doors came out in October 2021, but the paperback is set to publish October 25, 2022.
A quick review: FANTASTIC!
Set the Night on Fire, a new memoir by Doors guitarist and songwriter Robby Krieger
Although fans of the Doors certainly enjoyed memoirs from Ray Manzarek and John Densmore, Krieger’s book serves up those heady years in his deeply reflective, authentic style that brings the era to life in an engaging, heartfelt fashion. It is as if Krieger learned lessons from those earlier books and deliberately set out to be entertaining, thoughtful, and honest about the rollercoaster ride the bandmates were on and the lifelong consequences.
“Rather than pushing myths or trying to make himself larger than life, Krieger delivers an honest, authentic perspective of the amazing days and nights of playing in America’s most important band.”
One of the aspects of memoir readers enjoy is the perspective, especially in a celebrity book, of what happened before the rocket ship of fame, notoriety, excess, and decadence took flight. Krieger captured those days perfectly — a struggling band that had pinned its hopes to a singer who hadn’t sung and was too shy to even face his bandmates, let alone a live audience.
Yet, there was something about this skinny kid that the teenage Krieger trusted and was echoed by Ray and John:
“Ray saw something in Jim when Jim first sang a song to him on the sands of Venice Beach, and Ray’s confidence never wavered from then on,” Krieger writes. “John saw something in Jim, enough to convince me to audition for the band. I didn’t see it. Not at first. Not the way Ray and John did. I liked Jim personally.”
If you haven’t read Set the Night on Fire, you’re particularly going to enjoy Robby’s insider perspective on the mysterious Jim Morrison as he developed from that shy kid to the vaunted Lizard King (and the repercussions for him and the band).
Robby remembers:
“He had a gentle nature when he wasn’t screaming at drug dealers or getting in bar fights or nuking record deals. Even my mom found him charming—she saw him as a soft-spoken southern gentleman. He wrote great lyrics, but he wasn’t yet a crooning, leather-clad sex god. All I saw was a shaky-voiced, corduroy-clad introvert.”
Roadhouse Blues: Morrison, the Doors, and the Death Days of the Sixties by Bob Batchelor
“All I saw was a shaky-voiced, corduroy-clad introvert.”
— Robby Krieger
Trying to uncover the “real” or “authentic” Morrison led me to write Roadhouse Blues: Morrison, the Doors, and Death Days of the Sixties (Hamilcar Publications).
A true cultural history, the book examines the death days of the 1960s for listeners fed up with the happy ditties of the Beatles and mellow vibes of San Francisco hippie bands. In Morrison, fans had a living, breathing representation of the violence and anger raging through the national consciousness. As the band grew more popular, Morrison became wilder and volatile. A poet at heart, the singer drank prodigious amounts of alcohol and searched for ways to “Break On Through” to anarchy and destruction, a new vision of the Sixties as the decade gave way to the dirty Seventies.
September 26, 2022
Stan Lee on Cameos and Superheroes
Kids, teenagers, and adults of all ages got weak in the knees around Marvel icon Stan Lee. Yet, talking to them moments after meeting him, you could hear the joy in their voices. Some shed tears of happiness. Universally, they looked frozen in the moment of delight — as if they were opening Christmas presents or getting ready to blow out candles on their birthday cake.
I chatted with a 50-something father who confessed that taking his teen daughter to meet Stan was a bucket list kind of event, one that they were able to share together. He wiped tears from his eyes as he reminisced about watching Marvel films with his daughter and how Lee’s cameos were a bonding moment for them.
Stan Lee on cameos in Marvel films
These clips are from a September 26, 2017 newspaper piece on Stan's appearance at a comic book convention in Madison, Wisconsin, (about a year before he died).
The sentiment demonstrates his significance as the symbol of Marvel and Marvel Studios for so many fans. There has never been a phenomenon quite like Stan’s cameo roles. His brief blip on the screen frequently caused the audience to break out in applause. For many fans, the cameo was as necessary and elemental as the film itself. One could not exist without the other.
Anyone else remember going to a Marvel film and hearing spontaneous applause when Stan's cameo rolled?
Stan Lee's co-created superheroes an inspiration
Stan Lee's co-created superheroes have served as an inspiration for generations because he gave them human traits. This idea — so novel in the early 1960s — caught fire during an era where novelists, screenwriters, and others were challenging conventional norms about what it meant to be a superhero.
Learn more about Stan’s epic tale in Stan Lee: A Life (Rowman & Littlefield).
Stan Lee: A Life by historian and biographer Bob Batchelor
September 19, 2022
30% Discount on Stan Lee: A Life by Cultural Historian Bob Batchelor
Rowman & Littlefield is offering a 30% discount on Stan Lee: A Life, which publishes on October 15, 2022.
Creative icon, visionary, and dreamer, Stan Lee co-created many of history’s most significant characters, including Spider-Man, Black Panther, and the Avengers. His ideas and voice are at the heart of global culture – billions of fans devour every superhero creation Marvel produces.
An up-close look at the charmed life of a legendary figure, Stan Lee: A Life gives the full measure to a man whose genius changed culture – and continues to mesmerize audiences worldwide. Candid, authoritative, and utterly absorbing, this is the biography of a man who dreamed of one day writing the Great American Novel, but ended up doing so much more – revolutionizing culture by creating new worlds and heroes that have entertained generations around the world.
Angels & Airwaves front man, To The Stars founder, and BLINK-182 legend Tom DeLonge wrote the Foreword, offering a glimpse into Stan’s legend and lasting contributions from one creative icon to another.
Stan Lee: A Life —
— Captures the cultural zeitgeist of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the Marvel Universe at a time when millions of people are viewing Marvel/Disney content as part of their personal entertainment experience.
— Reveals how Stan Lee’s life is a representation of American history over the last century: poor on the streets of New York during the Great Depression through life in the Internet and Social Media Age and film cameos.
— Provides an entertaining, yet deeply-researched, portrait of an important American and global icon who may in fact be more popular around the world (particularly China) than he is in the U.S.
— Gives Stan Lee full credit for what he achieved and his enduring legacy – providing a voice and style that became part of American folklore during the 1960s, but grew into the storytelling mythology of the contemporary world.
— Provides a full and richly-researched perspective on the idea of “co-creating” the iconic Marvel superheroes with artists Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko.
August 25, 2022
STRANGE DAYS: HOW THE DOORS AND JIM MORRISON CHANGED AMERICA
Raleigh and Boston, August 25, 2022 – With the #1 smash hit “Light My Fire,” the Doors changed American music with a haunting, unforgettable sound. Within months, the Los Angeles band stood alongside the Beatles and Rolling Stones as the most popular in the world. Jim Morrison ushered in the idea of the rock god and his untimely, mysterious death in 1971 still captivates fans and admirers around the world.
Unlike other books and biographies of Morrison and the Doors, Roadhouse Blues: Morrison, the Doors, and Death Days of the Sixties by cultural historian and biographer Bob Batchelor presents a full portrait of the doomed singer and the era he dominated. Batchelor uses the band as a lens to examine the highlights and challenges of the fabled Sixties: America’s role in Vietnam, student protests, the popular culture of the era, and takes a deep dive into the music that countless millions of classic rock listeners have immortalized.
The infamous “Lizard King,” Morrison was a sex-charged rock god, but also a pinup for millions of teenagers across the country. His haunting lyrics and Ray Manzarek’s pulsing organ helped create rock music’s ultimate bad boy, an image that Morrison played full-throttle. The Doors reeled off five straight gold records, something no American band had ever done. But the fame and drinking caught up with Morrison, as would a series of arrests and charges of alleged public exposure at a concert in Miami that would change American culture forever.
“Roadhouse Blues is the book Doors fans have been waiting for. Filled with new analysis, fresh insights, and great writing, Bob Batchelor brings Jim Morrison, the Doors, and the magical Sixties to life for a new generation,” said Thomas Heinrich, award-winning historian and co-author A Concise American History (Oxford). “Roadhouse Blues takes you back in time and delivers an intimate, honest, and hard-hitting look at America’s greatest rock band.”
“Roadhouse Blues is the book Doors fans have been waiting for. Filled with new analysis, fresh insights, and great writing, Bob Batchelor brings Jim Morrison, the Doors, and the magical Sixties to life for a new generation,” said Thomas Heinrich, award-winning historian and co-author A Concise American History (Oxford). “Roadhouse Blues takes you back in time and delivers an intimate, honest, and hard-hitting look at America’s greatest rock band.”
“Led by Jim Morrison—haunted, beautiful, and ultimately doomed—the Doors steered the ship as the nation careened from decadence to debauchery, ultimately driving fear into the heart of Middle America,” Batchelor said. “Fueled by a menacing, psychedelic sound based on sex, drugs, and unbridled mayhem, the Doors offered fans a stark contrast to other popular bands. “All You Need Is Love” the happy-go-lucky Beatles tune gave way to the Doors’ Oedipal epic “The End.”
“Led by Jim Morrison—haunted, beautiful, and ultimately doomed—the Doors steered the ship as the nation careened from decadence to debauchery, ultimately driving fear into the heart of Middle America,” Batchelor said. “Fueled by a menacing, psychedelic sound based on sex, drugs, and unbridled mayhem, the Doors offered fans a stark contrast to other popular bands. “All You Need Is Love” the happy-go-lucky Beatles tune gave way to the Doors’ Oedipal epic “The End.”’
Roadhouse Blues: Morrison, the Doors, and Death Days of the Sixties (Hamilcar Publications, trade paperback, November 8, 2022, $18.99) examines the death days of the 1960s for listeners fed up with the happy ditties of the Beatles and mellow vibes of San Francisco hippie bands. In Morrison, fans had a living, breathing representation of the violence and anger raging through the national consciousness. As the band grew more popular, Morrison became wilder and volatile. A poet at heart, the singer drank prodigious amounts of alcohol and searched for ways to “Break On Through” to anarchy and destruction, a new vision of the Sixties as the decade gave way to the dirty Seventies. The cover and interior design are created by Brad Norr of Brad Norr Design, one of America’s most innovative and creative book designers.
Roadhouse Blues contains vivid, intriguing details about this significant era, including “guest appearances” by many of America’s most fascinating icons, including Frank Sinatra, Bob Dylan, the Beatles, and Norman Mailer. It also covers Morrison’s poetry, the Doors’ music, Vietnam, and more with insight from many of today’s professional musicians, historians, and cultural analysts who provide a fresh, twenty-first-century perspective on the significance of the band and the death days of the 1960s as America stood at a precipice.
Morrison is worshiped by artists who claim he’s been a major influence on their careers—Bono, Eddie Vedder, Patti Smith, Scott Weiland, Julian Casablancas (The Strokes), Lana del Rey, Alice Cooper, and more —and his status as a pop-culture icon is unparalleled. Fifty-plus years after his death, public interest in his life is undimmed.
With songs in constant rotation for the last half-century, including “Light My Fire,” “Break On Through,” and “L.A. Woman,” the Doors are arguably the most popular rock-and-roll band to ever emerge from the United States. They remain a force in popular culture: The Doors Facebook page has 15.3M+ followers; The Doors Instagram has 1.8M + followers; The Doors Twitter account has 938k+ followers; The Doors YouTube has 826k+ subscribers; and total views of Doors videos on YouTube tops 207 million. Weekly streams of The Doors songs average 13.5M and reach 500,000,000 via radio.
Candid, authoritative, and utterly absorbing, Roadhouse Blues is the biography of a man, a band, and an era that set the tone for the contemporary world. Beyond the mythology, the hype, and the mystique around Morrison’s early, mysterious death, this book takes readers on a roller-coaster ride, examining the impact the band had on America as the nation leered from decadence to debauchery. “We’re gonna have a real good time!”
