Stan Lee Says Publisher Thought Spider-Man Was 'Worst Idea Ever'
Stan Lee explains how his publisher initially hated his Spider-Man hero.
— -- Spider-Man is one of the most bankable superheros around. The story of a young Peter Parker trying to fit into the world, trying to find love and trying to fight crime is one that really put creator Stan Lee on the map as a comic genius.
Lee told BBC 4 Radio today that his publisher hated his Spider-Man character at first.
"My publisher said, in his ultimate wisdom, 'Stan, that is the worst idea I have ever heard,'" Lee explained. "He said, 'First of all people hate spiders, so you can't call a book Spider-Man. Secondly, he can't be a teenager. Teenagers can only be sidekicks and third, he can't have personal problems if he's supposed to be a superhero. Don't you know who a superhero is?'"
Lee, 92, said he left his publisher's office with "my tail between my legs."
Spider-Man did make it to publication in "Amazing Fantasy," a magazine that was about to end its run.
"When you kill a magazine, nobody cares what you put in the last issue," Lee said.
"A month later when the sales figures came in, my publisher came running into my office and said, 'Stan! 'Amazing Fantasy' was our best seller this month. Do you remember that Spider-Man character that we both liked so much? How about doing a series of him?" Lee explained.