Welcome to Comic Book Legends Revealed! This is the seven hundred and thirtieth installment where we examine comic book legends and whether they are true or false.
Here is part one of this week's legends.
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COMIC LEGEND:
Stan Lee claimed that he created Captain America in Origins of Marvel Comics
STATUS:
False
Reader Ken B. wrote in to suggest something that he read on the George Perez Website on Facebook. It mentioned that Alan Moore had once said that Stan Lee had claimed that Lee had created Captain America in the famous Origins of Marvel Comics book that Simon and Schuster had released in 1974 that became such a big hit and launched Marvel's Fireside Books line of books from Simon and Schuster (which eventually led to Marvel getting into the trade paperback game themselves in the 1980s). That first book likely helped formulate many fans' ideas of the history of Marvel Comics solely through the lens of what Stan Lee happened.
Make no doubt about it, Origins of Marvel Comics is filled with inaccurate reporting of history by Stan Lee. Heck, I'm sure I could fill a number of future Comic Book Legends Revealed columns just with stuff that Stan got wrong in that book.
However, it does not appear as though he actually said anything in it (or the sequel, Son of Origins of Marvel Comics) that made any sort of claim about him inventing Captain America.
Here, from early in the first book, is his only real mention of the pre-Marvel Age...
Captain America is barely referenced in either this book or the sequel.
In "Bring on the Bad Guys," in the chapter where he discusses the creation of the Red Skull, Lee mentions Simon and Kirby again and while yes, he doesn't bend over backwards talking about how they invented Captain America (he's sort of vague about it), he also clearly doesn't take any credit for it himself, either. He makes it clear that he came on board Captain America after it was an established character.
No, when it comes to Captain America and Lee's credit, the big deal was when a Captain America movie was announced in 1985.
The ad says that the film was based on "Stan Lee's Marvel Comics character" and that drove Jack Kirby nuts at the time. When it comes to Stan Lee and credit for Captain America, it was that poster that was the big deal, not anything in Origins in Marvel Comics. And Lee presumably did not have any real control over the poster.
Thanks for the suggestion, Ken!
Check out my latest Movie Legends Revealed - What scene in Die Hard 2 worried the studio so much that they actually spent a lot of money to produce an alternative version of the scene that could have been used if test audiences confirmed the studios' concern?
Check back soon for the final part of last week's Comic Book Legends Revealed!