Stan Lee did not create the Marvel Universe alone. But it is completely fair to say that without him, in collaboration with top artistic talents like Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, Marvel as we know it would not exist. The result of their efforts is more than 60 years of high adventure, groundbreaking heroes and villains, and one of the biggest cinematic and television forces of all time. The Fantastic Four. The Hulk. Thor. Spider-Man. The X-Men. Lee was there from the beginning and at the center of it all. The beloved icon would have turned 100 on December 28, 2022. Here is his origin story, as well as the histories of the iconic characters that he helped give to the world.