Thursday, July 25, 2019

THE LAST GATHERING WITH STAN LEE



THE LAST GATHERING
WITH STAN LEE
 

BY
John "THE MEGO STRETCH HULK" Cimino


It's the small things in life that can sometimes be the most meaningful. The memory from a simple smile, a good laugh or a sweet kiss can last a lifetime, even a thousand lifetimes. People lose sight of that and it's a shame. True magic is everywhere and in everything no matter how insignificant. Look. Feel. Listen. Open yourself up to the world and do it honestly and you will see that magic is all around you...

Blog entry: April 25th, 2019

I’m sitting back and thinking of Stan "The Man" Lee after returning from Marvel’s exclusive New York AVENGERS: ENDGAME premier last night and seeing his final cameo appearance. It was a surreal feeling as I went to the event with another comic legend, my good friend and mentor Roy Thomas and his wife Dann who was invited and flown in from South Carolina. Hanging with all the Marvel creators and staff (past and present), watching the movie and having a good time was a great experience. Standing there at such an important event mingling with everyone I realized, I've come a long way since reading comicbooks in my bedroom as child.

You see, I've been into Stan Lee and his Marvel Universe all my life. Despite what age I was or where I stood, Stan Lee was always there. Whether it be in comicbooks, television shows, cartoons, movies, comic cons or floating in my head when I looked to the stars and dreamed, Stan Lee was always a presence to make me happy and put my mind in a better place. His characters and words somehow guided me along and brought me to where I stand today. But now living in a world that no longer has him in it leaves me heartbroken. And maybe, I'm a little more saddened by this than most because I was with him and Roy Thomas right before he passed.


Roy and Dann Thomas with me at the exclusive Marvel Avengers: Endgame premier in New York.

Me, Roy (with his big bucket of pop corn) and Dann.

Marvel's Chief Creative Officer Joe Quesada gives a speech on the passing of Stan Lee and thanks all the early pioneers of Marvel Comics that helped Stan create the universe that has taken over pop culture (of course Roy is honored in that exclusive club). And FYI, that bald head on the left is Frank Miller.

You should know that it wasn't easy to get those two legends together -- it was actually a three-year debacle. The bad handlers around Stan made it impossible for me to set up a meeting or dinner between the two because they wanted Stan for his money and their own evil agendas. Shady shenanigans were always used to keep them apart. It was frustrating because Roy wanted to see him and he knew Stan wasn't doing well health-wise.

In 2018, things finally changed when the state of California stepped in and most of the leaches were out of Stan's life. But now, he wasn't the Stan Lee of old that always had a sparkle to him; he was tired, missing his wife Joan (who passed almost a year earlier), sick with Aspiration Pneumonia and looking every bit of 95 years in age. For months he was depressed, didn't want to see anyone and ready to leave this earth. But I knew if he saw Roy Thomas; his protégé and respected colleague, it would bring some happiness and light back to him (and make Roy happy as well). 

I had a connection and friend named Chandler Rice help me get in touch with Stan's new handler Jon Bolerjack, this time a good kid who truly cared about Stan and his well being. Jon would go out on daily lunches with Stan and talk about life and the good times from Stan's past. When he found out Roy wanted to come by for a visit, Stan instantly wanted to see him (I knew I was right). Roy and Stan only saw each other sparingly within the last decade and the last time Roy had been to Stan's house in Beverly Hills, CA was back in the 80s and that was only for a few minutes, so this meeting was long overdue. And the timing couldn't have been better, I made this Roy's birthday (November 22nd), Thanksgiving and Christmas gifts all rolled into one. BOOM!

Fast forward to a quick flight and drive on November 10th and the first thing Stan did was flash a BIG smile when Roy walked into the room where he was sitting overlooking the view of his backyard. "Roy!" Stan said, "Hello Stan." Roy answered. Then Stan said, "You know Roy, getting to 100 isn't what it was always cracked up to be." I got so emotional because of the looks on their faces. Through my relentless persistence and dedication to make this reunion take place, I was able to give them that pure tender moment -- a much needed moment of happiness in Stan's life. It was like my gift back to him for all the moments he gave to me throughout my childhood and through my tough times. The whole thing seemed surreal, but when my mind came back to reality, I felt proud -- very proud of what I managed to accomplish. Some people may say magic doesn't exist in the real world, but that's exactly what happened in that moment.

Eventually Stan looked at me and said, "Hi John." Which totally shocked me, but I had my game face on so I stood firm. I walked over to Stan and knelt down in front of him. He then held my hand (I remember his touch being very cold) and said, "Take care of my boy Roy." It was bittersweet because of the chaos he had to go through in the last few years of his life from all the deceptive people around him, he didn't want that to happen to Roy. I promised Stan that I would always protect Roy, have his back and that I loved him. Stan, still holding my hand, smiled and said "God bless you, John."

The rest of the time was like a blur to me, I cannot remember what they were talking about because I was in awe sitting at Stan and Roy's feet thinking "I'm literally sitting at the top of Mount Olympus right now, how the hell did I get here?" It ended when we took a few photos together with the last one being Stan, Roy and myself. When Roy and I started to leave Stan waved at us and said once again, "God bless you guys." I got a little choked up as I whispered to Roy while walking out of Stan's house, "I don't think he'll make it to the end of the year." Less than 48 hours later on November 12th Stan "The Man" Lee was dead.


The last photo ever taken of Stan Lee. It was an absolute honor to be in it with these two legends.

Here is a picture of Stan Lee's backyard. What's interesting about it was when Stan was a little kid living in Manhattan, he would always look out his windows and see the brick buildings right next to it, which he hated. He always dreamed to one day have a place of his own that when he looked outside he would have a beautiful view. When Roy and I visited Stan at his home in Beverly Hills, Stan was sitting in his big comfortable chair overlooking his backyard and staring at his incredibly, beautiful view. After Stan passed less than 48 hours after we left, Roy told me that he remembered when Stan told him about that dream and he thought it was ironic that when we walked into the den where Stan was sitting, he was doing just that. Yes, Stan was tired and ready to leave this earth, but it's comforting to know he was in good spirits doing what he wanted just hours before his passing. Looking out at his beautiful view and laughing along with Roy Thomas talking comics. As for me, it was a thrill to sit back and watch it all happen.

As sad as that was, it reads like a fairy tale.

Or should I say -- a comicbook.

But there's still a little bit more to this "last gathering" I haven't mentioned yet.

As I said earlier, most people don't believe in magic in the real world, but it's funny how some things work out that can be considered a little more than coincidence.

The XXL Taschen book THE STAN LEE STORY came out as a special "limited edition" of only 1000 copies and was released in early 2019 (almost two months after Stan's passing). While there were many other books on Stan's life available and coming out that he knew about, this was THE book that Stan SPECIFICALLY chose Roy Thomas to write. It took Roy about 5 years to complete with some added assistance from Rhett Thomas (no relation, but a super-talented guy nonetheless), Roy and Stan looked through a finished copy when we visited so Stan could see it before it got released to the public (watching them flip through the pages together was incredible). To look back in retrospect, when you think about the perfect timing this all went down and the fact that it could well be the last book Stan ever saw, it's absolutely mind-boggling.

Magic? I think so. 


 THE STAN LEE STORY "limited edition" copy is a ginormous book which celebrates the life of Stan Lee. It could well be the last book Stan ever saw when he was alive. That's what I call a Mighty Marvel Magic Moment at its finest.

When I got the news of Stan's passing, I quickly called Roy and told him. We talked for over an hour about the crazy timing of it all. While Roy thought it was coincidental, I thought of it more as spiritual. I guess we'll never know for sure, but Roy quickly wrote out a page about it (a shortened version) and asked the Managing Editor of Taschen, Nina Wiener to include it in the upcoming "mass-market" edition of THE STAN LEE STORY as an afterword. That edition of the book was still in production at the time and became available on July 2019. Even the last photo of Stan and Roy I took was included and was a great last minute tribute to both of these legends and made a perfect bookend to Stan's life.


So glad to see the last picture of Stan Lee and Roy Thomas together included in the "mass-market" edition of THE STAN LEE STORY.

Looking back on this experience now, to actually become a small part of a major event in comics history and more importantly; the last few happy moments of Stan's life was something I could've never imagined. Being uncompromisingly persistent and determined to get those two comic icons (and my two real life heroes) together despite the obstacles, so they could simply sit back and celebrate their gift of friendship was well worth the trouble. Plus, it's a great story that can inspire my daughter and show her that real magic is out there in the world and if she tries hard enough, she can grab it and make impossible things happen.


Roy writes me a heartfelt message in a "limited edition" copy of THE STAN LEE STORY that he gave to me as a thank you gift. Just knowing how much it meant to him and Stan is really the greatest gift I could ever receive.

Blog entry: July 4, 2019

Independence Day!

Time to celebrate the birthday of the greatest country in the world with my daughter Bryn! What could be better than to go see SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME at the theater with her? This was IMHO the best Spider-man movie ever made and the first solo Spidey film since Stan passed. Yet another bittersweet moment because out of all the characters he co-created, Spider-man was Stan's favorite. After the movie ended I told my daughter it was a little sad knowing that Stan never got to see this, especially since it captured the magic of Spider-man and his world so well (a major shout out to movie writers Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers and director Jon Watts). Stan would've loved that. Plus, the little homage at the very end of the credits giving a dedication to both co-creators; Stan Lee and Steve Ditko was a great tribute.


SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME was an absolute blast that perfectly captured the essence of what Stan Lee and Steve Ditko put into all those Spider-man comics they produced together. I know Stan would've enjoyed it...

  ...But I'm not so sure about the Spider-man colored popcorn that was released with the movie. Even my baby girl was staying away from that, and she has a major sweet tooth.

Ah, such is life. People pass on and time moves forward. That's the way it works whether we like it or not. All we can do is keep collecting memories, do the best we can and put love into the world. I guess that's what I'm trying to do here with this write-up.

God bless you, Stan.

Blog entry: July 25, 2019 

My daughter's birthday!

I released this write-up today as a special gift of inspiration to my baby girl. As she grows older, and her world gets bigger may she never forget the special moments she creates in her life. I'm sure she'll have some great stories to tell.

And while this Stan Lee story is personal to me, we all have a little Stan Lee story because his magic managed to touch every one of us in some way. Whether it was watching a Marvel movie, laughing at his cameo appearances, meeting him at a signing, taking a picture with him, or just reading his work and becoming inspired, "The Man" was able to give us all a bunch of smiles and leave his mark on the world.


Epilogue: November 6, 2019


The all Stan Lee tribute issue of ALTER EGO #161 hits shelves on 11/6/2019 which is an amazing coincidence.

I had to make an addition to this blog because a little more of that magic I've been going on and on about sprinkled me with a little more storybook favor. As the faiths would have it, the new "All Stan Lee" tribute issue of ALTER EGO #161 was released today at comic shops everywhere (you can order it in the link below). And believe it or not, it got released almost exactly a year to the day since Roy and I visited Stan at his home on November 10th, 2018, and his passing on November 12th. Okay, you may chalk that up to a pretty cool coincidence. But did you know that the issue was supposed to be released in late October, but it somehow got delayed? Okay, okay, maybe you're still saying it's just a coincidence so calm down John, but coincidence or not, Roy Thomas surprised me by putting my story on getting them together for the last time and making it the introduction to the issue--that's something that doesn't happen every day! BOOM!!!

I did the guest editorial introduction in the most respected comic magazine on planet earth on one of the most important topics in the history of the magazine; "The Death of Stan Lee." And considering all the talent and legends that are in that issue celebrating Stan's life, you have to believe magic had something to do with it because I'm the guy who set the tone for the issue and I don't have any of the accolades they do. What an absolute honor! Bleeding cool also picked up the story, check it out in the link below.


Wow. Somewhere in the ether Stan Lee and ALTER EGO founder Jerry Bails are smiling.

Wow. I'm still doing my best to inspire my baby girl and showing her that magic is truly out there in this crazy world. And if she can reach high enough to grab it, anything is possible.

Wow. Thanks for the memories comicbook gods now and forever.



The Mighty Stan Lee

Dedicated to:
Bryn Cimino
Roy Thomas
Dann Thomas
Stan Lee
Chandler Rice
Jon Bolerjack
Taschen
and 
to those who never believed in me and my dreams
(because I'm doing just fine)
 

CLICK THE IMAGE TO ORDER 
THE STAN LEE STORY "MASS-MARKET" EDITION

https://www.taschen.com/pages/en/catalogue/graphic_design/all/04610/facts.the_stan_lee_story.htm?change_user_country=US&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI8bvbucXz4gIVxwOGCh3S4gtoEAQYASABEgKIfPD_BwE

CLICK THE IMAGE TO ORDER 
ALTER EGO #161

http://twomorrows.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=98_55&products_id=1425


MEDIA LINKS TO STORIES BASED ON THIS WRITE-UP

 BLEEDING COOL


LINKS TO OTHER "MEGO STRETCH HULK" AND
 "RASCALLY ROY" HERO ENVY ARTICLES...

THE ROY THOMAS SPIDER-MAN COSTUME

THE UNCANNY BUT TRUE CREATION OF THE WOLVERINE

DAYS OF GRIMLOCK, ELVIS PRESLEY AND ROY THOMAS 

THE "OFFICIAL" MARVEL COMICS ROY THOMAS APPRECIATION PRINT

THE SECRET ORIGIN OF THE JIM STARLIN THANOS BUST

MY MARVEL CAMEO
https://hero-envy.blogspot.com/2018/11/my-marvel-cameo.html 

THE LAST SPIDER-MAN DAILY NEWSPAPER STRIP
https://hero-envy.blogspot.com/2019/05/the-last-spider-man-newspaper-daily.html

THE OFFICIAL ROY THOMAS CHARACTERS, CONCEPTS AND CREATIONS DATABASE
https://hero-envy.blogspot.com/2020/01/the-official-roy-thomas-characters.html

Dann Thomas, Roy Thomas, Jeff Goldblum (who play's the Grandmaster in the MCU movies, a character Roy co-created in The Avengers #69 (1969)) and me.

25 comments:

  1. Heart touching story, good job John.

    ReplyDelete
  2. This is very cool man.. Thank-you for sharing.. #EXCELSIOR

    ReplyDelete
  3. Now I got to get that book.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Touching and well written. A nice tribute to a legend. The "God Bless You" parts really got to me emotionally. Thanks.

    ReplyDelete
  5. What a fantastic story! You did an incredible thing John, something Stan and Roy will never forget. You made history and to be honest, I'm a tad jealous because I wish it was me. You're a good man. Excelsior buddy.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Thank you for this. It made me think of my son who passed away a few years back from drugs. It's sad because we lost touch and the next time I saw him was at the funeral. I hold on to our memories vise because they are all I have left. Your advice is true, never forget the memories or take them for granted. And everyday we were together was magic.

    Much love to you and your daughter.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you for commenting, especially on such a sensitive issue.

      I'm truly sorry to hear about your son and I'm glad this write-up gave you some peace of mind. I have no doubt your loss is devastating (I couldn't imagine the heart-ache) but you keeping his memories with you is what keeps his spirit alive. And we should never morn the loss of those who die fulfilling their destiny. No life is truly wasted no matter how it was lived. He had a purpose here and what that purpose means to you must be discovered or told in a future moment. This is how we learn and grow in life, through lessons and sometimes those lessons are painful. No matter how tough it can get, we have to believe there was some kind of purpose to it all. Learn, listen, grow and never stop being the best you can be and putting out positive energy because that's what will last and inspire others when it's our turn to leave this earth. And we can do it positively or negatively, that's our choice. It's what we choose to do with our experiences; how we choose to feel about them and how we live after that. Always choices. Some people go the good route or the bad route. It's never easy BUT it's your choice. So choose wisely because whether you believe it or not, your choices and energy will effect somebody whether you know it or not.

      I choose to be a higher being and never settle. It's easy to settle. I couldn't live with myself if I did. It's hard to persevere walking the path of your personal greatness and to keep striving for your goals despite all the resistance coming at you from the world. But with every step I take my spirit is better because of it. I know this because I can see it in my daughters eyes.

      It's your choice.

      God speed my friend.

      Delete
    2. Damn John, you really are a superhero! Great words. You and Roy should get matching costumes and fight crime everywhere. But who'll be the leader and who'll be the kid sidekick?

      Delete
    3. No doubt I'm the kid sidekick. But Roy is still "The Boy".

      Delete
  7. After Stan Lee, Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko there is Roy Thomas.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Stan Lee meets Roy Thomas, then both look at a book that celebrates Stan's life together and then he passes. It really was like a comic book story. Thanks for letting us know what happened in Stan's last moments.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Sometimes you read an article that inspires you when you need it. Thanks for this because I bought the book and when I read it it'll mean so much more. Keep doing what you're doing.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Reading this got me thinking of the comics I read when I with my brother when I was a kid. The way you put it in perspective with Stan and giving him thanks really got to me. Awesome story and Stan and Roy are legends.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I've posted where I met Stan before... very good guy. And he really does love his comics and creations. You would think at some point this dude would get tired of talking about the same thing over and over but he never did. He wasn't afraid to shit on some of the characters and story lines in both his world (Marvel) and in the competitions (DC). If you had any opinion in common with him, he could talk about it for hours. When they called him for his table (we were sitting at the bar talking while waiting for our names to be called), we were talking about villains and he was surprised that the two I named as the most interesting to me were also the two that he thought were so overpowered he couldn't created heroes to fight them.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Stan Lee has been an inspiration to me. From making characters with Steve Ditko such as Spiderman. Having depth to the characters he made and having them feel like real people. He made characters with complex story archs and having life lessons about responsibility, growing up, being different, and etc. He really did change the comic book industry but it sad now to see Marvel Comics decline in quality for a lot of the Marvel characters' comic book series. I thank you for doing this. Thank you God for having him live on this earth. Without Stan Lee I wouldn't of gotten into comic books and I wouldn't of started to write my own comic book universe which hopefully will have an impact. Thank you again for your work after all these years and excelsior.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Stan is in gods office right now, god's holding his perfect issues of marvel comics ready to be signed

    ReplyDelete
  14. Beautiful story. Thank you for giving Stan the happiness he needed and Roy the time to meet up with an old friend after so many years. Good thing there is still good people out in the world despite the terrible times we live in. God bless.

    ReplyDelete
  15. I just wanted to share how I met Stan Lee.
    April 14th, 2015. (I think during the Age of Ultron Premiere) I was visiting Beverly Hills, California for work. Between meetings, I decided to stop for a coffee at Starbucks. As I was sitting outside sipping my coffee, when my coworker nonchalantly says, “hey, Stan Lee is walking towards us”... “Yea Right!” I replied. As I look down the sidewalk, sure enough... The Legend, Stan, the Man, Lee was walking up the sidewalk towards me!!! Holy CRAP!!! With Shaking Hands, I quickly get out my camera phone. I call out, “Mr. Lee??!!! Mr. Lee??!!! Can I PLEASE get a photo with you, I am such a huge fan. Graciously, Stan thought for less then a second and said, “Yea, Ok.”
    He was so kind and gracious and I am so thankful I was able to meet him away from a Comic Con with all the fanfare. I was shaking for the next few hours.
    I live in Michigan, and never thought I would have the privilege and honor of meeting Stan. He basically created my childhood and he totally lived up to the hype.
    Excelsior.

    ReplyDelete
  16. The first comic book I read at 10 years old was a re-print of a Stan Lee Spider-Man issue. Without giving the number you will all know the issue it's the one where the goblin has dropped a building on Spidey, he is trapped and no matter how hard he tries he can't lift the rubble off. Then in the moment he is going to give up he remembers sick aunt may who is waiting for her heart medication which he has under his costume and even though he knows he is not strong enough he still tries one more times and with the thought of saving his aunt he lifts the rubble off.

    This was the story that shaped my life, no matter how hard things got, no matter how heavy the burden I lifted the rubble off me.

    Thank you Stan you will be missed but never forgotten.

    PS im 37 and have been collecting comic's since that day.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Even until this day i still cry and cannot stop crying when i remember the memories that i had throughout my entire life reading the comics that this man made, he gave me something that i could not ever forget until the day i die, he gave me my childhood, he gave me a way to escape the harsh and painful reality that tortured me almost my entire life.......





    I WILL ALWAYS REMEMBER AND CHERISH YOU MR. STAN LEE

    ReplyDelete
  18. Stan won't be forgotten. I've passed him on to my son and he's promised to pass him on to his kids and grand kids when he has them. So thankful that my brother passed him on to me before they both passed. They will forever be entwined in my family's history even though they never got to meet.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Son: Mom, why do all the good people die so early?



    Mom: When you are in the garden, which flowers do you pick?



    Son: The most beautiful ones.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Stan's comics weren't just for action or entertainment, he taught us life lessons. Spider-Man: With great power comes great responsibility. Hulk: Control anger. X-Men: It's okay to be different, and using your gifts for good is important. Fantastic Four: Nothing is more important than family. Now the list goes on and on, but the main thing is that Stan was a very special storyteller. And God bless his beautiful soul.

    ReplyDelete