Friday, June 15, 2007

Is Stan a Sell-Out?


Stan Lee... what are you thinking?

First he decides to be "the man" for the "reality" show Who Wants to be a Superhero.

Then recently he signed a deal with Disney. They don't mention what he'll be working on, but Lee says he's got a "lot of ideas."

Now I see that he's developing an animated series for MTV starring Paris Hilton.

A Disney creator also making "Stripperella" type show for MTV? I hope that he doesn't get those two jobs mixed up!

It seems like anyone who waves money in front of Stan Lee lately will be able to get him to do what they want. Does he need the money that badly? Does he crave fame this much? I'm starting to think he's becoming a sell-out.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hasn't Stan's schtick always been to be a sell-out, just to be suave and entertaining as he does it? The guy was a master marketer, practically the Steve Jobs of his era.

James Meeley said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
James Meeley said...

Yeah, Stan "The Man" Lee is one of the classic old-school hype-men. And he hyped nothing better than he did himself.

Stan has ALWAYS been a shameless self-promoter. He's certainly used those skills to help sell the product he's working, too, but the main hype has always been about "The Man" himself.

I think the difference between Stan and a lot of the contemporaries of today who try to do like him, is that he just has that twinkle in his eyes and that sense he's not really taking any of this all THAT seriously. It's what's kept him lovable and just a hoot to see in action, be it in his movie cameos, voice narrations on old cartoons, or talking about his next big project.

Stan is that zany uncle we all have in our families, whom the kids love and the adults just shake their heads in disbelief at. And that's why, even being well into his 80's, Stan Lee remains "The Man" to most comic readers.

Give me a "Stan's Soapbox" over a dozen "Cup O' Joes", true believers! 'Nuff said! :)

Lisa said...

Both of you make a good point - Stan has always been a marketer, and a good spirited one at that. It was just the Paris thing that really floored me.