Next Club Meeting: October 19, 2024, at the Fountaindale Public Library in Bolingbrook from 11:00 am - 5:00 pm

The Animatrix Network is an anime & manga fan club located in the Southwest suburbs of Chicago, Illinois. We usually meet on the third Saturday of each month (except when holidays or conventions coincide). The meetings are free and open to the public. Join us for a day filled with anime.

This site provides news, reviews, commentaries, and previews of the world of anime and everything it inspires, such as live-action films, comics, music, art, and other weird things to enjoy and contemplate.

Friday, November 30, 2018

New Star Wars Animated Delights


STAR WARS: Galaxy of Adventures
Join Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Chewbacca, Yoda, Princess Leia, Darth Vader, and more in Star Wars Galaxy of Adventures, a new series of animated shorts celebrating the galaxy far, far away! Visit Star Wars Kids at http://www.starwarskids.com. 

Star Wars Galaxy of Adventures is a series of animated shorts designed to reimagine and add new details and life to scenes longtime Star Wars fans know and love. Specifically tailored to kids, the shorts blend vibrant animation with classic sounds and dialogue from the original Star Wars films, for a mix of old and new that proves dazzling for fans of all ages. 

The shorts begin with a look at Luke Skywalker's life on Tatooine, then take us to Darth Vader's menacing adventures. Luke and Vader get two one-minute shorts each, while the remaining two are devoted to the adventures of R2-D2 and Chewbacca. You can check them all out below.






This is clearly just the beginning, and the Star Wars Kids channel has already started adding features like "Fun Facts" videos focused on specific characters. So, if you have a young fan in your life and you want to immerse them in a galaxy far, far away, now's the time to get into it.

Thursday, November 29, 2018

‘SpongeBob’ Creator Stephen Hillenburg Dies at 57

Stephen Hillenburg
(1961 - 2018)
Creator of ‘SpongeBob Squarepants’
[Source: Variety] Stephen Hillenburg, the creator of the megahit Nickelodeon cartoon series “SpongeBob SquarePants,” died on Monday. He was 57.

The cause of death was ALS, which Hillenburg revealed he had been diagnosed with in March of last year.

“We are incredibly saddened by the news that Steve Hillenburg has passed away following a battle with ALS,” Nickelodeon said in a statement. “He was a beloved friend and long-time creative partner to everyone at Nickelodeon, and our hearts go out to his entire family. Steve imbued ‘SpongeBob SquarePants’ with a unique sense of humor and innocence that has brought joy to generations of kids and families everywhere. His utterly original characters and the world of Bikini Bottom will long stand as a reminder of the value of optimism, friendship and the limitless power of imagination.”

Hillenburg graduated from Humboldt State University in 1984 with a bachelor’s degree in Natural Resource Planning and Interpretation, with an emphasis on marine resources. He then became a marine biology teacher at the Orange County Marine Institute (now the Ocean Institute) in Dana Point, California. This interest, combined with his artistic talent and love of the sea and its creatures, led him to write and illustrate stories as teaching tools with characters that would later become the denizens of SpongeBob’s home, Bikini Bottom.

He began his animation career in 1987, pursuing a degree in Experimental Animation at the California Institute of Arts in Valencia and earning his Master of Fine Arts in 1992.

That same year he won an award for Best Animated Concept at the Ottawa International Animation Festival for his animated short “Wormholes”, which went on to be shown at various international animation festivals. From 1993 to 1996 he would pursue work in television as a director and writer on Nickelodeon’s series “Rocko’s Modern Life.”

From there, he began to work full-time on writing producing, and directing on the animated series that would eventually become “SpongeBob SquarePants.” The first episode aired on Nickelodeon on May 1, 1999 and the series commenced its full run on July 17 of that year. The series has aired nearly 250 episodes to date. It appealed not only to children but older viewers as well, with college students even organizing viewing parties for the show.

The series has won both U.S. and British Emmy Awards, Annie Awards, and ASACP Awards and has been dubbed or subtitled in more than 60 languages, including Urdu, Azerbaijani and Maori.

Hillenburg also wrote, produced, and directed “The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie,” which was released in 2004 and went on to gross over $140 million worldwide. Hillenburg then wrote the story for and was the executive producer of the sequel, “The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water,” in 2015.

Hillenburg — or Steve as he was known to family, friends, and fans — was born August 21, 1961, at Fort Sill in Lawton, Oklahoma. After leaving the military, his father, Kelly N. Hillenburg, Jr., became a draftsman and designer for aerospace companies. His mother Nancy taught visually impaired students.

He is survived by his wife of 20 years Karen Hillenburg, son Clay, mother Nancy Hillenburg (nee Dufour) and brother Brian Kelly Hillenburg, his wife Isabel, and nieces Emma and Hazel.

Wednesday, November 28, 2018

Touchdown Mars!


Touchdown Mars!
NASA Mission Control at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory erupts in applause after the touchdown of the InSight lander. -- Touchdown on Mars! NASA's InSight Lands to Peer Inside the Red Planet: http://www.space.com/42541-mars-insig...

And then this happens.... 

Tuesday, November 27, 2018

WHAT IS A NENDOROID?


Everything You Need To Know about Nendoroids
Today, we will be talking about Nendoroids! This is a Full Review of everything you need to know about them, also we will be talking about their history and how they took over the market. We will then dive right into a thorough detail of our own Nendoroids from our store and help you determine why you should get one!
Pinky Street: The Predecessor To Nendoroid

Monday, November 26, 2018

Little Stone Lion


Little Stone Lion
Name of the work: Xiao Shishi
Author Name: Five Internal Organs
Description: Little Shishi and Mom and Dad sit at the door of the temple to guard it. Shishi hopes that one day he will be able to drive away ghosts like his parents. On a quiet night, a hungry stray cat slips into the temple, and the little stone lion decides to drive away the stray cat to prove that he is a qualified guardian.

Sunday, November 25, 2018

Marvel's Dark Phoenix Saga


The Dark Phoenix Saga
It’s not every day that the Phoenix Force decides to inhabit your body! This week on Marvel TL;DR, Jean Grey is fighting for her life, fighting for love, and fighting… the X-Men?? Who will survive this roller-coaster ride of cosmic powers and emotions?

Saturday, November 24, 2018

Official Trailer for 'UglyDolls'


U G L Y D O L L S
Unconventionality rules in UGLYDOLLS, STXfilms’ new animated musical adventure starring the acting and singing voices of Kelly Clarkson, Nick Jonas, Janelle Monáe, Blake Shelton and Pitbull. The film is inspired by the unique and beloved global plush toy phenomenon launched in 2001. 

In the adorably different town of Uglyville, weird is celebrated, strange is special and beauty is embraced as more than simply meets the eye. Here, the free-spirited Moxy and her UglyDolls friends live every day in a whirlwind of bliss, letting their freak flags fly in a celebration of life and its endless possibilities, occasionally looking to the sky, where a new UglyDoll will appear and be embraced by the community. 

Moxy (Kelly Clarkson) loves her square-peg life in this round-hole town, but her curiosity about all things leads her to wonder if there’s something – anything – on the other side of the mountain which nestles Uglyville. Moxy gathers a group of her closest friends and sets off to find what’s on the other side. They discover another world – Perfection – a town where more conventional dolls are trained in protocols before they graduate and are sent to the “real” world to find the love of a child. 

In Perfection, Moxy and her crew are subject to the manipulations of Lou (Nick Jonas), the perfect doll in charge of training recruits. Here, the UglyDolls will confront what it means to be different, struggle with their desire to be loved, and ultimately discover that you don’t have to be perfect to be amazing because who you truly are is what matters most. 

Also starring in the voice cast of UGLYDOLLS are Wanda Sykes, Emma Roberts, Gabriel Iglesias, and Wang Leehom. 
Coming Soon to Theaters

Friday, November 23, 2018

Totally Spies! The Movie

TOTALLY SPIES! THE MOVIE
Having just enrolled at Beverly Hills High School, Sam, Clover and Alex are recruited by the World Organization of Human Protection (WOOHP), an ultra secret organization of international spies. The prequel to the animated action hit reveals how Sam, Clover and Alex met and first teamed up to battle to save the world. The girls begin their adventure after having been transferred to a high school in Beverly Hills and wind up stopping an evil Super Villain named Fabu, a former fashion model who entrances teenagers and plans to demolish the Earth from a fabulous luxury resort in space! 

Join teenage spies Sam, Alex and Clover in loads of fun and exciting adventures as they battle to keep the public safe from various villains and dastardly plots to take over the world. Led by Jerry the founder of WOOHP, these young spies love to enjoy action and fun. 
Watch the entire movie here

Wednesday, November 21, 2018

Legend of the Blue Sea - Korean Drama

Legend of the Blue Sea
Sometime during August, 1598, newly appointed governor Dam Ryung (Lee Min-Ho) stays for a night at an inn run by Mr. Yang (Sung Dong-Il). During that evening, Mr. Yang shows Dam Ryung a captured mermaid named Sim Chung (Gianna Jun). Later that night, Dam Ryung releases her into the ocean, and before she swims away, Sim Chung reaches out her hand to Dam Ryung which he briefly holds. And then she is gone.

In the present day, Joon-Jae (Lee Min-Ho) is a smooth talking conman with magician like abilities. He works with Nam-Doo (Lee Hee-Joon) and Tae-O (Shin Won-Ho). For their next score, Joon-Jae impersonates a prosecutor and swindles a large amount of money from a wealthy suspect's mother. Joon-Jae then travels abroad and stays at an ocean-side resort. Meanwhile, the mermaid, Sim Chung, is swept up in a tidal wave and washed ashore near the ocean-side resort. She sees Joon-Jae. 


He offers her an umbrella to protect her from the rain. She reaches out her hand to his. And the love between these two souls after centuries apart is rekindled.
All Episodes are Available to Watch on YouTube

Tuesday, November 20, 2018

"MISSING LINK" - Official Trailer


M I S S I N G   L I N K
From the studio who brought you 
               Coraline
ParaNorman 
The Boxtrolls              
Kubo and the Two Strings

Meet Mr. Link: 8 feet tall, 630 lbs, and covered in fur, but don’t let his appearance fool you… he is funny, sweet, and adorably literal, making him the world’s most lovable legend. Tired of living a solitary life in the Pacific Northwest, Mr. Link recruits fearless explorer Sir Lionel Frost to guide him on a journey to find his long-lost relatives in the fabled valley of Shangri-La. Along with adventurer Adelina Fortnight, our fearless trio of explorers encounter more than their fair share of peril as they travel to the far reaches of the world to help their new friend.
IN THEATERS SPRING 2019
Cast: Hugh Jackman, Zoe Saldana, Zach Galifianakis, Timothy Olyphant, Emma Thompson, Stephen Fry, Matt Lucas, Amrita Acharia, David Walliams

Monday, November 19, 2018

Official Trailer for 'DUMBO'


D U M B O
From Disney and visionary director Tim Burton, “Dumbo” expands on the beloved classic story where differences are celebrated, family is cherished and dreams take flight. A new trailer, images and poster are now available. The trailer features Colin Farrell, Michael Keaton, Danny DeVito, Eva Green, Finley Hobbins and Nico Parker. 

Circus owner Max Medici (Danny DeVito) enlists former star Holt Farrier (Colin Farrell) and his children Milly (Nico Parker) and Joe (Finley Hobbins) to care for a newborn elephant whose oversized ears make him a laughingstock in an already struggling circus. But when they discover that Dumbo can fly, the circus makes an incredible comeback, attracting persuasive entrepreneur V.A. Vandevere (Michael Keaton), who recruits the peculiar pachyderm for his newest, larger-than-life entertainment venture, Dreamland. Dumbo soars to new heights alongside a charming and spectacular aerial artist, Colette Marchant (Eva Green), until Holt learns that beneath its shiny veneer, Dreamland is full of dark secrets.
In theaters March 29, 2019

Sunday, November 18, 2018

Mirai - Official English Trailer


M   I   R   A   I
When four-year-old Kun meets his new baby sister, his world is turned upside down. Named Mirai (meaning “future”), the baby quickly wins the hearts of Kun’s entire family. As his mother returns to work, and his father struggles to run the household, Kun becomes increasingly jealous of baby Mirai... until one day he storms off into the garden, where he encounters strange guests from the past and future – including his sister Mirai, as a teenager. Together, Kun and teenage Mirai go on a journey through time and space, uncovering their family’s incredible story. Directed by Mamoru Hosoda, and featuring the voices of John Cho, Rebecca Hall, and Daniel Dae Kim. 
In theaters starting November 29
An official selection at Cannes Directors’ Fortnight, and the epic capstone of director Mamoru Hosoda’s career, Mirai is a sumptuous, magical, and emotionally soaring adventure about the ties that bring families together and make us who we are.
Get tickets at https://bit.ly/2p3cARV

Saturday, November 17, 2018

Alita: Battle Angel – 'Battle Ready' Trailer


ALITA: BATTLE ANGEL
"Motorball! Motorball! Motorball!"
From visionary filmmakers James Cameron (AVATAR) and Robert Rodriguez (SIN CITY), comes ALITA: BATTLE ANGEL, an epic adventure of hope and empowerment. When Alita (Rosa Salazar) awakens with no memory of who she is in a future world she does not recognize, she is taken in by Ido (Christoph Waltz), a compassionate doctor who realizes that somewhere in this abandoned cyborg shell is the heart and soul of a young woman with an extraordinary past. As Alita learns to navigate her new life and the treacherous streets of Iron City, Ido tries to shield her from her mysterious history while her street-smart new friend Hugo (Keean Johnson) offers instead to help trigger her memories. But it is only when the deadly and corrupt forces that run the city come after Alita that she discovers a clue to her past – she has unique fighting abilities that those in power will stop at nothing to control. If she can stay out of their grasp, she could be the key to saving her friends, her family and the world she’s grown to love. 
In Theaters February 14, 2019 
Directed by: Robert Rodriguez 
Screenplay by: James Cameron and Laeta Kalogridis 
Based on the Graphic Novel ("Manga") Series: "Gunnm" By Yukito Kishiro 
Produced by: James Cameron and Jon Landau 
Cast: Rosa Salazar, Christoph Waltz, Jennifer Connelly, Mahershala Ali, Ed Skrein, Jackie Earle Haley, Keean Johnson

Friday, November 16, 2018

Fred Patton dies at age 77

FRED PATTON
Legendary Anime/Manga Pioneer in the U.S.
(1941 - 2018)
[Source: ComicsBeat, written by author Heidi MacDonald] Comics and animation lost another key figure this week. Fred Patton, a protean champion of  early anime/manga fandom passed away at age 77 this week. He had been confined to a nursing home after a stroke in 2005, but continued writing and pursuing his interests in anime.
 
Until then he wrote widely about anime, and you’ll find his byline in many of the same old fanzines I wrote for back in the day.

All The Anime has a fine obituary, including Patton’s key role at Streamline Pictures, one of the first companies to bring Anime to the US:
When Fred turned 50, Carl Macek lured him away from his real-world job into the world of movie-making. Fred became the first employee of Streamline Pictures, with many of his early amateur scripts forming the basis for some of Streamline’s pro releases. Inevitably, he would lock horns with Macek, who would change the dialogue beyond what Fred considered to be a reasonable nuance. Fred would warn him that fandom wouldn’t like it, and as Macek later admitted, Fred was often right. However, Fred also had a fine grasp of the politics of fandom, and was instrumental in decisions designed to avoid what today might be called flame-wars. It was he who brought up the fact that the subject of the first Lupin III film, The Mystery of Mameux, had been so consistently mistransliterated as Mystery of Mamo by American fandom that correcting it would only lead to protests.
Many remembered Patton on social media:
Fred was a regular in my young fan days in Southern California, and I would always see him at Comic-Con. We actually owned the same shirt emblazoned with Burne Hogarth’s Tarzan, and he wore his for many years after I stopped wearing mine. We’d always joke about it. He was a good guy and very instrumental in the fandom of the day.

Thursday, November 15, 2018

Toy Story 4 - Official Teaser Trailer


TOY STORY 4
Woody has always been confident about his place in the world and that his priority is taking care of his kid, whether that’s Andy or Bonnie. But when Bonnie adds a reluctant new toy called “Forky” to her room, a road trip adventure alongside old and new friends will show Woody how big the world can be for a toy. Directed by Josh Cooley (“Riley’s First Date?”) and produced by Jonas Rivera (“Inside Out,” “Up”) and Mark Nielsen (associate producer “Inside Out”), Disney•Pixar’s “Toy Story 4” ventures to U.S. theaters on June 21, 2019.
In theatres Summer 2019!

Wednesday, November 14, 2018

KOJI 2018


K   O   J   I
KOJI is a Fantasy Adventure show targeted for boys and girls age 6-11+, but aiming to explore themes and topics that relate to people of all ages. 

Koji crash lands on a colorful earth-like planet, inhabited by incredible alien creatures and hybrid animals. It's here that he meets Tako, a giant blue cat with water/ice powers, who will become his lifelong best friend. 

They journey together to defeat the evil spreading throughout the land, and it's up to them and a few valiant others they meet along the way to put an end to the Robot King and his mechanical army. 

Studio Mir is now seeking distribution and financial partners to further bring the world of KOJI to life! 

For Distribution Inquiries: studiomir@studiomir.co.kr

Tuesday, November 13, 2018

Artist Creates Stunning "Paintings" From Fabric


UNIQUELY BEAUTIFUL FABRIC ART
In the hands of Benjamin Shine, a piece of tulle isn’t just for making fancy dresses and curtains. Using nothing but an iron, The British artist turns the fabric into amazingly realistic "paintings".

Shine sculpts, presses and pleats the huge single piece of tulle, whose transparent qualities give the portrait more texture and depth. By layering in this way, the artist obtains different tones and shadows that enable him to realistically depict everything from objects to portraits.

From Bergdorf Goodman and Givenchy to Sotheby’s — and across much of the internet — artist Benjamin Shine’s ethereal work with tulle has made him perhaps the foremost fabric sculptor in practice today. Meet with Shine in his studio to see, and try to understand, his process.

Monday, November 12, 2018

Stan Lee Dead at 95

STAN LEE
Godfather of Marvel Comics, dead at age 95
(December 28, 1922 - November 12, 2018)
[Source: Yahoo!News] Stan Lee, the Marvel Comics godfather who helped create Spider-Man, the Hulk, Iron Man and so many more “feet of clay” superheroes, characters that both reinvented the comic genre and formed the basis for the now-dominant motion-picture form, died Monday, according to TMZ and the Hollywood Reporter. He was 95.

In 2018, as the latest Marvel movie, Black Panther, was winning over audiences and critics, Lee canceled public appearances due to an irregular heartbeat and pneumonia. While he returned to the convention circuit a couple of months later, longtime friends and admirers, such as filmmaker/podcaster Kevin Smith, said they were no longer able to communicate with the comic legend, and a report said a battle over the control of Lee’s estate was underway.  

Lee, Marvel’s longtime editor and publisher, was credited as an executive producer on nearly 150 films and TV shows based on Marvel titles, including the billion-dollar-grossing X-Men, Spider-Man, Avengers, and Iron Man franchises. Other productions bearing Lee’s name include the Wolverine, Captain America, Guardians of the Galaxy, Fantastic Four, Hulk, Thor and Doctor Strange films, as well as the Jessica Jones and Luke Cage series.

As of 2017, four of the world’s top 20 all-time box-office hits were based on characters co-created by Lee: The Avengers; Avengers: Age of Ultron; Iron Man 3 and Captain America: Civil War. Many more Marvel movies bearing Lee’s name, if not featuring one of Lee’s signature onscreen appearances, are in the pipeline. In 2018 alone, Lee appeared in Black Panther; Ant-Man and the WaspAvengers: Infinity War; and Venom. He will also appear in the untitled Avengers movie, due out in 2019.

“Stan’s impact on popular culture is immeasurable,” Tobey Maguire, star of the 2000s’ Spider-Man movies, once said at a Comic-Con event honoring Lee.

Hard as it was to sum up what Lee meant to what we watch, read and consume, the world kept trying. Lee was presented with the Producers Guild’s Vanguard Award, the National Medal of the Arts and a Disney Legends Award. At age 91, he was placed among Oprah Winfrey, Steven Spielberg and George Lucas on Forbes’ annual ranking of the most influential celebrities.

Lee had an aw-shucks take on his career and legacy: “I’m just a guy who wrote comic books,” he would say.

Lee’s own origin story went like this: He was born Stanley Martin Lieber on Dec. 28, 1922, in New York City. In 1939, when he was 17, Martin Goodman, his cousin Jean’s husband, launched Timely Comics, the forerunner to Marvel. Goodman hired the young Lee to refill inkwells for Timely’s editing team, Jack Kirby and Joe Simon, both already renowned for having created the star-spangled Captain America.

When Kirby and Simon left Marvel in 1941, Lee was transformed like Peter Parker was from nerdy high-schooler to Spider-Man: The former gofer was tapped to be Timely’s lead writer, art director and editor-in-chief. The latter title was something Lee, outside a break to serve in the Army during World War II, would hold until the 1970s.

In the 1950s, Timely, which morphed to Atlas, which morphed to Marvel, churned out monster, mystery and cowboy tales. Superheroes surfaced only occasionally. Marvel was on the ropes, and Lee was bored.

“Around 1960, I told my wife, ‘I can’t stand this anymore,'” Lee said. “…My wife said, ‘If you want to quit anyway, before you leave why not do a comic or two the way you want.'”

Around the same time, Lee would recall, Goodman told his editor he wanted a superhero team-up title, à la Justice League of America, a then-hot, new hit for rival DC Comics.

A year later, in 1961, the first issue of The Fantastic Four, co-created by Lee and Kirby, who’d returned to the Marvel fold, was published. The title was unlike anything comic-book fans had seen.

Where the JLA was an all-for-one collective of do-gooders, the Fantastic Four was a group of mutants who bickered.

“I changed the whole line around,” Lee would say. “New ways of [characters] talking, hangups, introspection and brooding.”

Lee’s vision for the superhero came down to this: “Inside their colorful, costumed booties they’d still have feet of clay,” he wrote in his book, Origin of Marvel Comics.

The thinking was revolutionary.

“The beauty of Stan Lee’s characters is that they were characters first and superheroes next,” Jeff Kline, a producer of animated series (Transformers Prime, Dragon Tales), once said. “They never just had superpowers.”
Hulk, Iron Man, the X-Men, the Avengers, Nick Fury, the Silver Surfer, Ant-Man and Black Panther were among the flawed heroes and antiheroes Lee and Kirby cranked out, one after the other, through the early 1960s.

“Lee and Kirby were the Lennon and McCartney of comics,” Dark Horse Comics founder Mike Richardson once told the Los Angeles Times.

With Steve Ditko, Lee co-created Spider-Man, the web-slinging outsider who would become, status-wise, Marvel’s equivalent of Superman. It was Lee who penned, in the very first Spider-Man adventure in Amazing Fantasy No. 15, the words that would famously be boiled down to, “With great power comes great responsibility.”

Lee was front and center as Marvel rose like a rocket, and he became a star (complete with his own catchphrase, “Excelsior!”) to baby-boomer and Gen-X readers of the 1960s and 1970s.

In the 1960s, Hollywood began mining Marvel for fodder for children’s cartoons. As comics moved into the mainstream, Marvel heroes went primetime with the 1970s shows The Amazing Spider-Man and The Incredible Hulk.

Lee’s characters had a tougher time transitioning to the big screen. While DC scored successes with the Christopher Reeve Superman franchise and the Tim Burton Batman movies, Spider-Man and his cohorts languished in development hell. For a time, the most famous Marvel movie was the one that never got released: the low-budget, Roger Corman-branded Fantastic Four. (Lee was not a producer on that fiasco.) In 1996, Marvel filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Then, in 2000, X-Men opened in theaters, and everything changed. The bigger-than-expected hit spawned multiple spinoffs, including the Wolverine and Deadpool movies, and, along with the Sam Raimi Spider-Man that followed in 2002, sent Hollywood on a superhero binge from which it has yet to back away from.
Lee’s name not only appeared in the credits, but the man himself appeared onscreen, a cameo tradition that dated back at least to the 1989 TV-movie The Trial of the Incredible Hulk and will continue with the upcoming Wreck It Ralph sequel, Ralph Breaks the Internet, which open Nov. 21. His 2017 cameo in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 teased that Lee’s omnipresence was due to his being one of the all-seeing Watchers — yet more characters created by Lee and Kirby.

Lee once joked his cameos were the reason the Marvel movies were so successful. “The cameo is very brief,” he said. “Somebody might miss it, you might’ve reached down for popcorn. If you missed a cameo, what do you do? You run to the box office and buy another ticket! So half of the money they’ve made is because of my cameos!”

In 2009, Disney bought Marvel Entertainment, and a price tag was essentially affixed to the characters, adventures and titles that originated at the Lee-era Marvel Comics: $4 billion.
Lee, who stepped down as Marvel publisher in the 1990s, kept a hand in the company as its chairman emeritus. Always a hustler, Lee founded the media company POW! Entertainment and starred in his own reality-TV series, Who Wants to Be a Superhero?.

In 2017, the man who’d left an imprint on so many literally left his prints at the TCL Chinese Theatre. The ceremony was held less than two weeks after Lee’s wife of 69 years, Joan Lee, died at the age of 95.

Lee grappled with claims of elder abuse, which were being investigated by Los Angeles police, in the past year. He was granted a temporary restraining order against a former business manager in June, following a bizarre series of events, including the disappearance of millions from his bank accounts and the sale of his blood to fans. However, he insisted just last month, “There really isn’t that much drama.”

Through it all, Lee showed no signs of slowing down or of losing the ability to spin a good story. Asked once which of his characters was his favorite, Lee answered as any proud parent would: “I love ’em all,” he said.
"Excelsior, True Believers!" 
"Nuff Said."