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:"Peter Parker" redirects here. For other uses, see Peter Parker (disambiguation) Spider-Man (Peter Benjamin Parker) is a fictional Marvel Comics superhero created by writer Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko. First appearing in Amazing Fantasy When Spider-Man first saw print in the 1960s, teenage characters in superhero comic books were usually sidekicks. The Spider-Man series broke ground by featuring a hero who himself was an adolescent, to whose "self-obsessions with rejection, inadequacy, and loneliness" young readers could relate. Spider-Man has since appeared in various media including several animated and live-action television series, syndicated newspaper comic strips and two highly successful films, with a third set to debut in 2007. Marvel has published several Spider-Man comic book series, the first being The Amazing Spider-Man. Over the years, the Peter Parker character has developed from shy high school student to troubled college student to married professional. Publication history
Creation of character There have been conflicting accounts of Spider-Man's creation, with Stan Lee, Steve Ditko (the official creators), Jack Kirby and Joe Simon claiming varying amounts of credit for the character. Stan Lee claimed in the 1980s that the idea for Spider-Man arose from a surge in teenage demand for comic books, and the desire to create a character with which teens could identify. Lee cited the non-superhuman pulp magazine crime fighter The Spider as an influence. In the documentary Stan Lee's Mutants, Monsters and Marvels and elsewhere, Lee claims he was inspired by seeing a fly climb up a wall. He mentions that he has told the story of Spider-Man's origins so often he has become unsure whether it is true. Afterward, Lee approach Marvel publisher Martin Goodman to seek approval for the character. In a 1986 interview with the Detroit News, he described in detail his arguments to overcome Goodman's objections. Jack Kirby counterclaims in a 1982 interview that Lee had minimal involvement in the character's creation, and that it was Kirby and Joe Simon who created a character called The Silver Spider planned for the Crestwood comic Black Magic until that company went out of business. In his 1990 autobiography, Simon disputes Kirby's account, asserting that the supernatural anthology Black Magic was not a factor, and that he devised the name "Spiderman" (later changed to "The Silver Spider"), while Kirby outlined the character's story and powers. He says Kirby showed the original Spiderman version to Lee, who liked the idea and gave Kirby the assignment. But Lee did not like the results — in Simon's words, "Captain America with cobwebs". Historian Greg Theakston, concurring, writes that after Lee received Goodman's approval for the name Spider-Man and the "ordinary teen" idea, Lee approached Kirby, who told Lee about his 1950s Silver Spider/Spiderman, in which an orphaned boy living with an old couple finds a magic ring that gives him superpowers. Lee and Kirby "immediately sat down for a story conference" and Lee afterward directed Kirby to flesh out the character and draw some pages. "A day or two later", Kirby showed Lee the first six pages, and as Lee later recalled, "I hated the way he was doing it. Not that he did it badly — it just wasn't the character I wanted; it was too heroic". Lee turned to artist Steve Ditko, who had originally been scheduled to ink the new character. Ditko developed a visual motif Lee found satisfactory, although Lee ironically later replaced Ditko's cover with one penciled by Kirby, suggesting Kirby did indeed have some part ot play in the characters origin. As Ditko recalled: Joe Simon later elaborated that the Silver Spider he and Kirby had created became the basis for Simon's Archie Comics character The Fly. Simon says Ditko recognized that Kirby's Spiderman was highly similar to the Fly, and designed his own original version, which Lee dubbed Spider-Man. Ditko's recollections in Comic Book Artist Commercial success Spider-Man was introduced in Amazing Fantasy In 1972, a second monthly ongoing series starring Spider-Man began: Marvel Team-Up, in which Spider-Man is paired with other superheroes. In 1976, his second solo series, Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man began, running parallel to the main series; a third solo series, Web of Spider-Man, launched in 1985, replacing Marvel Team-Up. The launch of a fourth monthly title in 1990, written and drawn by popular artist Todd McFarlane, debuted with multiple variant covers and sold in excess of three million copies of its premiere issue, an industry record at the time. There have generally been at least two ongoing Spider-Man series at any time, with a typical minimum of four comics starring the character published each month. Several limited series, one-shots and loosely related comics have also been published, and Spider-Man makes frequent cameos and guest appearances in other comic series. Spider-Man has become Marvel's flagship character, and is often seen as an image representing the entire company. When Marvel became the first comic book company to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 1991, the Wall Street Journal announced "Spider-man is coming to Wall Street"; the event was in turn promoted with an actor in a Spider-Man costume accompanying Stan Lee to the Stock Exchange. When Marvel wanted to issue a story dealing with the immediate aftermath of the September 11th, 2001 attacks, the company settled on the December 2001 issue of The Amazing Spider-Man.• In 2006, Spider-Man garnered major media coverage with the revealing of the character's secret identity,• an event detailed in a full-page story in the New York Post before the issue containing the story was even released.• In 1999, after a decline in sales that began with the clone storyline, John Byrne revised the origin of Spider-Man in , just as he earlier reinvented Superman's origin in The Man of Steel. The changes were mentioned in the contemporary comics (which Byrne co-wrote with Howard Mackie), but the attempt was not popular and Marvel writers returned to the Lee/Ditko origin. The publisher relaunched The Amazing Spider-Man and Peter Parker: Spider-Man with new As of 2006, Spider-Man regularly appears in The Amazing Spider-Man, New Avengers, The Sensational Spider-Man, Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane, Ultimate Spider-Man, Marvel Adventures Spider-Man, and the limited series Beyond! and Civil War. Character biography Unlike many other superhero comics, Spider-Man stories take pains to give a somewhat realistic portrayal of how the world would react to a super-powered crime fighter. Peter tries to do the right thing but the authorities and the public tend to view him with suspicion. Thanks to a continuous smear campaign by J. Jonah Jameson, publisher of The Daily Bugle, many people consider Spider-Man a menace to society. Ironically, Peter spends much of his life working as a freelance photographer for Jameson, often selling photographs of himself as Spider-Man to be used in negative articles and editorials. Spider-Man makes many enemies from crime fighting. Some target him as Peter Parker or attacked his loved ones: the Green Goblin killed Peter's girlfriend Gwen Stacy. The stresses of Peter's dual identity often causes tension between him and his wife Mary Jane Watson-Parker and friends. Early years Peter Benjamin Parker was born to Richard and Mary Parker. His parents worked for the CIA and later as S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, and were killed on a mission involving the Red Skull. The infant Peter Parker is left in the care of his Uncle Ben and Aunt May Parker, who live in the Forest Hills neighborhood of Queens, New York. The aging couple love Peter, but he grows to be unpopular among his peers. Over time, he grows to be a lonely, timid but exceptionally bright teenager who shows more interest in his studies (especially science) than in any kind of social life. He is often the target of jokes by more popular students like Flash Thompson, the high school's star athlete. Spider-Man's origin story is told in the first 12 pages of Amazing Fantasy In the earliest Spider-Man stories, Peter Parker attends Midtown High School. After his uncle's death, he and his aunt become desperate for money, so he gets a job as a photographer at the Daily Bugle selling photos to J. Jonah Jameson. Peter dates co-worker Betty Brant and clashes with his high school rival Flash Thompson. He encounters many of his most famous enemies for the first time during this period. College life Peter graduates from high school and enrolls at Empire State University, where he meets Harry Osborn and Gwen Stacy. His aunt introduces him to Mary Jane Watson, whom he dates for a short time, but Peter soon falls in love with Gwen. Meanwhile, Harry becomes Peter's roommate and best friend, but starts using illegal drugs. Harry's father, Norman Osborn, is revealed to be the Green Goblin and discovers Spider-Man's secret identity. After her father is killed in a battle between Spider-Man and Doctor Octopus, Gwen's relationship with Peter is put on hold when she travels to England. It was later revealed that Gwen had an affair with Norman Osborn, and gave birth to two children while in Europe. Harry suffers a drug overdose shortly after she returns. The death of Gwen Stacy
The alien costume and Venom
Clone Saga
21st-century Spider-Man During the late 1990s, in Peter Parker: Spider-Man In early 2001, Babylon 5 creator J. Michael Straczynski began writing The Amazing Spider-Man, illustrated by John Romita Jr. Straczynski and writer Paul Jenkins reunite Peter and Mary Jane, but the couple temporarily separates. Peter becomes a teacher at his old high school. The enigmatic, wealthy CEO Ezekiel suggests that the accident giving Peter his abilities might not have been a fluke, and that Peter might have a connection to a totemic spider spirit. The vampire-like Morlun, who feeds on the powers possessed by those connected to animal totems, comes to New York and severely beats Spider-Man. However, Peter injects himself with a radioactive material, making himself "impure" and weakening the villain, who is then killed by his lackey. Following a battle with the mystical spider wasp being Shathra, Peter and Mary Jane reconcile. The companion series Peter Parker: Spider-Man was relaunched as The Spectacular Spider-Man Vol. 2. Here Spider-Man battles Venom (Eddie Brock), who is revealed to be dying of cancer. An encounter with the Green Goblin leaves Peter's friend Flash Thompson comatose with severe brain damage and results in a truce that ends when Osborn resumes his murderous ways in the series The Pulse and Marvel Knights Spider-Man. After The Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 2 The Other Main article: In the 12-part 2005 story "The Other," which spans the three main Spider-Man titles, Spider-Man is cursed, killed by Morlun, and undergoes a transformation that evolves his powers (see below), further connects him to the spider totem and lays the foundation for further developments. After his return, Tony Stark makes him a new costume. Civil War Main article: Civil War In the 2006 crossover Civil War, the Marvel heroes find themselves divided on the issue of whether to register with U.S. government under the Superhuman Registration Act. Tony Stark (Iron Man) drafts a conflicted Spider-Man into a task-force to compel the rebel superheroes to register. Following Stark's lead, he unmasks himself at a televised news conference at the U.S. Capitol, a move controversial among comics fans.• In the aftermath, J. Jonah Jameson files a lawsuit against Parker, demanding repayment of money for "fraudulent" Spider-Man photos Parker shot for the Daily Bugle. After developing a growing unease about the Registration Act and Stark's motives, he attempts to surreptitiously leave his home at Stark Tower along with Aunt May and Mary Jane. Iron Man, discovering this, attacks him. Post-Civil War On September 11, 2006 editor Axel Alonso revealed in an interview that Spider-Man will once again don a black costume beginning with "Amazing Spider-Man" Powers and equipment
Enemies
Supporting characters Spider-Man was conceived as an ordinary person given great power, and the comics detail his civilian life, friends, family and romances as much as his super-heroic adventures. Some of the more important and well-known members of his extensive supporting cast include: Other Spider-Men and Women in the Marvel Universe In the comics, others use the Spider-Man identity. Some of these actually exist in the Marvel Universe (Earth-616): Other characters have used similar themes: Ultimate Spider-Man Ultimate Spider-Man is a completely separate continuity: a modernized reboot of the Spider-Man story, starting from the very beginning, with a plot that is inspired by, but very different from, the original continuity. The main purpose of the series is to be accessible to new and young readers, as it is free from the decades of history of the original, but it has been embraced by many longtime fans as well. In Ultimate Spider-Man, Peter is a high-school student who is bitten by a spider during a school field trip -- but instead of a radioactive spider (which reflected the Atomic Age in which Spider-Man's origin was written), it is a lab subject that has been genetically modified by Osborn Industries. The themes, characterization, and setting are updated to reflect modern life. It is set in the Ultimate Marvel universe. Alternate continuities Other related characters exist in alternate versions of the Marvel Universe. These include: Spider-Man comics are also published under the Marvel Adventures (formerly Marvel Age) banner. These versions are intended for younger audiences and are not part of the regular continuity. Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane is similarly set outside of regular continuity. Spider-Girl The Spider-Girl comic book series, originally published under the MC2 imprint, features May "Mayday" Parker, Peter's daughter in an alternate continuity. This timeline diverged from regular continuity when Peter and Mary Jane's daughter is returned to them. In Spider-Girl, Peter has been retired from crime fighting since his final battle with the Green Goblin, which cost him a leg. Peter has settled down to family life and works for the New York City Police Department as a forensic scientist. His teen daughter May follows in his footsteps against his wishes but Peter eventually helps her train for her calling. Peter appears in costume several times in Spider-Girl, either to restrain and protect May, or to assist her. Peter is among the superheroes kidnapped by Loki in the spin-off Last Hero Standing. In the same continuity, Gerald "Gerry" Drew, the son of Jessica Drew, inherits spider-powers and poses as Spider-Man. Derivatives Spider-Man has also inspired a number of derivatives: Television Spider-Man has been adapted to television many times, as a short-lived live-action television series, a Japanese tokusatsu series, and several animated cartoon series. There were also the "Spidey Super Stories" segments on the PBS educational series The Electric Company, which featured a Spider-Man who did not speak out loud but instead used only word balloons. Spider-Man's first cartoon series ran from 1967-1970. It is still famous for its theme song, which began, "Spider-Man, Spider-Man, does whatever a spider can..." In 1981, there were two Spider-Man cartoons airing on television. One was the syndicated series titled simply Spider-Man which ran for only one season, the other was the distinctly more popular Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends which aired on NBC for three seasons. The web-swinger's longest-running show was , which ran from 1994-1998, with 65 episodes in five seasons on Fox Kids. That series continued as Spider-Man Unlimited the following year. In 2003, MTV aired a 13-episode Spider-Man CGI series based loosely on the film continuity, , developed by Mainframe Entertainment. These and the other Spider-Man cartoons have served as the first introduction to the character for millions of people. Film Both Spider-Man and Spider-Man 2 rank among the highest-grossing films of all time. Novels and books Spider-Man features in three original Marvel novels published in the 1970s by Pocket Books. In the 1990s, Byron Preiss published a series of novels based on Marvel Comics, edited by Keith R. A. DeCandido, and written by various authors including Adam-Troy Castro, Tom DeFalco, and Diane Duane. Byron Preiss' license eventually lapsed, and the new licensee, Pocket Star (an imprint of Pocket Books), released Down These Mean Streets, by DeCandido, in 2005. In 2006, they released The Darkest Hours by Jim Butcher. Some of these novels were team-ups with other Marvel characters (including the X-Men, Iron Man, and the Hulk), while others were solo adventures. All were set in the comic book continuity, but are not canonical. However, the Byron Preiss novels shared a common continuity and occasionally referenced events in earlier novels, while later novels included a time-line. A number of Spider-Man children's books have also been published, from early readers and picture books to novels. Guide books such as DK Publishing's Spider-Man: The Ultimate Guide, by Tom DeFalco, are also common. Stage In 2002, the company 2MA produced the first live-action Spider-Man stunt show, staged in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The same show played at Tussauds Thorpe Park in 2003 and 2004. Spider-Man has also made stage appearances in Pantomime at the Birmingham Hippodrome Theatre, UK. At Universal Studios in California, a musical version of Spider-Man was produced, combining singing and live action sequences. The musical re-enacted the Green Goblin arc. Games and toys Main article: Spider-Man computer and video games Dozens of computer and video games starring Spider-Man, based on comics, animation, and movies, have been released for over 15 different gaming platforms. Spider-Man editions of Monopoly, chess, pinball, and many other games have also been made. Spider-Man has been included in every Marvel expansion of the tabletop miniature game Heroclix released to date. Spider-Man cards have been included in both the Overpower and VS System card games. According to ToyFare magazine, more action figures of Spider-Man have been released than any other character except Batman. The first major Spider-Man toy was the 1966 Captain Action Spider-Man by Ideal, a costume made for the 12 inch Captain Action figure. It is estimated only 17-22 exist in the original box. ToyFare listed this Spider-Man as the most valuable action figure at $15,000 and up. Numerous other Spider-Man action figures have been produced, from the Secret Wars line from Mattel, to the more recent from Toy Biz, (especially in the Spider-Man Classics line, Spider-Man movie lines and the Marvel Legends line). Lego and Minimates versions have also been made. Over 5000 toys, collectibles and miscellaneous memorabilia are in existence, but many are low-quality, unlicensed knock-offs. Real life Spider-Men Real-life "Spider-Men" include: Spider-Man in music Spider-Man in pop culture Bibliography Main article: Bibliography of Spider-Man titles Spider-Man first appeared in Amazing Fantasy Other continuities Comics elsewhere From Sunday, August 27, 2006, through mid-October the online-coupon company SmartSource placed Spider-Man comic-book reprints in several U.S. newspapers. These comics are placed in ad sections primarily on Sundays though also on other days, at the discretion of individual papers. This was done in order to promote the upcoming Spider-Man film. See also Bibliography Footnotes Stan Lee, 1986: "He gave me 1,000 reasons why Spider-Man would never work. Nobody likes spiders; it sounds too much like Superman; and how could a teenager be a superhero? Then I told him I wanted the character to be a very human guy, someone who makes mistakes, who worries, who gets acne, has trouble with his girlfriend, things like that. Goodman replied, 'He's a hero! He's not an average man!' I said, "No, we make him an average man who happens to have super powers, that's what will make him good'. He told me I was crazy". Quoted in The Steve Ditko Reader by Greg Theakston (Pure Imagination, Brooklyn, NY; ISBN 1-566-85011-8), p. 12 (unnumbered) Jack Kirby, 1982: "Spider-Man was discussed between Joe Simon and myself. It was the last thing Joe and I had discussed. We had a strip called the 'The Silver Spider'. The Silver Spider was going into a magazine called Black Magic. Black Magic folded with Crestwood (Simon & Kirby's 1950s comics company) and we were left with the script. I believe I said this could become a thing called Spider-Man, see, a superhero character. I had a lot of faith in the superhero character that they could be brought back... and I said Spider-Man would be a fine character to start with. But Joe had already moved on. So the idea was already there when I talked to Stan". "Shop Talk: Jack Kirby", Will Eisner's Spirit Magazine Joe Simon, 1990: "There were a few holes in Jack's never-dependable memory. For instance, there was no Black Magic involved at all. ... Jack brought in the Spider-Man logo that I had loaned to him before we changed the name to The Silver Spider. Kirby laid out the story to Lee about the kid who finds a ring in a spiderweb, gets his powers from the ring, and goes forth to fight crime armed with The Silver Spider's old web-spinning pistol. Stan Lee said, 'Perfect, just what I want.' After obtaining permission from publisher Martin Goodman, Lee told Kirby to pencil-up an origin story. Kirby... using parts of an old rejected superhero named Night Fighter... revamped the old Silver Spider script, including revisions suggested by Lee. But when Kirby showed Lee the sample pages, it was Lee's turn to gripe. He had been expecting a skinny young kid who is transformed into a skinny young kid with spider powers. Kirby had him turn into... Captain America with cobwebs. He turned Spider-Man over to Steve Ditko, who... ignored Kirby's pages, tossed the character's magic ring, web-pistol and goggles... and completely redesigned Spider-Man's costume and equipment. In this life, he became high-school student Peter Parker, who gets his spider powers after being bitten by a radioactive spider. ... Lastly, the Spider-Man logo was redone and a dashing hyphen added". Simon, Joe, with Jim Simon. The Comic Book Makers (Crestwood/II, 1990) ISBN 1-887591-35-4. "KAPOW! A Talk With Joe Simon", Dan Whitehead, The Web Magazine, 1997. | |||||||||||||||||||
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