American writer and former president of Marvel Comics Stan Lee has died at the age of 95.

In 1961, Lee created The Fantastic Four for Marvel Comics, and went on to create titles including Spider-Man and The Incredible Hulk.

The legendary comic book author died at Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, according to a family lawyer.

The CEO of Lee's Pow! Entertainment praised the "father of pop culture" for inventing "universes of characters".
CEO Shane Duffy called him "a true iconic pioneer with no comparable second".

Lee's wife, Joan, died in 2017 - also aged 95 - but he is survived by his daughter, JC Lee.

Speaking to celebrity news website TMZ, JC Lee said her father was "the greatest, most decent man".

She told Reuters: "He felt an obligation to his fans to keep creating."

In recent years, Lee had periodically suffered from illnesses, including a bout of pneumonia, US media reported.

Lee was known for making a cameo in every Marvel film, though he had left the Marvel company in 1972. He remained chairman emeritus.

Lee was born in 1922 to working-class Jewish immigrants from Romania.

BBC Online

BDST: 1016 HRS, NOV 13, 2018
SI