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For those of you who don’t know, Stan Lee was the person who came up with popular Marvel comic book characters like Spider-Man, the Hulk, the Fantastic Four, Iron Man, and many others. He had been interviewed a million times. However, there is one interview that is way better than most. It is sold on a DVD called Stan Lee’s Mutants, Monsters & Marvels. It is by far the best Stan Lee Interview to date.
Stan Lee is interviewed by popular filmmaker Kevin Smith. The DVD (Stan Lee’s Mutants, Monsters & Marvels) has the interview actually broken up into two halves. The first half focuses on Spider-Man, while the second half discusses everything else.
Stan Lee tells Kevin Smith about his youth, and old home footage is shown on 8mm. In addition, his wife is interviewed as well, telling things from her perspective. The best part, however, is a rare look into Stan Lee’s home, where he shows off his comic-related collectables he had acquired over the years.
Beside being the best Stan Lee interview, the cost of the DVD is super-cheap (below five dollars) and is inspiring and fun to watch. As I was watching it, I kept thinking to myself how great this would be as a gift to an aspiring comic producer, or just to anyone who generally loves comics. Stan Lee’s Mutants, Monsters & Marvels: Creating Spider-Man and Here Come the Heroes (affiliate link) can easily be found on Amazon for dirt cheap, so be sure to take a look.
Their Relationship
Let’s talk about Stan Lee and Kevin Smith as they are two of the best people in the world of comics and movies. I’m sure most of you know them; Stan Lee was a co-creator with Marvel’s founder Jack Kirby for several superheroes like Spider-Man, X-Men, Iron Man, and others. Kevin Smith is also a filmmaker as well as a comic book writer who has delivered great movies named Clerks, Chasing Amy, and Dogma.
A friendship was forged between these two individuals that had been long and special since 1995 when Stan Lee played a cameo appearance in Kevin Smith’s film Mallrats. In this film, Stan Lee gives some advice on the subject of relationships to a man who is a fan of comic books but whose heart was broken (played by Jason Lee). It was an amusing and touching scene which showed the charisma and wit of Stan Lee at once. Kevin Smith later said that he was shocked that Stan Lee agreed to be in his movie, and that he only asked for one change in the script: to mention his wife Joan, who he loved dearly.
Following the success of Mallrats, Kevin Smith and Stan Lee remained connected, and they collaborated on numerous other projects including comics, documentaries, podcasts, and others. In addition to their professional relationship, they developed a strong friendship built on mutual admiration and respect. Stan Lee praised Kevin Smith for his passion and talent, while Kevin Smith admired Stan Lee’s creativity and generosity. They also spent many hours laughing together, sharing anecdotes about their respective careers and personal lives.
A highlight of their friendship occurred during one of Stan Lee’s last cameo appearances in Captain Marvel. In the scene, Captain Marvel catches a glimpse of Stan Lee on a train engrossed in the script for Mallrats. It was an amazing tribute to both Stan Lee and Kevin Smith, who said it felt like his Oscar moment.
Regrettably, the world lost Stan Lee in 2018 when he was 95 years old. Hearing about this news was shocking to Kevin Smith, and he also expressed his feelings of sorrow and appreciation through various social media platforms. He confessed that he was fortunate to have not only met him, but also worked with him and become friends.
The bond between Stan Lee and Kevin Smith was a beautiful testament to their shared love for comics, movies, and mutual inspiration for one another as well as their fans. They were both genuine believers who brought change to the world through their tales and heroes.