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News: The Man, The Plans
posted July 28, 2004
 

July 28 -- The promise of new Stan Lee comic books in 2005 served as the highlight of a flurry of activity surrounding the 82-year-old media figure and longtime fixture at Marvel Comics. Komikwerks and ibooks announced plans to publish a 48-page, square-bound full-color graphic novel Stan Lee's Alexa, featuring Lee's latest female superhero character as depicted by artists Steranko, Dan Jurgens, John Royle, Chris Malgrain and Dave Gibbons. The book is intended as the first part of a graphic novel series. The company plans a price point of $6.95.

The announcement drew further attention to the fact that Stan's relationship with Komikwerks now includes him hosting a subscription web comics site. Stan Lee's Sunday Comics launched the week of July 19 and was promoted at San Diego's Comic-Con International. The pay portal should supplement Komikwerks' exisiting free on-line comics sites. Kicking off the site are four titles, all of which previously saw life in print: Yossel: April 19, 1943, by Joe Kubert; Amelia Rules, by Jimmy Gownley; Captain Sternn by Bernie Wrightson, and Trenchor by Keith Giffen.

Future titles announced for the site are to include Terminator: The Burning Earth by Ron Fortier and Alex Ross and Marlowe: The Graphic Novel by Jerome Charyn, David Lloyd, Ryan Hughes, Lee Moyers, and Alfredo Alcala among eight titles. Stan Lee's Sunday Comics is Lee's first major foray into on-line content hosting since his own ill-fated Stan Lee Media.

Speaking of Lee's failed Internet companies just past, on August 12 Lee made the news again when his company POW! Entertainment issued a clarification regarding Stan Lee's appearance in a wire story the day earlier. That story carried news that the Securities Exchange Commission had filed suit in Los Angeles against Stan Lee Media co-founder Peter Paul, SLM senior operations executive Stephen Gordon and stockbroker Jeffrey Pittsburg for manipulating the market for the company's stock in October and November 2000. The various charges against Peter Paul are believed to begin to be heard in Fall 2004 in New York when Paul goes to trial, hearings where it is believed Lee will testify against his former confidant and business partner.

POW! Entertainment's objection was to a headline that did not make clear the difference between Stan Lee and his failed company: "SEC Sues Three in Stan Lee Stock Case." The statement noted, "Stan Lee has been completely exonerated by the SEC of participating or even knowing of any manipulation. The conduct being pursued by the SEC involves stock sales and filings relative thereto by Peter Paul, Steve Gordon, and Jeffrey Pittsburg. Stan Lee not only never sold a single share of Stan Lee Media stock he was also personally defrauded of a large sum of money."