Stan Lee’s company, POW! Entertainment, released an open letter in response to HBO host Bill Maher after he made disparaging comments regarding Lee’s legacy shortly after he passed away, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
- Maher, host of HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher, released a blog post on Saturday in which he belittled Lee’s legacy and the importance of comic books.
- Maher saw backlash from fans over the following couple of days before POW! Entertainment decided to respond with an open letter, in which they call Maher’s statements “disgusting.”
- Lee – Disney Legend and creator of iconic Marvel characters like Spider-Man, the Hulk, the X-Men and many more – passed away at the age of 95 last week.
What they’re saying:
- Bill Maher’s blog post: “The guy who created Spider-Man and the Hulk has died, and America is in mourning. Deep, deep mourning for a man who inspired millions to, I don’t know, watch a movie, I guess.”
- Maher’s post continued: “Now, I have nothing against comic books – I read them now and then when I was a kid and I was all out of Hardy Boys. But the assumption everyone had back then, both the adults and the kids, was that comics were for kids, and when you grew up you moved on to big-boy books without the pictures. But then twenty years or so ago, something happened – adults decided they didn’t have to give up kid stuff. And so they pretended comic books were actually sophisticated literature.”
- POW! Entertainment’s open letter to Maher: “Mr. Maher: Comic books, like all literature, are storytelling devices. When written well by great creators such as Stan Lee, they make us feel, make us think and teach us lessons that hopefully make us better human beings. One lesson Stan taught so many of us was tolerance and respect, and thanks to that message, we are grateful that we can say you have a right to your opinion that comics are childish and unsophisticated. Many said the same about Dickens, Steinbeck, Melville and even Shakespeare. But to say that Stan merely inspired people to “watch a movie” is in our opinion frankly disgusting.”
- POW! Entertainment’s open letter continued: “Our shock at your comments makes us want to say “‘Nuff said, Bill,” but instead we will rely on another of Stan’s lessons to remind you that you have a powerful platform, so please remember: “With great power there must also come — great responsibility!”