With superhero creator Stan Lee releasing, "Election Daze," a new book of political humor, the expression "Super Tuesday" takes on a whole new meaning!
The name Stan Lee is usually synonymous with the famed Marvel Comics characters he co-created, such as Spider-Man, Iron Man, The Hulk, The Fantastic Four, The X-Men and many others.
Yet, many people don't know that in his secret identity Stan Lee has a soft spot for writing humor and he's showcasing his gag-writing skills with the release of his new book, "Election Daze." The book features his irrepressible, wildly funny dialogue balloons which accompany eye-catching photos by Capitol Hill photographer, Lauren Victoria Burke.
The subjects of the photos range from Barack Obama, John McCain, Hillary Clinton, and President Bush, to political celebrities such as George Clooney, Chuck Norris, and Stephen Colbert among others. "I've always gotten a kick out of combining far-out captions with serious pictures," says Lee. "It's a great change of pace from writing fantasy tales, although sometimes politics seems more like fantasy than my own stories."
Stan Lee first published a book of photo humor back in 1961 called "Golfer's Anonymous." The golf-themed book utilized the same formula--humorous dialogue and captions, with photos of people on the links. Fans everywhere gobbled it up and it quickly sold out its entire run. Lee recalls that he was so busy writing his superhero stories at that time that he never got around to following it up with similar books.
However, at a recent comic book convention where Stan was making a guest appearance, a fan asked him to autograph an old, carefully preserved copy of "Golfers Anonymous." Lee was happy to comply. "I had almost forgotten about that book. But, seeing it after all those years made me wonder if this wouldn't be the perfect time to write a similar book, but this time zeroing in on the political campaign that's on everyone's lips."
Stan also published a politically-themed magazine in the 1960's at Marvel Comics featuring photos of celebrity politicians such as President Kennedy, Richard Nixon, and Lyndon Johnson, so political humor isn't new to him.
Stan mentioned his idea for a new book to publisher Tom Filsinger who enthusiastically agreed that this was the right time and the right market for such a book. "I loved the idea," said Filsinger, aware that political personalities are particularly ripe for Lee's offbeat type of humor.
"Election Daze" focuses on what politicians and celebrities "might have been saying" from the beginning of the presidential primaries and beyond. "Stan's book will turn out to be a perfect keepsake for this historic election year," said Filsinger.
The success of "Election Daze" will undoubtedly lead to the publication of an entire new series of Stan Lee's books of photo humor. "They'll deal with everything people are interested in--sports, music, movies, TV, and celebrities of every type. And that's just for starters!" says an ebullient Lee.
So the man best known for superhero icons such as Spider-Man, now adds humor books to his amazing list of published works as he adds, with a smile, "After years of writing stories to keep readers on the edge of their seats, it's fun to write a book that'll make them kick back with laughter."
"Election Daze" was released in April and immediately reached "Number Two" for "Hot New Releases" in political humor at amazon.com. The book is currently a featured title at Barnes & Noble book stores and available at bookstores everywhere.
Stan has made several appearances to promote the book including the New York Comic Con on April 18-20, Barnes & Noble in Los Angeles on May 4, and BookExpo America in Los Angeles on May 30, with more signings and events scheduled throughout the summer leading up to the election in November. |
