Larry Lieber

Biography:

Larry Lieber (born October 26, 1931) is an American comic book writer and artist, best known as the co-creator of Marvel superheroes Iron Man, Thor, and Ant-Man. He also had a notable run both writing and illustrating Rawhide Kid, a Marvel Western series, and spent decades illustrating the Amazing Spider-Man newspaper strip (1986–2018). From 1974–1975, he served as editor of Atlas/Seaboard Comics. He is the younger brother of Marvel legend Stan Lee.

Lieber was born in Manhattan to Romanian-Jewish immigrants Celia (née Solomon) and Jack Lieber, and grew up in The Bronx and later Washington Heights. Interested in art from an early age, he attended George Washington High School. After his mother’s death during his teenage years, he briefly lived with his brother Stan and sister-in-law Joan in Long Island. By age 17, Lieber was working as a messenger for The New York Times and at a Times Square art studio, living independently in Manhattan.

In 1951, Lieber enlisted in the U.S. Air Force and served four years, including two in Okinawa during the Korean War. After his service, he studied at the Art Students League and began freelancing at Atlas Comics, Marvel’s predecessor. By the late 1950s, he was scripting stories based on plots from his brother Stan Lee, often for artist Jack Kirby. Lieber’s early work included romance comics and science fiction tales before moving into superheroes.

He went on to script the origin stories and early adventures of Thor, Iron Man, and Ant-Man, co-creating their alter egos—Donald Blake, Tony Stark, and Hank Pym. He also introduced Norse mythological figures such as Loki, Odin, and Balder into Marvel lore. While Stan Lee provided plots, Lieber crafted the full scripts.

In 1964, Lieber shifted focus to the Western series Rawhide Kid, which he wrote and drew for nearly a decade. He also contributed to other Marvel projects, including The Amazing Spider-Man Annuals, a solo Doctor Doom story, and occasional war, Western, and horror comics. Due to industry politics, he never worked for rival DC Comics.

In 1974, he became editor at Atlas/Seaboard Comics, Martin Goodman’s short-lived competitor to Marvel and DC. After the company folded, Lieber returned to Marvel, where he wrote Captain Britain stories for Marvel UK. In the late 1970s, he began illustrating the syndicated comic strips The Incredible Hulk and later The Amazing Spider-Man, continuing the latter for more than three decades until his retirement in 2018.

Lieber received several honors for his contributions to comics, including the Inkpot Award in 2003 and the Bill Finger Award for Excellence in Comic Book Writing in 2008.