Iron Man | |
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Iron Man in the Bleeding Edge Armor from
The Invincible Iron Man vol. 5, #25 (June 2010). Art by Salvador Larroca |
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Publication information | |
Publisher | Marvel Comics |
First appearance | Tales of Suspense #39 (March 1963) |
Created by |
Stan Lee (writer) Larry Lieber Don Heck (artist) Jack Kirby (artist) |
In-story information | |
Alter ego | Anthony Edward "Tony" Stark |
Species | Human |
Place of origin | Earth |
Team affiliations |
Avengers Department of Defense Force Works New Avengers Guardians of the Galaxy Illuminati The Mighty Avengers S.H.I.E.L.D. Stark Industries Stark Resilient Thunderbolts West Coast Avengers |
Partnerships |
War Machine Rescue |
Abilities |
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The Invincible Iron Man | |
Cover for The Invincible Iron Man #1 (May 1968). Art by Gene Colan and Mike Esposito. | |
Series publication information | |
Schedule | Monthly |
Format | Ongoing series |
Genre | Superhero |
Publication date |
(vol. 1) May 1968 – September 1996 (vol. 2) November 1996 – November 1997 (vol. 3) February 1998 – December 2004 (vol. 4) January 2005 – January 2009 (vol. 5) July 2008 – February 2011 (vol. 1 cont.) March 2011 – December 2012 (vol. 6) January 2013 – August 2014 |
Number of issues |
(vol. 1): 332 (vol. 2): 13 (vol. 3): 89 (vol. 4): 35 (vol. 5): 33 (vol. 1 cont.): 29 (#500-527 plus #500.1) (vol. 6): 29 (#1-28 plus #20.INH) (Superior Iron Man) 9 (Invincible Iron Man) vol. 2: 14 (as of December 2016 cover date) |
Creative team | |
Writer(s) |
List
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Penciller(s) |
List
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Inker(s) |
List
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Colorist(s) |
List
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Iron Man (Anthony Edward "Tony" Stark) is a fictional superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, as well as its associated media. The character was created by writer and editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby. He made his first appearance in Tales of Suspense #39 (cover dated March 1963).
An American billionaire playboy, business magnate, and ingenious engineer, Tony Stark suffers a severe chest injury during a kidnapping in which his captors attempt to force him to build a weapon of mass destruction. He instead creates a powered suit of armor to save his life and escape captivity. Later, Stark augments his suit with weapons and other technological devices he designed through his company, Stark Industries. He uses the suit and successive versions to protect the world as Iron Man, while at first concealing his true identity. Initially, Iron Man was a vehicle for Stan Lee to explore Cold War themes, particularly the role of American technology and business in the fight against communism. Subsequent re-imaginings of Iron Man have transitioned from Cold War themes to contemporary concerns, such as corporate crime and terrorism.
Throughout most of the character's publication history, Iron Man has been a founding member of the superhero team the Avengers and has been featured in several incarnations of his own various comic book series. Iron Man has been adapted for several animated TV shows and films. The character is portrayed by Robert Downey Jr. in the live action film Iron Man (2008), which was a critical and box office success. Downey, who received much acclaim for his performance, reprised the role in a cameo in The Incredible Hulk (2008), two Iron Man sequels Iron Man 2 (2010) and Iron Man 3 (2013), The Avengers (2012), Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), and Captain America: Civil War (2016), and will do so again in Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) as well as Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and its currently untitled sequel (2019) in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.