Marvel

Topics covered include:

• Marvel’s corporate origins as "Timely Publications”, created in 1939 by pulp magazine publisher Martin Goodman in NYC, with the publication of Marvel Comics #1 • Creation of enduring characters such as Captain America, the Fantastic 4, Spider Man, The X-Men, Iron Man, Thor, The Hulk and more • Adoption in 1961 of the "Marvel Comics” brand, and writer-editor Stan Lee • ’s transition of the company towards focusing on edgier characters and stories targeted at older audiences • Marvel’s first sale in 1968 to the Perfect Film and Chemical Corporation (later Cadence Industries) • The company’s “turbulent” corporate history through the 1980’s and associated mergers, acquisitions and lawsuits • Marvel’s reinvention as a film-focused media company in the late 1990’s and early 2000’s with the launch of Marvel StudiosDisney’s ultimate acquisition of the company • for $4.2 billion in August 2009, during the depth of the great recession • Marvel's—and in particular Marvel Studios’— performance since the acquisition •

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