LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (KTHV) – Comic book legend and writer Stan Lee died at the age of 95 and one comic store owner said his passing is a loss for the industry.
"If you know about comics, Stan Lee is the person you know about,” Michael Tierney said.
The Comic Book Store owner Tierney certainly knows a thing or two about the comic book legend. He has been selling comic books for over 30 years.
"Stan Lee started out in the 50s, working for his cousin Martin Goodman making romance comics. When they decided they were going to go over to superhero comics, he just kept on writing those romance comics and everybody's like 'Wow! Superhero comics with angst!'" Tierney said.
Tierney said we are at a time in the industry where a lot of great comic book creators are passing. Yet, hearing Stan Lee passed is a shock.
PHOTOS: Stan Lee throughout the years
"I've had a lot of people wanting to sell their book. The calls of people wanting to sell let me know what had happened,” he said.
He said Lee's work is still some of his best sellers, as he did create some of the most iconic superheroes of all time.
"He created the Fantastic Four, Amazing Spiderman, the Incredible Hulk, X-Men,” Tierney said. “The list of characters he created would probably take the entire news segment to recall all the names there."
Tierney said Lees work transformed comics.
"Probably superheroes would not be as big a part of comic books as they are now,” he said.
Although the pioneer of superheroes is gone, Tierney said Lee still lives on in the Marvel Universe.
"His appearances in the movies showed how much the rest of the industry respected him. He's somebody you cannot replace. Once he's lost he's gone forever. The comic book industry is poorer for his loss,” Tierney said.
Lee was also a World War II veteran. He enlisted in 1942 after Pearl Harbor and worked many positions -- including creating and designing military posters and training films.