An unvarnished, unauthorized, behind-the-scenes account of one of the most dominant pop cultural forces in contemporary America.Operating out of a tiny office on Madison Avenue in the early 1960s, a struggling company called Marvel Comics presented a cast of brightly costumed characters distinguished by smart banter and compellingly human flaws. Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, Captain America, the Incredible Hulk, the Avengers, Iron Man, Thor, the X-Men, Daredevil& 8212;these superheroes quickly won children& 39;s hearts and sparked the imaginations of pop artists, public intellectuals, and campus radicals. Over the course of a half century, Marvel& 39;s epic universe would become the most elaborate fictional narrative in history and serve...