Audio version

Page 10 • Cognotes 2014 Annual Conference Highlights

Stan Lee Looms Large with Superhero Characters for All

By Brad Martin
LAC Group

Stan Lee spoke to an overflow crowd June 28 and treated them to a humorous look inside his creative process and personal history. Nachie Marsham, executive editor at Disney Publishing Worldwide, interviewed Lee, and their conversation occasionally took an unexpected turn to the delight of the audience.

Of course, millions of people know Stan Lee as the creator of such superheroes as Spider-Man™, The Avengers™, X-Men™, Iron Man™, The Incredible Hulk™, The Fantastic Four™, and many others, but the audience also learned that Lee once “practically won the war single handedly” by creating training manuals that were so effective that they decreased the time needed for training by 30 percent, according to Lee.

Lee was asked about his characters, and said that it is important that they all be quite different, noting that in Disney's “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs,” each character has a different name (Grumpy, Sleepy, and so on).

When asked about writing that appeals to different age groups, Lee said that the plot and the characters need to be interesting enough so that a young person could understand them, but an older person would also enjoy it.” Sometimes he might employ a larger word, but said the younger readers get the meaning by the context or by looking it up.

He also poked a little fun at Superman (not mentioning him by name) by saying that his body position prior to flying “just wasn't realistic.”

Lee's latest book is Zodiac, based on the Chinese Zodiac. Co-written with Stuart Moore and illustrated by Andie Tong, the book features a Chinese-American hero. Lee said it is “the most illustrated novel ever,” and “if you don't buy it, I am going to come back and talk to you again.”

—see video on page 13

Stan Lee pumps his fist while discussing his characters during his Auditorium Speaker Series presentation.

Jane Fonda Opens Auditorium Speaker Series

By Katie O'Connor
Student to ALA

Award-winning actress, producer, New York Times best-selling author, and activist Jane Fonda opened the June 28 Auditorium Speaker Series by discussing the challenges adolescents face, and highlighting how librarians and parents can work together to meet these challenges.

Fonda began with a frank discussion about the role libraries played in her early life. “All my life, I've taken refuge in libraries,” she said, detailing her experience volunteering in her school library. The difficulties she faced in her teenage years led to a lifelong passion for helping adolescents and inspired her to found the Georgia Campaign for Adolescent Power & Potential in 1994.

Fonda said her newest book, written for an older teenage audience, can help young people navigate the difficulties of their adolescent years. Being a Teen: Everything Teen Girls & Boys Should Know About Relationships, Sex, Love, Health, Identity & More, addresses emotional changes and how critical healthy relationships are to teens. Many adolescent girls develop uncertainty about their identity, in part due to unhealthy cultural messages about physical appearance. Fonda's book offers research and advice on helping girls retain a voice and gain a strong sense of self.

Adolescence can be a very different experience for boys. The media often delivers conflicting messages about masculinity. Fonda offered tips to help raise empathetic, compassionate boys. As early as age five, it is important to have boys name their emotions. They can learn to identify emotions in other people by looking at body language, tone of voice, and facial expressions. Naming these emotions can help them keep a sense of compassion as they enter into early adulthood.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0wkOk9DVBc

Comic Book Legend Named Honorary Chair of Library Card Sign-up Month

This September, Stan Lee, the co-creator of Spider-Man™, the Incredible Hulk™, X-Men™, Iron Man™, and the Fantastic Four™ will encourage children to get the most important school supply of all: a library card.

As the Honorary Chair of Library Card Sign-up Month, Lee has donated his image to a print and digital public service announcement (PSA). ALA will place the PSA in magazines and on websites to remind parents and educators that a library card is a key tool in achieving academic success.

Lee's latest creation is Zodiac, an action-packed illustrated novel written by Lee and Stuart Moore, and illustrated by Andie Tong. In the first story, we follow Steven Lee, a young Chinese-American teen who is drawn into a mysterious conspiracy surrounding 12 mystical pools of energy and a power-hungry secret organization.

Librarians looking to promote Library Card Sign-up Month locally can download the print and digital PSAs featuring Lee at www.ala.org/librarycardsignup. Free customization is available.

In addition to the PSA, sample media tools are now available to remind the public of all the resources available for free with a library card. Tools include a sample press release, op-ed, proclamation, and PSA scripts.

To download free promotional materials, visit www.ala.org/librarycardsignup.

Library Card Sign-up Month is a time when libraries across the country remind parents of the importance of having a card. Thousands of public and school libraries join together each fall in a national effort to ensure every child signs up for their own library card.

The Campaign for America's Libraries is the ALA's public awareness campaign that promotes the value of libraries and librarians. Thousands of libraries of all types - across the country and around the globe - use the campaign's @ your library®brand. The campaign is made possible in part by ALA’s Library Champions.