Tony Stark/Iron Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Co-created by writer and editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in Tales of Suspense #39 in 1963, and received his own title with Iron Man #1 in 1968. Shortly after his creation, Iron Man was a founding member of a superhero team, the Avengers, with Thor, Ant-Man, the Wasp, and the Hulk. Iron Man stories, individually and with the Avengers, have been published consistently since the character's creation.
Iron Man is the superhero persona of Anthony Edward "Tony" Stark, a businessman and engineer who runs the weapons manufacturer Stark Industries. When Stark is captured in a war zone and sustains a serious heart wound, he builds his Iron Man armor out of scrap and escapes his captors. Iron Man's suits of armor grant him superhuman strength, flight, energy projection, and other abilities. The character was used to explore political themes, and early Iron Man stories were set in the Cold War. Later stories explored other themes, such as civil unrest, technological advancement, corporate espionage, alcoholism, and governmental authority.
Major Iron Man stories include Demon in a Bottle (1979), Armor Wars (1987–1988), Extremis (2005), and Iron Man 2020 (2020). He is also a leading character in the company-wide stories Civil War (2006–2007), Dark Reign (2008–2009), and Civil War II (2016). Additional superhero characters have emerged from Iron Man's supporting cast, including James Rhodes as War Machine and Riri Williams as Ironheart, as well as reformed villains, Natasha Romanova as Black Widow and Clint Barton as Hawkeye. Iron Man's list of enemies includes his archenemy the Mandarin, many supervillains of communist origin, and many that double as business rivals for Tony.
Robert Downey Jr. portrayed Tony Stark in Iron Man (2008), the first film of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and continued to portray the character until his final appearance in Avengers: Endgame (2019). Downey's portrayal popularized the character, elevating Iron Man into one of Marvel's most recognizable superheroes.
