The Ultimate Vampire Resource and Directory

Spider-Man is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15 (Aug. 1962), and was created by scripter-editor Stan Lee and artist-plotter Steve Ditko. When Spider-Man first appeared in the early 1960s, teenagers in superhero comic books were usually relegated to the role of sidekick to the series' main character. The Spider-Man series broke ground by featuring Peter Parker, a teenage high school student to whose "self-obsessions with rejection, inadequacy, and loneliness" young readers could relate. Unlike previous teen heroes such as Bucky and Robin, Spider-Man did not benefit from adult mentors like Captain America and Batman and had to learn for himself that "with great power comes great responsibility".

Marvel has featured Spider-Man in several comic book series, the first titled The Amazing Spider-Man. Over the years, the Peter Parker character has developed from shy high school student to troubled college student to a married teacher and a member of the superhero team the New Avengers. In the comics, Spider-Man is often referred to as "Spidey", "web-slinger", "wall-crawler", or "web-head".