This article is for the character of Tony Stark/Iron Man. For the Iron Man armours themselves, see Iron Man (disambiguation).
Anthony "Tony" Stark is an ingenious scientist and inventor and CEO of the advanced technologies firm, Stark Industries. He is also publicly known as the armoured superhero Iron Man, and is one of the most popular characters in the Marvel Comics universe.
Personality[]
Tony Stark possesses an incredibly gifted mind; he is highly imaginative and inventive, having created numerous technological breakthroughs for use by the general public, the military and the superhero community. While he can be egotistical, Tony has a kind heart and knows the value of human compassion, though this was not always the case. He was once a self-absorbed, chauvenistic playboy who cared only about money, women and fame. Since the incident that led to his rebirth as Iron Man, Tony has been humbled significantly and has dedicated himself to making the world a better place.
History[]
Before Iron Man[]
Tony Stark was born to Howard Anthony Stark and Maria Collins Carbonell Stark, owners of the prominent US firm, Stark Industries. As a boy, Tony was fascinated with building and controlling machines. At the age of 15 Tony entered the undergraduate electrical engineering program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and graduated with two master’s degrees by age 19. Tony went to work for Stark Industries, but showed more interest in living a reckless playboy lifestyle than using his engineering skills. At the age of 21, Tony inherited Stark Enterprises when his parents were killed in a car accident secretly orchestrated by rival corporation Republic Oil (later ROXXON). Still lacking in business acumen, Tony promoted secretary Virginia "Pepper" Potts to be his executive assistant and left the majority of his workload on her so that he could avoid what he saw as a burden.
Birth of a hero[]
During a demonstration of a new weapon system in the Middle East, Stark was assaulted and captured by
terrorists. During the attack, he suffered what would have been a mortal injury, having schrapnel from an explosion embedded in his torso dangerously close to his heart. When taken captive by the terrorists led by Asian warlord Wong Chu, Stark survived when fellow captive and scientist Yinsen installed an electromagnet device in Tony's chest, which kept the schrapnel from puncturing his heart. Wong Chu demanded that Tony build a missile for him and had provided materials that had been stolen from Tony's company. Tony agreed, but his first order of business was to build a new life support system to replace the car battery-powered electromagnet that Yinsen had installed. Stark successfully created a miniature version of his ARC reactor that powered his factory back in the US and used it to keep himself alive. He and Yinsen then set to work using the materials Wong Chu had provided to assemble a weapon system, but not the one that the warlord was expecting. Instead, Tony had built a suit of armour equipped with a devastating arsenal and could not be damaged by the terrorists' comparitively obsolete arms. Tony donned the suit himself and powered it with his own ARC battery, fighting his way out of the terrorist camp. Unfortunately, Yinsen was killed as the two tried to escape. After making his escape, Tony was rescued by the US military and returned home a new man. Realising that manufacturing weapons was not enough to ensure global peace and that he was essentially wasting his talents for frivolous pursuits such as fame and women, Tony took it upon himself to maintain world security by becoming Iron Man, an armoured avenger that would fight for justice and preserve peace.
Iron Man[]
Ever since taking up the identity of Iron Man, Tony Stark has continuously fought to protect the world from terrorists and supervillains, as well as more outlandish and alien threats. He regularly modifies all his technology and has created an ever-expanding armoury containing all of his Iron Man suits, past and present. While Stark Industries no longer builds weapons for the US military, Tony has often provided various technological assets to S.H.I.E.L.D., the global peacekeeping force which he has worked for for several years since becoming Iron Man. He is also responsible for founding the Avengers, a team of Earth's greatest heroes working under S.H.I.E.L.D..