Spider-Man is a fictional superhero in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15 (August 1962), and was created by scripter-editor Stan Lee and artist-plotter Steve Ditko. Lee and Ditko conceived of the character as an orphan being raised by his Aunt May and Uncle Ben as an ordinary teenager, having to deal with the normal struggles of youth in addition to those of a costumed crime fighter. Spider-Man’s creators gave him the ability to cling to walls, shoot spider-webs using an invention he had created, and react to danger quickly with his “spider-sense”, enabling him to combat his many foes, including Doctor Octopus, the Sandman, the Lizard, the Green Goblin, and Venom.