Howard Stark

Howard Stark is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is usually depicted as a background character in stories featuring Iron Man and stories featuring Captain America. He is the founder of Stark Industries. Throughout the character's publication history, he has been featured in several incarnations of comic book series. Howard Stark has also appeared in several animated television series and films. Actors John Slattery and Dominic Cooper have portrayed the character throughout the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) franchise. Publication history Howard Stark was created by Archie Goodwin and designed by artist Don Heck. He made his first appearance in Iron Man #28 (August 1, 1970). He was loosely based on Howard Hughes, a film producer and aviator. Described as a sarcastic scientist and ruthless businessman, Howard worked alongside his father on various projects, and later founded Stark Industries. He was an inventive mechanical engineering prodigy, constantly creating new technology and looking for ways to improve such technology. He designed and built weaponry and devices that have revolutionized the industrial world, such as various technologies used by S.H.I.E.L.D. and its allies. Howard later married to Maria Stark, and they had their child, Tony Stark. Howard's relationship with Tony was a difficult one. Howard's major weakness was his severe case of alcoholism, a problem Tony himself would inherit. In the comics, Howard and his wife died in a car crash, as the result of faulty brakes arranged by either business competitors Republic Oil & Gas or by V-Battalion. Howard's death inspired his son to take both business and engineering seriously as Iron Man.