Stan Lee once called his daughter, JC, his “greatest creation”—a belief that turned out to be both a gift and a burden. Now in her mid-70s, JC is cut off from the Marvel empire, “frozen out by those who control her father’s legacy.” For Business Insider, Jason Guerrasio writes about the tumultuous life of Lee’s only child, as well as recounts the sad and lonely final years of the comic book legend’s life. (Subscription required.)

Those cozying up to JC may have believed there was money to be made from having the ear of Stan Lee’s daughter. But her father’s creative genius didn’t always translate into great business sense. In 1998, as Stan prepared to exit day-to-day operations at Marvel, he signed a contract that set him up with an annual salary that would cap at $1 million a year for life, stock options, and 10% of the profits from any movies that used Marvel characters he had helped create.

That last clause, had he held on to it, would have been a gold mine. In 2002, “Spider-Man,” starring Tobey Maguire, became a box office sensation, grossing over $825 million worldwide. But when Stan didn’t receive his promised 10%, he sued. In a settlement signed in 2005, Stan agreed to drop the profit-share agreement in exchange for a one-time lump sum of $10 million.

For Stan, who was in his 80s, it must have seemed like a generous deal. Instead, he had given away the keys to his kingdom.

Her stake in the Stan Lee Universe, now controlled by a company called Kartoon Studios, is less than 5%. At one point, JC reached out to Kartoon about being more involved in the business, but those conversations ultimately disintegrated.

“My father is supporting everyone,” JC says. “I feel these people have taken my life, and they’re eating off gold utensils and I’m eating off plastic.”

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Cheri has been an editor at Longreads since 2014.