Doctor Strange made his mystic debut in"Strange Tales"#110 (July 1963). The 'Sorcerer Supreme' was created by the fantastic team of Stan Lee (writer, editor) & Steve Ditko (artist, co-plotter); the duo who had also created "The Amazing Spider-Man"!
Dr. Stephen Strange (a gifted, but arrogant neurosurgeon; who was also a genius) had gotten into a terrible car accident, which damaged his hands (his livelihood) He sought out every possibility for healing and restoration for them, to no avail! Finally he sought out a mystic called the 'Ancient One', who resided in the Himalayas. He proceeded to teach Stephen the magical 'black arts', which he in turn used to defeat Baron Mordo (one of the good doctor's enemies for years to come). Stephen became a master of the mystic arts, and took on the name "Doctor Strange". He began to battle evil in other-worldly realms and dimensions. Some of the enemies he encountered there included---(The Dread) Dormammu; Nightmare; The Living Tribunal; and Umar (Dormammu's sister). He also gained a love interest named Clea, who joined him on his inter-dimensional adventures. Besides the 'mystic arts', Doctor Strange had the power of flight and was good at martial arts. He resided in his 'Sanctum Santorum' and used magical artifacts, which included---Cloak of Levitation; Eye of Agamotto; Book of the Vishanti; and the Orb of Agammotto.
Steve Ditko's wildly amazing artwork took readers to dazzling, fantastical, (and very trippy) fantasy worlds, which were loaded with imagination and dangerous situations. Other great writers (Roy Thomas; Denny O'Neil; Raymond Marais; Jim Lawrence) & artists (Bill Everett; Marie Severin; Dan Adkins) joined the party.
After issue #168, the comic book was re-titled "Doctor Strange". The extremely talented team of artists, Gene Colon (penciler) & Tom Palmer (inker) took over the series, with wonderful, but very different results. In issue #177, Doctor Strange was given a 'superhero' mask and form-fitting costume, but this change didn't last long. The series was cancelled by #183. He returned in "Marvel Feature" (Dec. 1971-June 1972). During this time "The Defenders" were created (and eventually got their own series), which included Strange, The Hulk & Namor, the Sub-Mariner. "Marvel Feature" became "Doctor Strange: Master of the Mystic Arts" and lasted for 81 issues (from June 1974-Feb. 1987)! In a fantastic two-part cross-over story ("Doctor Strange"#14 & "Tomb of Dracula"#44), Doctor Strange did battle with Dracula!!! Both issues were drawn by the great Gene Colon, who regularly illustrated both series'.
Doctor Strange has appeared in many animated series' over the years (including the likes of Spider-Man, The Hulk, and many others). He appeared in a live-action TV movie ("Dr. Strange"-9/6/78), which starred Peter Hooten as the Doctor. There have been many times that producers & directors have wanted to bring him to the big screen (1986, 1994-95, 1997, 2001, 2005, 2008). In May of 2013, Marvel Studios President, Kevin Feige announced that a "Doctor Strange" feature film was in development. Well, here's hoping that it works this time and that it is faithful to the comic!!!
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