For those of you who've grown tired of seeing endless photos of the Stan Lee of 2008 due to the National Medal of the Arts he received from President Bush at the White House last Monday, here he is 41 years ago at the 1967 New York Comic Convention.

That's Big Name Fan turned pro Dave Kaler on the right.

[Click on the image for a larger view.]

And before you ask, no—I wasn't there to take this picture, though I wish I had been. I was only 12, and my first comic-book convention was still three years away. (As for Stan, I guess the goatee was still in his future.)

Though I've had the photo in a folder for decades, you'll have to thank either Andy or Pat Yanchus for its existence. One of them (they're not quite sure which; after all, it was 41 years ago) snapped it at this early con at the City Squire Hotel.