Created by the powerhouse team of Stan Lee and legendary artist Jack Kirby for Marvel Comics, The Fantastic Four premiered in 1961.  The comic book series was one of the first to present a group of superheroes as a team, and also broke the superhero "mold" by portraying the team as a large and often dysfunctional family, prone to squabbles and petty jealousies. Unlike most superheroes who carefully guard their secret identities, members of the Fantastic Four opted instead for fame and operating out in the open. 

Co-creator, Stan Lee said:

"For just this once, I would do the type of story I myself would enjoy reading.... And the characters would be the kind of characters I could personally relate to: they'd be flesh and blood, they'd have their faults and foibles, they'd be fallible and feisty, and — most important of all — inside their colorful, costumed booties they'd still have feet of clay."

The original Fantastic Four consisted of a group of scientists exposed to radiation while on a space mission, thereby altering their DNA and giving them superhuman powers.  The original team consisted of:

Captain Fantastic:  Reed Roberts.  Leader of the Group, a scientific genius whose power enables him to stretch his body into any length or shape.

The Invisible Woman:  Sue Storm, Reed's wife, who is able to become invisible and project force fields..

The Human Torch:  Johnny Storm, Sue's kid brother, who can generate flames, surround himself with them and can fly.

Thing:   Ben Grimm, whose rocklike appearance emphasizes his enormous strength and power.

 View the Trailer for the movie "Fantastic Four"