‘Spider-Man’ Obituary: Aaron Purmort Reveals Secret Identity In Moving Final Words

The “Spider-Man obituary” is something you’ll hear about in the next day or two, and when you do, try to take its message to heart.

That’s what Nora Purmfort wants you to know after her husband, Aaron Purmort, died of an inoperable tumor — a Grade 4 glioblastoma — on November 28.

In the piece, Purmfort reveals his “secret identity.”

“Purmort, Aaron Joseph age 35, died peacefully at home on November 25* after complications from a radioactive spider bite that led to years of crime-fighting and a years long battle with a nefarious criminal named Cancer, who has plagued our society for far too long. Civilians will recognize him best as Spider-Man, and thank him for his many years of service protecting our city. His family knew him only as a kind and mild-mannered Art Director, a designer of websites and t-shirts, and concert posters who always had the right cardigan and the right thing to say (even if it was wildly inappropriate). Aaron was known for his long, entertaining stories, which he loved to repeat often.”

[*Actual date of death was November 28 according to the couple’s blog, but Aaron co-wrote the Spider-Man obituary with Nora]

Nora knows that it may seem odd to approach her husband’s death from a place of humor, but it goes in keeping with the kind of relationship that the pair shared.

They met on Facebook, followed each other on Twitter, and started dating in 2010. Shortly thereafter, the tumor became a constant in their lives, she notes, on the website myhusbandstumor.

“It’s not a cancer story, it’s a love story. With some cancer,” the blog tagline notes.

From there, the couple chronicled Purmfort’s brave fight with the disease, never trying to candy coat the final outcome.

“I want to be clear as a bell with everyone: he is dying,” said Nora in early November.

On November 28, in the post announcing his death, she had this to say.

“It wasn’t a war or a fight… Those things have rules. This was more like Aaron getting in the ring with the Mohammed Ali of cancers, and smiling for round after round after he got his teeth knocked out and his face rearranged.”

The video above is for an upcoming documentary named a&n that will chronicle their short but memorable time together. You can read the full text of the Spider-Man obituary on the Minneapolis Star Tribune website, where it was published Sunday.