He-Man co-creator and Lake Stevens resident Roger Sweet dies at 91

Published 1:30 am Wednesday, April 29, 2026

EVERETT — Roger Sweet, Lake Stevens resident and a co-creator of the Masters of the Universe characters, died Tuesday. He had just turned 91 on April 4.

Roger’s wife, Marlene, 79, told The Herald Thursday he died peacefully at his memory care facility, where he had been battling dementia since early February.

“It was peaceful but it was so stressful,” she said.

Roger Sweet was in hospice for 10 days before he died, “totally nonresponsive,” his wife said. “He didn’t eat, he didn’t swallow.”

He died around 8 a.m. Tuesday, she said. Marlene Sweet, who was married to Roger for nearly 40 years, sat by his side until they took the body away, she said.

In February, Marlene created an online fundraiser to help pay for the care facility’s $10,200 monthly cost their insurance didn’t cover. As of Thursday, it raised $93,998, almost double the original $50,000 goal.

“I’m so thankful for all those people who helped pay for his care all those months,” Marlene said Thursday.

After a walk in February, Roger returned home with serious bruising on his side, Marlene told The Herald at the time. He did not remember falling.

He was in the hospital for seven days and was transferred to the memory care facility, she said.

“The doctors at the hospital said he could not come home because he’s too much of a fall risk,” Marlene Sweet said.

Roger Sweet worked at Mattel for over 17 years and was a manager on the Masters of the Universe team.

“He’s a very meticulous person,” Marlene said. He was always concerned about keeping fit and stretching every day, she said.

“I always wanted to be a He-Man and never could,” Roger told The Herald in 2019. “I knew almost every guy in the world would love to be a He-Man.”

Roger Sweet’s death comes as the Masters of the Universe movie is scheduled for release on June 5.

For almost a month, Marlene tried to contact the movie’s producers, she said on the online fundraiser.

“It would be so appropriate if they would dedicate this movie to Roger as the creator of He-Man, and also to Mark Taylor, who created Skelator,” she said.

On Thursday, Marlene said she was told people associated with the movie had heard the idea and liked it.

“It might actually get done,” Marlene Sweet said.

According to the top donations, the Mattel Foundation donated $5,000.

After Roger died, Marlene reached out to the daughter of his best friend, Jerry, who died a month earlier, she said.

They had been friends since they were both 5 years old, and are “playing together again,” Marlene said.

Taylor Scott Richmond: 425-339-3046; taylor.richmond@heraldnet.com; X: @BTayOkay